Integral Approach of Performance-Based Design for Tunnels

Abstract

Over the past 50 years, tunnel design engineering—driven mainly by construction techniques and equipment specialization in mechanized tunneling, enhancement of computational tools, and development of sophisticated numerical analysis frameworks—has significantly advanced. Furthermore, performance observation throughout instrumentation of hundreds of tunnels around the world, including many well-documented famous failures, has provided a large amount of data regarding current design criteria shortcomings. Initially, this paper presents a revision of existing analysis design criteria based on the observation of actual tunnel behavior and points out the limitations. In a second part, an integral approach of performance-based design and the assessment of potential damage on surrounding structures is presented. The method is exemplified by a case study.