An efficient probabilistic back-analysis method for braced excavations using wall deflection data at multiple points

This paper presents an efficient Bayesian back-analysis procedure for braced excavations using wall deflection data at multiple points. Response surfaces obtained from finite element analyses are adopted to efficiently evaluate the wall responses. Deflection data for 49 wall sections from 11 case histories are collected to characterize the model error of the finite element method for evaluating the deflections at various points. A braced excavation project in Hang Zhou, China is chosen to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed procedure. The results indicate that the soil parameters could be updated more significantly for the updating that uses the deflection data at multiple points than that only uses the maximum deflection data. The predicted deflections from the updated parameters agree fairly well with the field observations. The main significance of the proposed procedure is that it improves the updating efficiency of the soil parameters without adding monitoring effort compared with the traditional method that uses the maximum deflection data.     

Sensitivity Analysis of Selected Input Parameters for an Advanced Constitutive Model

Experimental results and simulated behavior of a medium plasticity clay were compared to investigate the performance of an advanced soil constitutive model. The soil model employed for this study was the 3-SKH model. The performance of this model was compared to the performance of two other critical state models; the Cam Clay (CC) and Modified Cam Clay (MCC) models. In addition, the influences of some of the input parameters on the performance of the 3-SKH model were investigated by performing sensitivity analyses. The comparisons demonstrated that the CC model was able to predict normally consolidated compressive behavior of the remolded medium plasticity clay. The compression behavior of overconsolidated clay was better captured by both the 3-SKH and CC models. For extension behavior of the normally consolidated samples, the MCC model performed better than the CC and 3-SKH models in predicting the stress path. The 3-SKH model was found to be very sensitive to varying the exponent in the hardening function. In particular, a difference between the evaluated values as small as 0.01 had a noticeable effect on the predicted stress–strain values for the overconsolidated compression and extension samples.     

Probabilistic Inverse Analysis of Excavation-Induced Wall and Ground Responses for Assessing Damage Potential of Adjacent Buildings

This paper presents an approach for the probabilistic inverse analysis of braced excavations based on the maximum likelihood formulation. Here, the soil parameters are updated using the observations of the maximum ground settlement and/or the maximum wall deflection measured in a staged excavation. The updated soil parameters are then used to refine the predicted wall and ground responses in the subsequent excavation stages, as well as to assess the building damage potential at the final excavation stage. Case study shows that the proposed approach is effective in improving the predictions of the excavation-induced wall and ground responses. More-accurate predictions of the wall and ground responses, in turn, lead to a more accurate assessment of the damage potential of buildings adjacent to the excavation. The proposed approach offers an effective means for a probabilistic inverse analysis of braced excavations.     

Investigating the effect of soil models on deformations caused by braced excavations through an inverse-analysis technique

In this study, a series of inverse-analysis numerical experiments was performed to investigate the effect of soil models on the deformations caused by excavation by using the finite element method. The nonlinear optimization technique that was incorporated into the finite element code was used for the inverse-analysis numerical experiments. Three soil models (the hyperbolic model, pseudo-plasticity model, and modified pseudo-plasticity model) were employed in the intended numerical experiments on a well-documented excavation case history. The results indicate that wall deflection due to excavation can be accurately back-figured by each of the three soil models, while the ground surface settlement can be reasonably optimized only by the pseudo-plasticity model and the modified pseudo-plasticity model. Importantly, the modified pseudo-plasticity model can yield more reasonable simulations when the wall deflection and the ground surface settlement are simultaneously back-figured. The results show that selection of an adequate soil model that is capable of adequately describing the stress–strain-strength characteristics of the soils is essentially crucial when predicting the excavation-induced ground response.     

Inverse Analysis of Deep Excavation Using Differential Evolution Algorithm

This paper presents the applications of the differential evolution (DE) algorithm in back analysis of soil parameters for deep excavation problems. A computer code, named Python‐based DE, is developed and incorporated into the commercial finite element software ABAQUS, with a parallel computing technique to run an FE analysis for all trail vectors of one generation in DE in multiple cores of a cluster, which dramatically reduces the computational time. A synthetic case and a well‐instrumented real case, that is, the Taipei National Enterprise Center (TNEC) project, are used to demonstrate the capability of the proposed back‐analysis procedure. Results show that multiple soil parameters are well identified by back analysis using a DE optimization algorithm for highly nonlinear problems. For the synthetic excavation case, the back‐analyzed parameters are basically identical to the input parameters that are used to generate synthetic response of wall deflection. For the TNEC case with a total of nine parameters to be back analyzed, the relative errors of wall deflection for the last three stages are 2.2, 1.1, and 1.0%, respectively. Robustness of the back‐estimated parameters is further illustrated by a forward prediction. The wall deflection in the subsequent stages can be satisfactorily predicted using the back‐analyzed soil parameters at early stages. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

