Face Stability Evaluation of a TBM-Driven Tunnel in Heterogeneous Soil Using a Probabilistic Approach
Publication: International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 15, Issue 6
Abstract
The stability condition of the tunnel face is of great importance in both conventional and modern [tunnel-boring machine (TBM)] methods of construction. Inadequate and excessive amounts of support pressure toward the face lead to surface settlement and blowout, respectively, whereas blowout occurs only in cases of pressurized shield implementation. In this research, the stability condition of a tunnel face excavated by an earth pressure balanced shield (EPBS) in Line 3 of the Tehran subway in Iran was investigated. Considering the sensitivity of urban facilities to ground movement, and to reduce uncertainty, data simulation by Monte Carlo technique was applied. Random data generated through a simulation process were used in an analytical method to calculate the factor of safety and its probability of being less than a predetermined value for a certain amount of applied support pressure. The soil was modeled by finite-element software, and the amount of face pressure at which the face collapses was calculated. These procedures were followed for face stability evaluation in nine design sections along the tunnel path. Comparisons of the results are discussed.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
Ahmed, M., and Iskander, M. (2012). “Evaluation of tunnel face stability by transparent soil models.” Tunnelling Underground Space Technol., 27(1), 101–110.
Anagnostou, G., and Kovari, K. (1996). “Face stability in slurry and EPB shield tunnelling.” Geotechnical aspects of underground construction in soft ground, G. Viggiani, ed., CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, 453–458.
ASTM. (1998). “Standard test method for direct shear test of soils under consolidated drained conditions.” D3080-98, West Conshohocken, PA.
Atkinson, J. H., and Potts, D. M. (1977). “Stability of a shallow circular tunnel in cohesionless soil.” Géotechnique, 27(2), 203–215.
Baumann, T., Sternath, R., and Schwarz, J. (1997). “Face stability of tunnels in soft rock—Possibilities for the computational analysis.” Proc., 14th Int. Conf. of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Vol. 3, Balkema, Rotterdam, Netherlands, 1389–1392.
Braja, M. D. (2007). Fundamentals of geotechnical engineering, 3rd Ed., Paraninfo, Madrid, Spain.
Brinkgreve, R., Vermeer, P. A., Bonnier, P. G., Brand, P. J., Burd, H. J., and van der Weide, J. G. (2001). PLAXIS 3D tunnel reference manual, 1st Ed., Balkema, Leiden, Netherlands.
Broere, W. (2001). “Tunnel face stability and new CPT applications.” Ph.D. thesis, Delft Univ., Delft, Netherlands.
EasyFit Professional 5.5 [Computer software]. Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine, MathWave Technologies.
Guglielmetti, V., Grasso, P., Mahtab, A., and Xu, S., eds. (2008). Mechanized tunnelling in urban areas: Design methodology and construction control, Taylor & Francis, London.
Horn, M. (1961). “Horizontal earth pressure on perpendicular tunnel face.” Proc., Hungarian National Conf. of the Foundation Engineer Industry, 7–16.
Jancsecz, S., and Steiner, W. (1994). “Face support for a large mix-shield in heterogeneous ground conditions.” Proc., Tunnelling ’94, Springer, New York, 531–550.
Leca, E., and Domieux, L. (1990). “Upper and lower bound solutions for the face stability of shallow circular tunnels in frictional materials.” Géothecnique, 40(4), 581–606.
MATLAB R2011b [Computer software]. Natick, MA, MathWorks.
Mollon, G., Dias, D., and Soubra, A.-H. (2011). “Rotational failure mechanisms for the face stability analysis of tunnels driven by a pressurized shield.” Int. J. Numer. Anal. Methods Geomech., 35(12), 1363–1388.
PLAXIS 3D 1.2 [Computer software]. Delft, Netherlands, Plaxis.
RockWorks 15 [Computer software]. Golden, CO, RockWare.
Rubinstein, R. Y., and Kroese, D. P. (2008). Simulation and the Monte Carlo method, Wiley, Hoboken, NJ.
Vermeer, P. A., and Ruse, N. (2001). “Die stabilität der tunnelortsbrust in homogenem baugrund.” Geotechnik 24(3), 186–193.
Vermeer, P. A., Ruse, N., and Thomas, M. (2002). “Tunnel heading stability in drained ground.” Felsbau, 20(6), 8–18.
Vermeer, P. A., and van Langen, H. (1989). “Soil collapse computations with finite elements.” Ing. Arch., 59(3), 221–236.
Zienkiewicz, O. C., Humpheson, C., and Lewis, R. W. (1975). “Associated and non-associated visco-plasticity in soil mechanics.” Géotechnique, 25(4), 671–689.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 15 • Issue 6 • December 2015
Copyright
© 2014 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Apr 11, 2014
Accepted: Sep 8, 2014
Published online: Oct 3, 2014
Published in print: Dec 1, 2015
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.