• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.1-13
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• 2020

To give a solution for seismic stability of tunnel faces subjected to earthquake ground shakings, the pseudo-dynamic approach is originally introduced to analyze tunnel face stability in this study. In the light of the upper-bound theorem of limit analysis, an advanced three-dimensional mechanism combined with pseudo-dynamic approach is proposed. Based on this mechanism, the required support pressure on tunnel face can be obtained by equaling external work rates to the internal energy dissipation and implementing an optimization searching procedure related to time. Both time and space feature of seismic waves are properly accounted for in the proposed mechanism. For this reason, the proposed mechanism can better represent the actual influence of seismic motion and has a remarkable advantage in evaluating the effects of vertical seismic acceleration, soil amplification factor, seismic wave period and initial phase difference on tunnel face stability. Furthermore, the pseudo-dynamic approach is compared with the pseudo-static approach. The difference between them is illustrated from a new but understandable perspective. The comparison demonstrates that the pseudo-static approach is a conservative method but still could provide precise enough results as the pseudo-dynamic approach if the value of seismic wavelengths is large or the height of soil structures is small.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 1999.10a
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• pp.185-192
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• 1999

This paper presents the results of a parametric study on the behavior of tunnel face reinforced with horizontal pipes. A three-dimensional finite element model was adopted in this study to capture the three-dimensional nature of tunnel face behavior under various boundary conditions. A parametric study was peformed on a wide range of boundary conditions with emphasis on the effect of reinforcing layouts on the deformation behavior of tunnel face. The results of analysis such as tunnel face deformation behavior under various conditions were thoroughly analyzed, and a database for the behavior of tunnel face under different reinforcing conditions was established for future development of a semi-empirical design/analysis method for the tunnel face reinforcing technique. The results indicated that there exits an optimum reinforcing layout for a given tunnel condition, which must be selected with due consideration of tunnel geometry and ground condition.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2003.03a
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• pp.273-280
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• 2003

Tunneling in difficult geological conditions is often inevitable especially in urban areas. Ground improvement and reinforcement techniques are often required to guarantee safe tunnel excavations and/or to prevent damage to adjacent structures. The steel pipe-reinforced multi-step grouting method has been recently applied to tunnel sites in Korea as an auxiliary technique. In this study, the face stability with steel pipe-reinforced multi-step grouting was evaluated by simultaneously considering two factors: one is the effective stress acting on the tunnel face calculated by limit theorem and limit equilibrium method; the other is the seepage force obtained by means of numerical analysis. The study revealed that the influence of the steel pipe-reinforced multi-step grouting on the support pressure in dry condition is not significant while there is relatively a large amount of reduction in seepage forces by adopting the technique in saturated condition. The effect of the anisotropy of permeability on the seepage force acting on the tunnel face was also estimated by conducting the coupled analysis. It was found that a higher horizontal permeability compared with the vertical one causes reduction in the seepage force acting on the tunnel face.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.417-426
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• 2024

Shield tunneling method is widely used to build tunnels in complex geological environment. Stability control of tunnel face is the key to the safety of projects. To improve the excavation efficiency or perform equipment maintenance, the excavation chamber sometimes is not fully filled with support medium, which can reduce the load and increase tunneling speed while easily lead to ground collapse. Due to the high risk of the face failure under non-fully support mode, the tunnel face stability should be carefully evaluated. Whether compressive air is required for compensation and how much air pressure should be provided need to be determined accurately. Based on the upper bound theorem of limit analysis, a non-fully support rotational failure model is developed in this study. The failure mechanism of the model is verified by numerical simulation. It shows that increasing the density of supporting medium could significantly improve the stability of tunnel face while the increase of tunnel diameter would be unfavorable for the face stability. The critical support ratio is used to evaluate the face failure under the nonfully support mode, which could be an important index to determine whether the specific unsupported height could be allowed during shield tunneling. To avoid of face failure under the non-fully support mode, several charts are provided for the assessment of compressed air pressure, which could help engineers to determine the required air pressure for face stability.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.399-406
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• 2021

It is a key issue in the tunnel design to evaluate the stability of the excavation face. Two efficient analytical models in the context of the limit equilibrium method (LEM) and the limit analysis method (LAM) are used to carry out the deterministic calculations of the safety factor. The safety factor obtained by these two models agrees well with that provided by the numerical modelling by FLAC 3D, but consuming less time. A simple probabilistic approach based on the Mote-Carlo Simulation technique which can quickly calculate the probability distribution of the safety factor was used to perform the probabilistic analysis on the tunnel face stability. Both the cumulative probabilistic distribution and the probability density function in terms of the safety factor were obtained. The obtained results show the effectiveness of this probabilistic approach in the tunnel design.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.145-157
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• 2023

