Tunnel progression effects to the ground surface and the adjacent pile

Abstract

Tunnelling close to existing structure in urban area has become unavoidable. The progression tunneling activities induced ground movement and might affect the integrity of existing structure especially the one lies within the tunneling influence zone. It may cause catastrophic failures of structures and can cause losses of human lives. Therefore, considering its risk, this study focuses on the tunnel-soil-pile interaction by performing a physical model testing. By conducting a series of laboratory tests, the ground subsidence and pile behavior is presented herein. For a twice diameter distance of tunnel and pile, the pile axial settlement is 0.04% of the tunnel diameter respectively, while the maximum pile bending moment is 4928. 93kN.m. Maximum ground settlement is 0.56% respectively to tunnel diameter. To sum up, the axial displacement of pile decreases when the pile located further away from the tunneling zone. Similarly, the ground surface subsidence decreases when the pile location is more in distance during the tunneling advancement.