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

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
• /
• v.34 no.1
• /
• pp.175-183
• /
• 2014

This study investigates the response of structures to tunnelling-induced ground movements in clay ground, varying tunnel excavation condition (tunnel depth and diameter), tunnel construction condition (ground loss), and tunnel ground condition (soft clay and stiff clay). Four-story block-bearing structures have been used because the structures can easily be characterized of the extent of damages with crack size and distribution. Numerical parametric studies have been used to investigate of the response of structures to varying tunnelling conditions. Numerical analysis has been conducted using Discrete Element Method (DEM) to have real cracks when the shear and tensile stress exceed the maximum shear and tensile strength. The results of structure responses from various parametric studies have been integrated to consider tunnel excavation condition, tunnel construction condition, and tunnel ground condition and provide a relationship chart among them. Using the chart, the response of structures to tunnelling can easily be evaluated in practice in clay ground.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.35 no.6
• /
• pp.603-615
• /
• 2023

Population growth and urbanization prompted engineers to propose more sophisticated and efficient transportation methods, such as underground transit systems. However, due to limited urban space, it is necessary to construct these tunnels in close proximity to existing infrastructure like high-rise buildings and bridges. Battered piles have been widely used for their higher stiffness and bearing capacity compared to vertical piles, making them effective in resisting lateral loads from winds, soil pressures, and impacts. Considerable prior research has been concerned with understanding the vertical pile response to tunnel excavation. However, the three-dimensional effects of tunnelling on adjacent battered piled foundations are still not investigated. This study investigates the response of a single battered pile to tunnelling at three critical depths along the pile: near the pile shaft (S), next to the pile (T), and below the pile toe (B). An advanced hypoplastic model capable of capturing small strain stiffness is used to simulate clay behaviour. The computed results reveal that settlement and load transfer mechanisms along the battered pile, resulting from tunnelling, depend significantly on the tunnel's location relative the length of the pile. The largest settlement of the battered pile occurs in the case of T. Conversely, the greatest pile head deflection is caused by tunnelling near the pile shaft. The battered pile experiences "dragload" due to negative skin friction mobilization resulting from tunnel excavation in the case of S. The battered pile is susceptible to induced bending moments when tunnelling occurs near the pile shaft S whereas the magnitude of induced bending moment is minimal in the case of B.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
• /
• v.19 no.5
• /
• pp.273-280
• /
• 2003

This paper describes a study of the effect of shield tunnel construction on the liners of nearby existing perpendicular tunnels. The research programme investigated the influence of tunnel proximity and alignment, liner stiffness on the nature of the interactions between closely spaced tunnels in clay. A total of two sets of carefully controlled 1g physical model tests, including the same test for repeatability, were performed. A cylindrical test tank was developed and used to produce clay samples of Speswhite kaolin. In each of the tests, three model tunnels were installed in order to conduct two interaction experiments in one clay sample. The tunnel liners were installed using a model tunnelling machine that was designed and developed to simulate the construction of a full scale shield tunnel. The first tunnel liner was instrumented to investigate its behaviour due to the installation of each of the new tunnels. The interaction mechanisms observed from the physical model tests are discussed and interpreted.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
• /
• v.14 no.5
• /
• pp.529-545
• /
• 2012

Three-dimensional (3D) finite element analyses have been performed to study the behaviour of a single pile to open face tunnelling in stiff clay. Several key factors such as tunnelling-induced ground and pile settlement, and shear transfer mechanism have been studied in detail. Tunnelling resulted in the development of pile settlement larger than the Greenfield soil surface settlement. In addition, due to changes in the shear transfer between the pile and the soil next to the pile with tunnel advancement, axial force distributions along the pile change drastically. The apparent allowable pile capacity was reduced up to about 30% due to the development of tunnelling-induced pile head settlement. The skin friction on the pile was increased with tunnel advancement associated with the changes of soil stresses and ground deformation and hence axial pile force distribution was reduced. Maximum tunnelling-induced tensile force on the pile was about 21% of the designed pile capacity. The zone of influence on the pile behaviour in the longitudinal direction may be identified as ${\pm}1$-2D (D: tunnel diameter) from the pile centre (behind and ahead of the pile axis in the longitudinal direction) based on the analysis conditions assumed in the current study. Negative excess pore pressure was mobilised near the pile tip, while positive excess pore pressure was computed at the upper part of the pile. It has been found that the serviceability of a pile experiencing adjacent tunnelling is more affected by pile settlement than axial pile force changes.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
• /
• v.6 no.3
• /
• pp.259-267
• /
• 2004