济南典型地层HSS参数选取及适用性研究

针对济南地区典型地层上的基坑工程,土体采用PLAXIS 3D中的硬化土小应变（HSS）模型,建立了有限元模型,并根据实际监测数据结合位移反分析技术,得到了该典型地层下土体HSS模型参数的一般选取方法。之后简化模型,分别采用土体的HSS模型与Mohr-Coulomb（M-C）模型进行有限元分析,对比基坑开挖至不同深度时,应用两种模型模拟所得挡土墙变形与墙后地表沉降的差异。结果表明：基坑数值分析中,土体采用M-C模型与HSS模型所得结果的差异随基坑挖深增加而增加,且采用HSS模型所得结果更符合深基坑的实际变形。综合考虑采用HSS模型与M-C模型建模时的参数选取难易程度、经济性以及两种模型数值分析的工程适用性,建议基坑开挖超过15 m时,土体采用HSS模型进行数值分析,反之可采用M-C模型。研究结果对指导深基坑支护设计及岩土工程参数的勘察、选取,具有重要参考价值。     

Estimation of diaphragm wall deflections for deep braced excavation in anisotropic clays using ensemble learning

This paper adopts the NGI-ADP soil model to carry out finite element analysis,based on which the effects of soft clay anisotropy on the diaphragm wall deflections in the braced excavation were evaluated.More than one thousand finite element cases were numerically analyzed,followed by extensive parametric studies.Surrogate models were developed via ensemble learning methods(ELMs),including the e Xtreme Gradient Boosting(XGBoost),and Random Forest Regression(RFR)to predict the maximum lateral wall deformation(δhmax).Then the results of ELMs were compared with conventional soft computing methods such as Decision Tree Regression(DTR),Multilayer Perceptron Regression(MLPR),and Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines(MARS).This study presents a cutting-edge application of ensemble learning in geotechnical engineering and a reasonable methodology that allows engineers to determine the wall deflection in a fast,alternative way.     

Prediction of stresses and strains around model tunnels with adjacent embedded walls in overconsolidated clay

This paper presents the results of finite element analyses carried out using different constitutive models for overconsolidated clay: the Modified Cam clay model and the Three-Surface Kinematic Hardening (3-SKH) model. These analyses are evaluated against data from an extensive series of physical model tests examining the influence of an embedded wall placed near a tunnel on ground movements and tunnel stability. It is shown that for heavily overconsolidated soils reasonable predictions of both deformations and failure can be obtained from kinematic hardening models such as the 3-SKH model, which allow plastic deformation inside a Modified Cam clay state boundary surface.     

A simple estimation model for 3D braced excavation wall deflection

A series of two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) finite element analyses using the Hardening Soil (HS) model were carried out to investigate the influences of soil properties, wall stiffness, excavation length, excavation depth, clay thickness at the base of the excavation and wall embedment depth, on the maximum wall deflection induced by braced-excavation. The results show that the 3D maximum wall deflections are generally much smaller than those for 2D. Comparisons were also made with other commonly used semi-empirical charts. Based on the finite element results in this study, a simple wall deflection equation was developed for estimating the maximum wall deflection that takes the 3D effects into consideration through different ratios of excavation length over excavation width.     

