2012-now : researcher and assistant professor at Laboratoire Navier, École des Ponts ParisTech (Champs-sur-Marne, France)

2022 : Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches, Université Paris Est-Sup (Champs-sur-Marne, France) – Molecular simulation in geomechanics : application to poromechanical couplings and to brittle failure

2011-2012 : Postdoc, Massachusetts institute of Technology (Cambridge, MA) – Fracture properties of source rocks

2008-2011: PhD candidate, École des Ponts ParisTech (Champs-sur-Marne, France) – Poromechanics and adsorption: Application to coal swelling during carbon geological storage, Advisors: Dr. O. Coussy (Navier), Dr. M. Vandamme (Navier), Dr. T. Fen-Chong (Navier), Dr. R. Pellenq (MIT and AMU)

2003-2007: Engineer (Master degree) in Mechanics and Materials, joint degree between École Polytechnique (Palaiseau, France) and École des Ponts ParisTech (Champs-sur-Marne, France)

Multi scale approaches for the study of the physics and mechanics of materials with emphasis on phenomena that have their origin at the molecular scale :

• adsorption and poromechanics
• fracture mechanics and failure initiation
• thermo-mechanical couplings
• cristallisation confinée

Targeted applications are mostly in geomechanics and construction materials

• underground storage (gas, nuclear wastes)
• seismicity and underground stability
• geomaterials (clays, cementitious materials, heritage materials)
• natural carbons  (coal, cellulose)
• nanomaterials (graphene, nanocomposites clay-polymer)

2024-now : Scientific basis for energy transition, Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées, coordinator, dpt. of 1st year (undergraduate)

2020-now: Quantum mechanics, Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées, lecturer, dpt. of 1st year (undergraduate)

2018-2020: Molecular simulation in materials science, Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées, lecturer, dpt. of mechanical engineering (graduate, 2nd/3rd year)

2016-now: Research project, Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées, dpt. of 1st year (undergraduate)

• Resilience of electric networks and smart grid
• Molecular simulation of a flexible Metal-Organic-Framework
• Epidamic propagation of Covid19 

2016-now: Statistical Physics Applied to Complex Systems, Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées, coordinator, dpt. of 1st year (undergraduate)

2010-now: Statistical Physics, Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées, lecturer then coordinator (since 2025), dpt. of 1st year (undergraduate)

2010-now: Ecodesign, Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées, coordinator, dpt. of mechanical engineering (graduate, 2nd/3rd year)

2010-2015: LCA and innovative materials, Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées, lecturer, Specialized master ‘electric vehicle engineering’ (graduate)

2009-2010: Structure mechanics, Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées, lecturer, dpt. of mechanical engineering (graduate, 2nd/3rd year)

2025-2029 : ANR JCJC project ‘DURABLE’ (Designing toUgh and stRong quAsi-Brittle composites through multi-scaLe pattErning), participant, collaboration Navier (Champs-sur-Marne) / d’Alembert (Paris)

2025-2030 : ANR PRME project ‘ColdWell’ (Cold CO2 in Hot Reservoirs:  Well Integrity in Carbon Capture and Storage), participant and work package leader, collaboration Navier-geotechnics / Navier-multiscale / Navier-structure

2024-2026 : FFCR and Mitacs collaboration grant (Advancing Nuclear Waste Management: Integrated Computational Modeling of Clay), co-coordinator, collaboration Navier (France) / Queen’s University (Canada)

2023 : MaTerRE small equipment project (Physical modeling and particle-scale simulations of adhesive colloidal suspensions), participant, collaboration Navier-multiscale / Navier-rheophysics

2023-2028 : ANR project ‘SMEC’ (Smectite dehydration: a key to fault mechanics?), partner’s scientific leader, collaboration Navier (Champs-sur-Marne) / ISTO-BRGM (Orléans) / GéoRessource (Nancy) / Sorbonne-ENS (Paris) / IC2MP (Poitier)

2022-2025 : CNRS 80Prime project ‘ESOPE’ (Salt weathering: origin of the crystallization pressure), scientific coordinator, collaboration Navier (Champs-sur-Marne) / ISTO (Orléans) / LMPS (Gif-sur-Yvette)

2021-2023 : CSC visiting PhD project (Elucidating the atomic-level stability of C-S-H and the transport properties of unfrozen water nanofilm at its surface under a cryogenic environment), PhD supervisor, collaboration Navier (France) / Tongji (China)