This paper aims at investigating the face stability of large-diameter underwater shield tunnels considering seepage in soft-hard uneven strata. Using the kinematic approach of limit upper-bound analysis, the analytical solution of limit supporting pressure on the tunnel face considering seepage was obtained based on a logarithmic spiral collapsed body in uneven strata. The stability analysis method of the excavation face with different soft- and hard-stratum ratios was explored and validated. Moreover, the effects of water level and burial depth on tunnel face stability were discussed. The results show the effect of seepage on the excavation face stability can be accounted as the seepage force on the excavation face and the seepage force of pore water in instability body. When the thickness ratio of hard soil layer within the excavation face exceeds 1/6D, the interface of the soft and hard soil layer can be placed at tunnel axis during stability analysis. The reliability of the analytical solution of the limit supporting pressure is validated by numerical method and literature methods. The increase of water level causes the instability of upper soft soil layer firstly due to the higher seepage force. With the rise of burial depth, the horizontal displacement of the upper soft soil decreases and the limit supporting pressure changes little because of soil arching effect.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.471-492
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• 2016

Underground tunnelling is one of the sustainable construction methods which can facilitate the increasing passenger transportation in the urban areas and benefit the community in the long term. Tunnelling in various ground conditions requires careful consideration of the stability factor. This paper investigates three dimensional stability of a shallow circular tunnel in a layered soil. Upper bound theorem of limit analysis was utilised to solve the tunnel face stability problem. A three dimensional kinematic admissible failure mechanism was improved to model a layered soil and limiting assumptions of the previous studies were resolved. The study includes calculation of the minimum support pressure acting on the face of the excavation in closed-face excavations. The effects of the characteristics of the layers on the minimum support pressure were examined. It was found that the ratio of the thickness of cover layers particularly when a weak layer is overlying a stronger layer, has the most significant influence on the minimum tunnel support pressure. Comparisons have been made with the results of the numerical modelling using FLAC3D software. Results of the current study were in a remarkable agreement with those of numerical modelling.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.32-40
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• 2000

This paper presents the results of a parametric study on the behavior of tunnel face reinforced with horizontal pipes. A series of reduced-scale model tests was carried out to in an attempt to verify previously performed three-dimensional numerical modeling and to investigate effects of reinforcement layout on the tunnel face deformation behavior. The results of model tests indicate that the tunnel face deformation can significantly reduced by pre-reinforcing the tunnel face with longitudinal members and thus enhancing the tunnel stability. In addition, the model tests results compare fairly well with those from the previously performed three-dimensional finite element analysis. Therefore, a properly calibrated three dimensional model may effectively be used in the study of tunnel face reinforcing technique.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.331-338
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• 2022

Face stability analyses provides the most probable failure mechanisms and the understanding about parameters that need to be considered for the evaluation of ground movements caused by tunneling. After the Upper Bound Method (UBM) solution which can consider the influence of seepage forces and depth-dependent effective cohesion is verified with the numerical experiments, the probabilistic model is proposed to calculate the unbiased limiting tunnel collapse pressure. A reliability analysis of a shallow circular tunnel driven by a pressurized shield in a frictional and cohesive soil is presented to consider the inherent uncertainty in the input parameters and the proposed model. The probability of failure that exceeding a specified applied pressure at the tunnel face is estimated. Sensitivity and importance measures are computed to identify the key parameters and random variables in the model.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.439-451
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• 2023

The construction of shield tunnelling in urban sites is facing serious risks from complex and changeable underground conditions. Construction problems in the sand-clay mixed ground have been more reported in recent decades for its poor control of soil loss in tunnel face, ground settlement and supporting pressure. Since the limitations of observation methods, the conventional physical modelling experiments normally simplify the tunnelling to a plane strain situation whose results are not reliable in mixed ground cases which exhibit more complicated responses. We propose a new method for the study of the mixed ground tunnel through which mixed lays are simulated with transparent soil surrogates exhibiting different mechanical properties. An experimental framework for the transparent soil modelling of the mixed ground tunnel was established incorporated with the self-developed digital image correlation system (PhotoInfor). To understand better the response of face stability, ground deformation, settlement and supporting phenomenon to tunnelling excavation in the sand-clay mixed ground, a series of case studies were carried out comparing the results from cases subjected to different buried depths and mixed phenomenon. The results indicate that the deformation mode, settlement and supporting phenomenon vary with the mixed phenomenon and buried depth. Moreover, a stratigraphic effect exists that the ground movement around mixed face reveals a notable difference.