Citation: TANO, F. ...et al., Numerical modelling of the nonlinear mechanical behavior of multilayer geosynthetic system for piggyback landfill expansions.Geotextiles and Geomembranes, 44 (6), pp. 782-798.Additional Information:• This paper was accepted for publication in the journal Geotextiles of the GSYs and of the interfaces between GSYs must be considered. Designers, however, often 31 use simplistic assumptions without further analyzing the implications of these assumptions on the 32 results. Such simplifications mainly concern the nonlinear axial stiffness of GSYs, the strain 33 softening at interfaces between GSYs, and the difference between the compressive and tensile 34 behavior of GSYs. By, considering these key aspects, the present study aims to understand the 35 extent to which the results of numerical calculations can be influenced both by the differing 36 compressive and tensile behavior of GSYs and by the assumption of strain softening at interfaces 37 between GSYs. For this purpose, several numerical models are implemented by using the finite-38 difference code FLAC 2D on a typical PBLE that involves four GSYs and six interfaces. The 39 present work also applies comprehensive, state-of-the-art numerical modelling to study the 40 interactions between multiple layers of GSYs. This study also investigates the nonlinear axial 41 stiffness of GSYs through a series of uniaxial tensile tests. The numerical results show that, if the 42 GSY axial compressive and tensile characteristics are the same, then tensile force is minimized, 43 which induces significant compressive force in the GSYs. The results also indicate that 44 3 neglecting strain softening at the interface between GSYs affects interface shear stresses, 45 displacements of GSYs at the interface, and the GSY force distribution, potentially rendering the 46 model unrealistic. Including strain softening, however, allows the assessment (location) of 47 unstable areas along the interface where large displacements occur. 48 49