Safety Evaluation and Energy Consumption Analysis of Deep Foundation Pit Excavation through Numerical Simulation and In-Site Monitoring

Abstract

Foundation pit excavation is common in urban construction, while safety evaluation is always significant in every specified project. The soil material properties, groundwater level, excavation method, supporting structure, monitoring points’ arrangement, and so on distinguish from one site from another. Thus, many studies have looked into the safety and reliability of designated projects. This paper was based on the co-construction underground tunnel project of a deep foundation pit excavation in Suzhou, China. This paper aimed to perform a safety evaluation on this foundation pit by means of numerical simulation for parameter influence analysis, as well as scientific comparison with in-site monitoring data. To minimize the energy consumption and contribute to the carbon neutrality, a brief energy consumption analysis was also conducted. The results indicated that the maximum deformation of the foundation pit bottom is 4.5 cm and the deformation of the foundation pit is within the allowable range. The maximum horizontal displacement of each excavation is approximately at 10 m to 12 m of the diaphragm wall and the largest deformation is 28 mm. The maximum ground settlement is less than 16 mm, which confirmed the safety during excavation. It is ideal that the above deformation law will provide a reference for similar projects. Furthermore, this research simulated and monitored the whole cycle of foundation pit excavation, and contributes to savings in energy consumption and limiting of carbon emissions.