Prediction and Interpretation of the Performance of a Deep Excavation in Berlin Sand
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 137, Issue 11
Abstract
This paper describes the application of a generalized effective stress soil model, MIT-S1, within a commercial finite-element program, for simulating the performance of the support system for the 20-m-deep excavation of the M1 pit adjacent to the primary station “Hauptbahnhof” in Berlin. The M1 pit was excavated underwater and supported by a perimeter diaphragm wall with a single row of prestressed anchors. Parameters for the soil model were derived from an extensive program of laboratory tests on the local Berlin sands. This calibration process highlights the practical difficulties both in the measurements of critical state soil properties and in the selection of model parameters. The predictions for excavation performance are strongly affected by the vertical profiles of two key state parameters: the initial earth pressure ratio, ; and the in situ void ratio, . These parameters were estimated from field dynamic penetration test data and geological history. The results showed good agreement between computed and measured wall deflections and tieback forces for three instrumented sections. Much larger wall deflections were measured at a fourth section and may be attributable to the spatial variability in sand properties that was not considered in the current analyses. The results of this study highlight the importance of basic state parameter information for the successful application of advanced soil models.
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Acknowledgments
This research was supported by collaboration grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Western Europe program (NSFINT-0089508) and Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD). The laboratory tests were performed at the MIT geotechnical laboratory under the expert supervision of Dr John Germaine. Special thanks are given to Ralf Glasenapp and Tim Becker for their meticulous experimental work, to Dr Frank Rackwitz for his help in compiling field data, to Gonzalo Corral for performing the inverse analyses in Plaxis, and to the reviewers for improving the original manuscript.
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Published In
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 137 • Issue 11 • November 2011
Pages: 1047 - 1061
Copyright
© 2011 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jun 16, 2009
Accepted: Feb 2, 2011
Published online: Feb 3, 2011
Published in print: Nov 1, 2011
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