软土地区深基坑连续墙最大变形简易计算方法

采用有限单元法研究了影响软土地区地下连续墙最大侧向变形的主要参数。针对基坑开挖深度H、基坑开挖宽度B、单位宽度地下连续墙系统刚度S、支撑结构的轴向刚度 及黏土归一化的不排水抗剪强度 为不排水抗剪强度, 为有效垂直应力）5个参数进行分析研究,通过回归分析研究结果,给出地下连续墙最大侧向变形的简易计算方法。利用简易计算方法,计算实际工程中基坑案例的地下连续墙最大侧向变形,并与现场监测结果进行对比,验证了计算方法的准确性,可为以后预估地下连续墙最大侧向变形及检查设计提供参考。     

Assessment of strut forces for braced excavation in clays from numerical analysis and field measurements

One important consideration in the design of a braced excavation system is to ensure that the structural bracing system is designed both safely and economically. The forces acting on the struts are often determined using empirical methods such as the Apparent Pressure Diagram (APD) method developed by Peck (1969). Most of these empirical methods that were developed from either numerical analysis or field studies have been for excavations with flexible wall types such as sheetpile walls. There have been only limited studies on the excavation performance for stiffer wall systems such as diaphragm walls and bored piles. In this paper, both 2D and 3D finite element analyses were carried out to study the forces acting on the struts for braced excavations in clays, with focus on the performance for the stiffer wall systems. Subsequently, based on this numerical study as well as field measurements from a number of reported case histories, empirical charts have been proposed for determining strut loads for excavations in stiff wall systems.     

天津软土地区盾构掘进对上方建筑物影响分析

以天津地铁2号线下穿多层建筑物的盾构隧道为例,建立了盾构下穿空旷场地以及下穿建筑物的有限元模型,计算结果与现场实测数据进行了对比验证。在此基础上分析了在天津软土地区盾构隧道施工对地表沉降及多层砌体结构建筑物差异沉降的影响,并对采用小应变土体本构模型与硬化土本构模型的计算结果进行比较。结果表明,采用小应变本构模型的地表最大沉降和横向沉降槽宽度与实测数据吻合良好。盾构斜下穿砌体结构房屋时,建筑物有偏向隧道轴线方向的倾斜,采用小应变土体本构模型的计算结果可以更好地反映建筑物的倾斜斜率的变化。因此,研究软土地区盾构掘进对上方建筑物沉降影响的精细化分析时应考虑土体小应变的影响。     

地基沉降大变形有限元分析的几何刚度效应

研究了基于完全拉格朗日（Total Lagrangian）描述的大变形有限元法分析地基沉降问题的几何刚度效应。在有限元列式的推导过程中严格考虑了土力学表述习惯的影响。通过算例分析,主要研究了几何刚度效应对荷载-沉降曲线的影响,并对比分析了不同率型大变形分析中的几何刚度效应问题。结果表明,几何刚度效应的存在减小了地基大变形有限元系统的刚度;忽略几何刚度效应将导致沉降计算结果偏小,在地基变形较大的情况下误差更明显,Truesdell率型大变形分析的最终沉降结果与小变形法的结果一致。几何刚度效应在地基大变形有限元分析中具有一定程度的影响,处理不当可能出现结构刚度增大的现象。大变形分析结果的性质偏于刚硬。     

考虑土体硬化的基坑开挖性状及隆起稳定性分析

基坑开挖过程中,土体应力路径、卸载回弹再压缩特性与简单加载或卸载不同,采用常规的理想弹塑性模型模拟基坑开挖,得到的围护墙位移、坑内土体回弹以及坑外沉降较大。分析了基坑开挖不同区域土体的性状,采用土体硬化模型模拟基坑开挖的卸载与土体硬化行为,结合工程算例,对比土体硬化模型和理想弹塑性模拟以及实测的围护结构土压力、围护墙水平位移和坑外土体沉降,并利用强度折减法分析基坑的稳定性。计算结果表明,考虑土体硬化的HS模型有限元方法能体现土体卸载再加载与开挖的特性,所得土压力、围护结构水平位移以及基坑抗隆起稳定性符合软土地区基坑工程的实践。     

基坑围护结构最大侧移深度对周边环境的影响

围护结构最大侧移所在深度是衡量基坑变形的重要指标之一,而目前鲜有关于其对周边环境变形影响的研究。基于工程实测数据分析和有限元数值模拟,系统地研究了基坑围护结构最大侧移深度对邻近桩基础建筑物不均匀沉降和坑外深层土体位移场的影响。经研究发现：围护结构最大侧移的下移会导致坑外土体位移场扩大,进而降低相应区域的桩基础承载力,导致邻近桩基础建筑物发生显著的不均匀沉降。不同深度的土体经历复杂的竖向位移,且位移形态与围护结构最大侧移深度密切相关。随围护结构最大侧移深度的逐渐下移,坑外土体位移场向深层土体发展,且主要影响范围相应地扩大。在实际工程中,根据基坑周边环境合理地控制围护结构最大侧移所在深度,可有效降低基坑开挖对周边环境的不利影响。     

