Abstract
Tunnelling in urban areas requires a careful estimation of the consequence of soil settlements on existing buildings. In this paper the interaction between the excavation of a tunnel in sand and surface structures is investigated. A two dimensional finite element model is presented and validated through comparison with centrifuge test results, both with and without structures. The model is then used to perform a sensitivity study on the effect of building weight on soil movements and structural deformations. The results of the validation indicate that assuming a no-tension interface between the soil and the structure is essential to capture the soil–structure interaction that was experimentally observed. The parametric analyses show that the relation between the building stiffness and the tunnelling-induced deformations depends on the building weight.
Highlights
Urban growth is continuously increasing and is expected to reach 60% in 2030 and 70% in 2050 (World Urbanization Prospects, 2014)
The modification factors derived from the numerical analysis for all the structures, for a representative volume loss of 0.5% are plotted in Fig. 18a and b as a function of the partitioned relative stiffness in sagging and hogging, respectively (Eq (6))
The results indicate that higher loading can lead to an increased modification factor, suggesting that the weight of the structure can reduce the effect of an increment in relative stiffness
Summary
Urban growth is continuously increasing and is expected to reach 60% in 2030 and 70% in 2050 (World Urbanization Prospects, 2014). One of the major challenges for expanding cities is the development of efficient and sustainable mobility. Rail and metro tunnels are an extensively adopted solution to address road congestion while minimising pollution. Underground excavation causes soil settlement, which may affect surface structures. Tunnelling designs require extensive assessment of potential settlement damage to existing buildings
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