2020-2023 : NEEDS-MIPOR project ‘ARPENTONS’ (Experimental-numerical approaches for claystone at many scales for the effects of temperature and saturation), partner’s scientific leader, collaboration 3SR (Grenoble) / IC2MP (Poitiers) / Navier (Champs-sur-Marne)

2021-2024 : ANDRA PhD project (Modeling of the behavior of a fractured porous medium under gas injection), participant, collaboration Navier (Champs-sur-Marne) / CMHM (Bure)

2019-2023 : ENPC PhD and labex MMCD project (postdocs) on water transfers in won and cellulose, participant, collaboration Navier-multiscale (molecular simulation) / Navier-rheophysics (NMR)

2018-2022 : I-Site project ‘ALLUVIUM’ (earth-based construction), postdoc on the mitigation of drying shrinkage by cationic exchange, participant, collaboration ENPC (molecular simulation) / Univ. Gustave Eiffel (experimentation) / LRMH (preservation of heritage)

2016-2018 : NEEDS-MIPOR project ‘VARAPE’ (Accounting for the spatial variability of claystone properties through a numerical experimental approach at many scales), partner’s scientific leader, collaboration 3SR (Grenoble) / IC2MP (Poitiers) / Navier (Champs-sur-Marne)

2015-2019 : ANR project ‘TEAM2ClayDesicc’ (Thermal Expansion of Adsorbing Microporous Media, Application to Thermally Induced Desiccation of Clay), coordinator

2013-2018: labex MMCD projects on the study of failure initiation by molecular simulation, collaboration Navier (mechanics) / CERMICS (applied mathematics), coordinator

Zou, Y., Maillet, B., Brochard, L., & Coussot, P. (2023). Unveiling moisture transport mechanisms in cellulosic materials: Vapor vs. bound water. PNAS Nexus. https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgad450

Brochard, L. (2023). Thermoporoelastic Moduli from Molecular Fluctuations and Application to Moisture Effect on Amorphous Cellulose. Journal of Engineering Mechanics, 149(11). https://doi.org/10.1061/JENMDT.EMENG-7020

Mahmoud Hawchar, B., Honorio, T., Vandamme, M., Osselin, F., Pereira, J.-M., & Brochard, L. (2023). Solubility of NaCl under anisotropic stress state. The Journal of Chemical Physics, 159(3). https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0156229

Zhu, X., Vandamme, M., Jiang, Z., & Brochard, L. (2023). Molecular simulation of the confined crystallization of ice in cement nanopore. The Journal of Chemical Physics, 159(15). https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0169783

Asadi, F., Zhu, H.-X., Vandamme, M., Roux, J.-N., & Brochard, L. (2022). A meso-scale model of clay matrix: the role of hydration transitions in geomechanical behavior. Soft Matter. https://doi.org/10.1039/D2SM00773H

Brochard, L. (2021). Swelling of Montmorillonite from Molecular Simulations: Hydration Diagram and Confined Water Properties. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 125(28), 15527–15543. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcc.1c02659

Brochard, L.,  Honório, T. (2021). Thermo-poro-mechanics under adsorption applied to the anomalous thermal pressurization of water in undrained clays. Acta Geotechnica, 16(9), 2713–2727. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11440-021-01188-8

Brochard, L., Souguir, S., & Sab, K. (2018). Scaling of brittle failure : strength versus toughness. International Journal of Fracture, 210(1-2), 153–166. http://doi.org/10.1007/s10704-018-0268-9

Brochard, L., Honório, T., Vandamme, M., Bornert, M., & Peigney, M. (2017). Nanoscale origin of the thermo-mechanical behavior of clays. Acta Geotechnica, 12(6), 1261–1279. http://doi.org/10.1007/s11440-017-0596-3

Brochard, L., Tejada, I. G., & Sab, K. (2016). From yield to fracture, failure initiation captured by molecular simulation. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids, 95, 632–646. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmps.2016.05.005

Brochard, L., Vandamme, M., Pellenq, R. J. M., & Fen-Chong, T. (2012). Adsorption-induced deformation of microporous materials : Coal swelling induced by CO2-CH4 competitive adsorption. Langmuir, 28(5), 2659–2670. http://doi.org/10.1021/la204072d

Brochard, L., Vandamme, M., & Pellenq, R. J.-M. (2012). Poromechanics of microporous media. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids, 60(4), 606–622. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmps.2012.01.001