Ground Response to Multiple Parallel Microtunneling Operations in Cemented Silty Clay and Sand
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 142, Issue 5
Abstract
This paper presents a case history of the successful application of observational method to instruction microtunneling with successive pipe-jacking. The microtunneling project is the construction of four parallel pipes under Guan River in Jiangsu, China. Four parallel tunnels with external diameter of 4,160 mm and horizontally spaced at 4.8 m apart were jacked over 450 m in cemented silty clay and sand by two slurry-balance microtunnel boring machines (MTBM) at a depth of 4.6 m under the river bed. Since the overburden soil is very thin, proper control of tunneling operations was of utmost importance for maintaining the stability of the river bed. In order to optimize the operation parameters prior to construction under the river bed, a field trial was conducted, which included measurement of ground surface settlement, subsurface settlement, and lateral displacement of the subsurface soils, as well as excess pore water pressure and earth pressure. The relationship between ground response and construction operation parameters is summarized. Appropriate operation parameters were applied during tunneling under Guan River. Although tunneling and pipe jacking under the river was successfully carried out, a difficulty was encountered when the MTBM reached the opposite bank and large settlements were observed. This paper discusses the technical issues faced and lessons learnt from interpretation of the monitoring data collected.
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Acknowledgments
The research work described herein was funded by the National Nature Science Foundation of China (NSFC) (Grant No. 41372283) and National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program: 2015CB057806). This financial support is gratefully acknowledged.
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Published In
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 142 • Issue 5 • May 2016
Copyright
© 2016 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jun 22, 2014
Accepted: Oct 5, 2015
Published online: Jan 5, 2016
Published in print: May 1, 2016
Discussion open until: Jun 5, 2016
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