The practice of introducing and grouting reinforced fiber glass pipes or bar into the core to be excavated to maintain stable the tunnel face during excavation has been applied to many tunnels, where difficult geotechnical conditions are present, with good results in terms of safety and speed of works. This reinforcing technique, initially developed to be used jointly with the mechanical precut in clay, has been widely used with other geotechnical conditions as the only type of reinforcement or joined with other ground consolidation and/or reinforcement techniques (i.e. steel pipes or jet-grouting umbrella). At present same numerical researches have been carried out to find which are the real working conditions of the reinforcing elements but no final results have been obtained for the definition of the best design approaches. In this work the results of a three dimensional parametric numerical model is presented.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
• /
• v.7 no.2
• /
• pp.153-163
• /
• 2005

This paper presents two case studies for tunnelling in Bangkok: a subway tunnel site and a flood diversion tunnel site. The first case study is related to ground displacement response for dual tunnel Bangkok MRT subway. The MRT subway project of Bangkok city consists of dual tunnels about 20 km long with 18 subway stations. The tunnels are seated in the firm first stiff silty clay layer between 15-22 m in depth below ground surface. The behavior of ground deformation response based on instrumentation is presented. The back analysis based on plain strain FEM analysis is also presented and agrees with field performance. The shear strain of FEM analysis is in the range of 0.1-1% and in accordance with the results of self boring pressuremeter tests. Meanwhile, the second case study is related to the EPB tunnelling bored underneath through underground obstruction. The Premprachakorn flood diversion tunnel is the shortcut tunnel to divert the flood water in rainy season into the Choapraya river. The tunnel was bored by means of EPB shield tunnelling in very stiff silty clay layer at about 20-24 m in depth. During flood diversion tunnel bored underneath the existing Bangkok main water supply tunnel and pile foundation of the bridge, instrumentation was monitored and compared with predicted FEM analysis. The prevention risk potential by means of predicting damage assessment is also presented and discussed.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.29 no.1
• /
• pp.25-40
• /
• 2022

In this study, 3D coupled-consolidation numerical parametric study was conducted to predict the deformation mechanism of a 20 storey building sitting on (4×4) piled raft (with length of piles, L_p=30 m) to adjacent 6 m diameter (D) tunnelling in stiff clay. The influences of different tunnel locations relative to piles (i.e., z_t/L_p) were investigated in this parametric study. In first case, the tunnel was excavated near the pile shafts with depth of tunnel axis (z_t) of 9 m (i.e., z_t/L_p). In second and third cases, tunnels were driven at z_t of 30 m and 42 m (i.e., z_t/L_p = 1.0 and 1.4), respectively. An advanced hypoplastic clay model (which is capable of taking small-strain stiffness in account) was adopted to capture soil behaviour. The computed results revealed that tunnelling activity adjacent to a building resting on piled raft caused significant settlement, differential settlement, lateral deflection, angular distortion in the building. In addition, substantial bending moment, shear forces and changes in axial load distribution along pile length were induced. The findings from the parametric study revealed that the building and pile responses significantly influenced by tunnel location relative to pile.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
• /
• v.16 no.6
• /
• pp.13-22
• /
• 2015

In the current work, a series of three-dimensional (3D) numerical modelling has been performed in order to study the effects of the relative locations of tunnels with respect to the position of pile tips which governs the behaviour of pre-existing, adjacent single piles. In the numerical analyses, several governing factors, such as tunnelling-induced pile head settlements, relative displacements, volume losses, axial pile forces, interface shear stresses and apparent factors of safety have been analysed. When the pile tips are inside the tunnelling influence zone, of which the pile tip location is considered with respect to the tunnel position, tunnelling-induced pile head settlements are larger than the ground surface settlements, resulting in tunnelling-induced tensile pile forces. On the contrary, when the pile tips are outside the influence zone, compressive pile forces associated with downward shear stresses at the upper part of the piles are developed. Based on computed load and displacement relation of the pile, the apparent factors of safety of the piles inside the tunnelling influence zone have been reduced by 36% in average. The shear transfer mechanism based on the relative tunnel locations has been analysed in great detail by considering tunnelling-induced pile forces, interface shear stresses and the apparent factors of safety.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
• /
• v.11 no.12
• /
• pp.5157-5164
• /
• 2010

Currently about 3.2 millon tons of waste lime are accumulated and annually 100,000 tons are producted. This study was carried out to investigate the characteristics of soil mixed with waste lime for reusing of roadbed embanking material. Waste lime used in this study is producted as a by-product in the manufacturing process of making $Na_2CO_3$ from local chemical factory in Incheon. In this study, the feasible reuse of waste lime mixed with granite weathered soil, clay, crushed rock was investigated through laboratory tests including specific gravity test, sieve analysis, hydrometer analysis, atterberg limit test, compaction test, unconfined compressive test, CBR test, permeability test, shear test, and abrasion test. The mixing rate is granite weathered soil, clay, crushed rock 80 % respectively and waste lime 20 % by weight. From the test results, it is shown that the waste lime and soil mixtures satisfy the criteria as road embanking material specification.