A 3D sliced-soil-beam model for settlement prediction of tunnelling using the pipe roofing method in soft ground

The pipe roofing method is widely used in tunnel construction because it can realize a flexible section shape and a large section area of the tunnel,especially under good ground conditions.However,the pipe roofing method has rarely been applied in soft ground,where the prediction and control of the ground settlement play important roles.This study proposes a sliced-soil-beam(SSB)model to predict the settlement of ground due to tunnelling using the pipe roofing method in soft ground.The model comprises a sliced-soil module based on the virtual work principle and a beam module based on structural mechanics.As part of this work,the Peck formula was modified for a square-section tunnel and adopted to construct a deformation mechanism of soft ground.The pipe roofing system was simplified to a threedimensional Winkler beam to consider the interaction between the soil and pipe roofing.The model was verified in a case study conducted in Shanghai,China,in which it provided the efficient and accurate prediction of settlement.Finally,the parameters affecting the ground settlement were analyzed.It was clarified that the stiffness of the excavated soil and the steel support are the key factors in reducing ground settlement.

A simplified method for investigating the bending behavior of piles supporting embankments on soft ground

In recent years,concrete and reinforced concrete piles have been widely used to stabilize soft ground under embankments.Previous research has shown that bending failure,particularly during rapid filling on soft ground,is the critical failure mode for pile-supported embankments.Here,we propose an efficient two-stage method that combines a test-verified soil deformation mechanism and Poulos’solution for pile–soil interaction to investigate the bending behavior of piles supporting embankments on soft ground.The results reveal that there are three possible bending failure scenarios for such piles:at the interface between the soft and firm ground layers,at mid-depths of the fan zone,and at the boundary of the soil deformation mechanism.The location of the bending failure depends on the position and relative stiffness of the given pile.Furthermore,the effect of embedding a pile into a firm ground layer on the bending behavior was investigated.When the embedded length of a pile exceeded a critical value,the bending moment at the interface between the soft and firm ground layers reached a limiting value.In addition,floating piles that are not embedded exhibit an overturning pattern of movement in the soft ground layer,and a potential failure is located in the upper part of these piles.