Geotechnical Problems Associated with the Construction of High-Rise Buildings. Foreign Experience and Domestic Practice

Abstract

The tendency to rational utilization of urban lands inevitably leads to the construction of high-rise buildings. The high cost of land plots in large cities of the world dictates only one correct course – simultaneously downward (active utilization of underground space), and upward (increasing the number of stories within a densely urban setting). In the world’s large cities, high-rise construction has been concentrated in areas catering to financial and business activity. This kind of high-rise district first came about more than 100 years ago in New York. Favorable geologic-engineering conditions of the area, where rocky ground broke the surface in a number of locations, has contributed to the success of this construction. In less favorable construction areas, the installation of foundations for high-rise buildings is a very complex problem, and requires advanced procedures for work production, and profound scientific investigations for design. The tallest building today, which is in Malaysia, owes its origin to the intellect of architects, builders, and geotechnicians from Japan, Europe, and America. Work involving site development and substructure installation was performed by the Soletanche Bachy Company with drilled supports at a depth of up to 125 m. Experience gained with the construction of high-rise buildings is of greatest interest to geotechnicians. In this connection, it is expedient to dwell in greater detail on the geotechnical problems encountered in the construction of high-rise residential buildings in Frankfurt-on-Main (the highest building in Europe – Commerce Bank II – 302 m is located in this city) and new high-rise dwellings in other cities of Germany. Characteristic soil strata of Frankfurt-on-Main are as follows. A stratum of silty-clayey soils rang