Abstract
Utility tunnel is a kind of underground tunnel structure that carries more than two types of public utility lines, and the utility tunnels built by the prefabricated method have been adopted in many modern cities due to their easy maintenance and environmental protection capabilities. However, knowledge about the seismic performance of the prefabricated utility tunnel and pipelines inside is quite limited. In this paper, a prefabricated utility tunnel newly built in Xi’an, China, is taken as the prototype; a series of shaking table tests are conducted to investigate the seismic performance of the prefabricated utility tunnel in loess foundation, using El Centro earthquake wave as the input loading. Details of the experimental setup focus on the design of the soil container, scaled model (1 : 10), sensor arrangement, and test cases. Dynamic responses including evaluation of boundary effect, the amplification factor of the ground and structure, distribution of soil pressure, characteristics of predominant frequencies, and the damage phenomena are analyzed. Dynamic strain obtained by Fiber Bragg Grating sensors releases the critical positions of the prefabricated utility tunnel during the earthquake. Moreover, the dynamic responses of the pipelines contained in the utility tunnel are also analyzed. From aforementioned results, the seismic performance of the prefabricated utility tunnel has been revealed. The results will provide a reference for the seismic design of prefabricated utility tunnels.
Highlights
With urbanization advancement speeding up around the world, the utilization of underground space has been concerned
A series of shaking table tests have been conducted to investigate the seismic performance of the prefabricated utility tunnel, including acceleration, dynamic soil pressure, and structural strain are analyzed
(1) rough the evaluation by the 2-norm index, the boundary effect of the model ground is related to depth. e boundary effect in the shallow part of the model ground is more obvious than deeper positions. e maximum value of the boundary index reaches to 10.55%; it demonstrates that the soil container used in this test does not impose significant boundary effect
Summary
With urbanization advancement speeding up around the world, the utilization of underground space has been concerned. Utility tunnel is an effective method to solve aforementioned problems It is a kind of underground structure similar to a shallow tunnel, which can hold kinds of utilities collectively, and there is sufficient space for daily maintenance and emergency repair without the need for excavation. As far as the seismic risk of the utility tunnel is concerned, the method of shaking table test has been used to investigate the seismic response and damage mechanisms of the cast-in-place utility tunnel. Based on the experimental investigation, the seismic performances of the prefabricated utility tunnel and pipelines inside have been determined, and recommendations are carried out as the reference for seismic design and construction of the prefabricated utility tunnel
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