Experimental and numerical study on the soil arching effect caused by deep-buried shield tunneling

The soil arching effect induced by deep-buried shield tunneling strongly influenced the ground stress and displacement. Therefore, revealing the evolution mechanism of the soil arching effect is a prerequisite for accurately predicting the tunnel load, which has not been understood in deep-buried co...

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Main Authors: Xu Song, Chang-Wei Miao, Ren-Peng Chen, Xiao-Ning Deng, Yu Zhang, Jun-Qing Wang, Xiao-Fei Chen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: KeAi Communications Co., Ltd. 2025-10-01
Series:Underground Space
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2467967425000571
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author Xu Song
Chang-Wei Miao
Ren-Peng Chen
Xiao-Ning Deng
Yu Zhang
Jun-Qing Wang
Xiao-Fei Chen
author_facet Xu Song
Chang-Wei Miao
Ren-Peng Chen
Xiao-Ning Deng
Yu Zhang
Jun-Qing Wang
Xiao-Fei Chen
author_sort Xu Song
collection DOAJ
description The soil arching effect induced by deep-buried shield tunneling strongly influenced the ground stress and displacement. Therefore, revealing the evolution mechanism of the soil arching effect is a prerequisite for accurately predicting the tunnel load, which has not been understood in deep-buried conditions. Three model tests and eight numerical simulations were carried out to enhance the understanding of the soil arching evolution, in which the stress field, displacement field, and strain field were analysed. The experimental and numerical results indicated that the ground reaction curve presented a two-stage development process of an initially linear decrease followed by a gradual decrease. Compared with the theoretical tunnel loads, the measured and numerical values are relatively larger due to the loosening earth pressure theory ignoring the evolution process of the soil arching effect. The soil arching height decreases with the increase in stress level, measuring 1.75D (the initial diameter of the model tunnel), 1.65D, and 1.61D, respectively, which results from the lagging evolution of the soil arching effect under high-stress conditions. The formation of the shear band was affected by the stress-dependent dilatancy of the soil. At low stress levels, the shear band develops vertically upward. In contrast, at higher stress levels, the shear bands tilt towards the lateral side.
format Article
id doaj-art-de31d526e2684582825d80002c8fa1b7
institution Kabale University
issn 2467-9674
language English
publishDate 2025-10-01
publisher KeAi Communications Co., Ltd.
record_format Article
series Underground Space
spelling doaj-art-de31d526e2684582825d80002c8fa1b72025-08-20T03:35:02ZengKeAi Communications Co., Ltd.Underground Space2467-96742025-10-012412914110.1016/j.undsp.2025.04.002Experimental and numerical study on the soil arching effect caused by deep-buried shield tunnelingXu Song0Chang-Wei Miao1Ren-Peng Chen2Xiao-Ning Deng3Yu Zhang4Jun-Qing Wang5Xiao-Fei Chen6China Nuclear Industry Survey Design & Research Co., Ltd., Zhengzhou 450000, ChinaChina Nuclear Industry Survey Design & Research Co., Ltd., Zhengzhou 450000, ChinaHunan Provincial Engineering Research Center for Advanced Technology and Intelligent Equipment for Underground Space Development, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, China; College of Civil Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, China; Corresponding author at: College of Civil Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, China.China Nuclear Industry Survey Design & Research Co., Ltd., Zhengzhou 450000, ChinaChina Nuclear Industry Survey Design & Research Co., Ltd., Zhengzhou 450000, ChinaChina Nuclear Industry Survey Design & Research Co., Ltd., Zhengzhou 450000, ChinaChina Nuclear Industry Survey Design & Research Co., Ltd., Zhengzhou 450000, ChinaThe soil arching effect induced by deep-buried shield tunneling strongly influenced the ground stress and displacement. Therefore, revealing the evolution mechanism of the soil arching effect is a prerequisite for accurately predicting the tunnel load, which has not been understood in deep-buried conditions. Three model tests and eight numerical simulations were carried out to enhance the understanding of the soil arching evolution, in which the stress field, displacement field, and strain field were analysed. The experimental and numerical results indicated that the ground reaction curve presented a two-stage development process of an initially linear decrease followed by a gradual decrease. Compared with the theoretical tunnel loads, the measured and numerical values are relatively larger due to the loosening earth pressure theory ignoring the evolution process of the soil arching effect. The soil arching height decreases with the increase in stress level, measuring 1.75D (the initial diameter of the model tunnel), 1.65D, and 1.61D, respectively, which results from the lagging evolution of the soil arching effect under high-stress conditions. The formation of the shear band was affected by the stress-dependent dilatancy of the soil. At low stress levels, the shear band develops vertically upward. In contrast, at higher stress levels, the shear bands tilt towards the lateral side.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2467967425000571Soil arching effectGround reaction curveModel testNumerical simulationDeep-buried shield tunnel
spellingShingle Xu Song
Chang-Wei Miao
Ren-Peng Chen
Xiao-Ning Deng
Yu Zhang
Jun-Qing Wang
Xiao-Fei Chen
Experimental and numerical study on the soil arching effect caused by deep-buried shield tunneling
Underground Space
Soil arching effect
Ground reaction curve
Model test
Numerical simulation
Deep-buried shield tunnel
title Experimental and numerical study on the soil arching effect caused by deep-buried shield tunneling
title_full Experimental and numerical study on the soil arching effect caused by deep-buried shield tunneling
title_fullStr Experimental and numerical study on the soil arching effect caused by deep-buried shield tunneling
title_full_unstemmed Experimental and numerical study on the soil arching effect caused by deep-buried shield tunneling
title_short Experimental and numerical study on the soil arching effect caused by deep-buried shield tunneling
title_sort experimental and numerical study on the soil arching effect caused by deep buried shield tunneling
topic Soil arching effect
Ground reaction curve
Model test
Numerical simulation
Deep-buried shield tunnel
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2467967425000571
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AT xiaoningdeng experimentalandnumericalstudyonthesoilarchingeffectcausedbydeepburiedshieldtunneling
AT yuzhang experimentalandnumericalstudyonthesoilarchingeffectcausedbydeepburiedshieldtunneling
AT junqingwang experimentalandnumericalstudyonthesoilarchingeffectcausedbydeepburiedshieldtunneling
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