地基沉降大变形计算方法的关键问题研究

针对大、小变形法地基沉降量结果的差异问题,从大变形应力和应变度量、本构关系以及本构参数等概念的角度进行探讨。在连续介质力学有关原理基础上,先后研究了基于Green应变、Almansi应变和自然应变的地基大变形沉降量计算式。基于欧拉应力--Almansi应变对、欧拉应力--自然应变对的大变形法压缩本构关系整理方法,以及大、小变形法切线体积压缩系数之间的转换方法等。理论分析和算例分析结果表明,遵循该转换关系的条件下,同一问题所得的大、小变形法最终沉降量结果是相同的,忽略该转换关系将导致大变形法沉降量计算结果偏大或偏小于小变形法的结果,这也为合理确定大变形法本构参数提供新的参考。     

Bayesian updating of KJHH model for prediction of maximum ground settlement in braced excavations using centrifuge data

In this paper, a Bayesian approach for updating a semi-empirical model for predicting excavation-induced maximum ground settlement using centrifuge test data is presented. The Bayesian approach involves three steps: (1) prior estimate of the maximum ground settlement and model bias factor, (2) establishment of the likelihood function and posterior distribution of the model bias factor using the settlement measurement in the centrifuge test, and (3) development of posterior distribution of the predicted maximum settlement. This Bayesian approach is demonstrated with a case study of a well-documented braced excavation, and the results show that the accuracy of the maximum settlement prediction can be improved and the model uncertainty can be reduced with Bayesian updating.     

A Numerical Comparison of the Behavior of a Braced Excavation Using Two and Three-Dimensional Creep Plastic Analyses

Current study deals with investigating the effects of both time factor and the selection of a constitutive model type on predicting deformations of an excavation braced by nailing using two and three-dimensional finite element analyses. In addition, the effects of stress path and the type of defined initial conditions of the analytical model on deformations of the floor and walls of the excavation are also studied. Time factor, in the form of earth materials’ creep, can largely be entered into calculation of deformations of excavations by conducting viscoelastic and viscoplastic analyses. On the other hand, there hasn’t been done a comprehensive study regarding the creep behavior of excavations through comparing the results of two-dimensional and three-dimensional numerical analyses so far. The results showed that it’s largely possible to approach the actual deformation behavior of an excavation by considering the constitutive model of soft soil creep, SSC model, in the numerical plastic analyses. The effects of stress path on the deformation behavior of the excavation walls and excavation floor are investigated by using OCR stress ratio and POP stress difference; These two factors, both of which are also analogous, represent a boundary value for swelling behavior of the excavation floor and an increasing rate for the deformation behavior of the excavation walls since the increase in OCR or POP is equal to the increase in the soil lateral pressure coefficient at rest.     

Probability of serviceability failure in a braced excavation in a spatially random field: Fuzzy finite element approach

A simplified framework is proposed for evaluating the probability of “serviceability failure” in a braced excavation in a spatially random field. Here, the “serviceability failure” is said to occur when the excavation-induced wall or ground movement exceeds specified limiting values. Knowledge of this probability can aid in engineering decision-making to prevent damage to adjacent infrastructures. The proposed framework consists of five elements: (1) finite element method (FEM) for analyzing wall and ground responses in a braced excavation, (2) fuzzy set modeling of parameter uncertainty, (3) spatial averaging technique for handling spatial variability, (4) vertex method for processing fuzzy input through FEM model, and (5) interpretation of fuzzy output. The proposed framework is demonstrated through a well-documented case history. The results show the proposed framework is simple and effective for assessing the probability of serviceability failure in a braced excavation in a spatially random field. To focus on the proposed fuzzy FEM approach, the scope of this paper is limited to one-dimensional modeling of spatial variability with an assumed exponential autocorrelation function.     

宁波北仑电厂二期循环水泵房基抗支护与监测

介绍了宁波北仑电厂二期工程地下连续墙支护结构的计算与模型。采用ALGOR有限元分析系统，对基坑开挖引起的应力场、位移场进行了分析计算。对墙体变形、钢筋应力、土压力及沉降进行了观测。通过计算值与实测结果的比较，分析了影响基坑变形的主要因素。