Structural displacement and deformation of adjacent shield tunnel induced by foundation pit excavation

Abstract

Excavating a foundation pit close to a tunnel will unavoidably impact the nearby soil, causing the tunnel to shift and deform. Examining the longitudinal displacement and convergence deformation of a nearby shield tunnel during foundation pit excavation is crucial for maintaining safe operations. Nevertheless, most of the current research primarily focuses on the effects of a single foundation pit excavation on existing tunnels. This study examines and analyzes the effects of multiple foundation pit excavations on the displacement and deformation of pre-existing tunnels, using a project at a subway station as a case study. By employing the PLAXIS three-dimensional finite element software, a large-scale computational model based on the HS model is established, and then five dangerous working conditions are selected for simulation analysis. The research findings delineate that: (i) The displacement of the tunnel is affected by various factors. These encompass the magnitude of the foundation pit excavation, the positioning of the foundation pit excavation in relation to the tunnel, and the closeness of the tunnel to the foundation pit. (ii) The deformation encountered by the tunnel is largely influenced by external loads, where the scale of the unloading load primarily determines the deformation characteristics of the tunnel.