Tunnelling under

Squeezing Conditions
(Part 2)
Giovanni Barla
Department of Structural and Geotechnical Engineering

Lecture Outline
Design Analyses
Case Study
Conclusions

Design Analyses

METHODS FOR DESIGN ANALYSIS OF

TUNNELS IN SQUEEZING CONDITIONS

SHOULD CONSIDER
THE THREE-DIMENSIONAL STATE OF
STRESS NEAR THE TUNNEL FACE
THE ONSET OF YIELDING WITHIN
THE ROCK MASS, AS DETERMINED BY
THE SHEAR STRENGTH PARAMETERS
RELATIVE TO THE INDUCED STRESS
THE TIME DEPENDENT BEHAVIOUR

Tunnel Wall Displacement/Radius ( ur /a)

The use of numerical analyses is advisable when

the rock mass strength/in situ stress ratio is below
0.3 and it is highly recommended if this ratio falls
below about 0.15, when the stability of the tunnel
face may become a critical issue
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0

Strain greater than 10 %

Extreme Squeezing

Strain between 5 and 10 %

Very severe Squeezing

Strain between 2.5 and 5 %

Severe Squeezing
Strain between 1 and 2.5 %
Minor Squeezing
Strain less than 1 %
No Squeezing

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

Rock Mass Strength/In situ stress ( cm /po)

Problematiche
esempi
3D Analysesaperte
advisable
A

1m

EXCAVATION
DIRECTION

S
5m

1m

Transversal Section A- A

Longitudinal Section
t
INITIAL STATE

2D

2D

3D

OF STRESS

2D

3D

3D
s

Methods for Design Analysis

Introduzione
3D Analyses
advisable
INFLUENCE OF 3D CONDITIONS
15
Flac3D

10

Flac
C

t [MPa]

1.5 m
4m

4m

-5

arrival
of the
face

Sidewall

1.5 m
1.5 m

Crown/Invert
Flac

arrival
of the
face

-10
Flac3D

-15
0

ILE

10

15

20

25

s [MPa]

[MPa] AT POINT
STRESS PATH
C (crown), I (invert
(invert),
), S (sidewall
(sidewall))

Methods for Design Analysis

Introduzione
3D Analyses
advisable
INFLUENCE OF 3D CONDITIONS
15
Yield Surface

t [MPa]

Excavation

10

5
Face of the excavation

0
0

ELPLA

10
15
s [MPa]

20

STRESS PATH AT POINT F

(FACE OF THE EXCAVATION)

Methods for Design Analysis

25

Introduzione
3D Analyses
advisable
Maximum displacement = 44 mm

uf

Methods for Design Analysis

ut

Introduzione
3D Analyses
advisable

Onset of yielding around the tunnel

Methods for Design Analysis

SIMPLIFIED METHODS OF ANALYSIS

AND DESIGN OF TUNNELS IN
SQUEEZING CONDITIONS

CONSIDER
THE ONSET OF YIELDING WITHIN
THE ROCK MASS, AS DETERMINED BY
THE SHEAR STRENGTH PARAMETERS
RELATIVE TO THE INDUCED STRESS

Elasto-plastic closed form solutions for rock

mass response to excavation of a circular
tunnel can be used
If the rock mass is assumed to behave as an elasto-plastic
isotropic medium, the following models can be adopted:
Elastic perfectly plastic (a)
Elasto-plastic with strain softening behaviour (b)
Elasto-plastic, with brittle behaviour (c)

(e.g.Brown et al.,1983;.Carranza-Torres and Fairhurst,1999)

1-3

(a)

1-3

(b)

1-3

(c)

Rock mass strength/in situ stress

Plastic zone radius/tunnel radius

Tunnel deformation/tunnel radius

ur
= 0.002 cm
p
R
0

= 1.25 cm
p
R
0

R pl

0.57

Rock mass strength/in situ stress

BASED UPON THE ABOVE SOLUTIONS DIMENSIONLESS PLOTS CAN BE

DERIVED FROM THE RESULTS OF PARAMETRIC STUDIES WHERE THE
INFLUENCE OF THE VARIATION IN THE INPUT PARAMETERS ARE STUDIED
BY THE MONTE CARLO ANALYSIS, UNDER THE ASSUMPTION OF ELASTIC
PERFECTLY PLASTIC BEHAVIOUR OF THE ROCK MASS, WITH ZERO
VOLUMETRIC CHANGE (HOEK,1998,1999)

Introduzione

- dependent
behaviour
IlTime
Passato
Passato
ed
e Presente
il Presente
Rock Mass Behaviour
Time Independent

Time Dependent

Stress

Stra in

Time Dependent
1
2
3

Strain - hardening
Perfectly plastic
Strain softening

2
t >t o

Stra in

to
Stra in

1
2
3

Stress

Stress

Plastic
Plastic

Stress

Delayed
Delayed Elastic
Elastic

Elastic

Stra in

Time - dependent post

peak behaviour
Time - dependent peak
and ultimate strength

Methods for Design Analysis

Case Study

Introduzione

Case study

Landslide

Step for face

reinforcement

D = 14 m
0

10 km

Case study

Case study
SRTA
Soft
Soft Rock
Rock Triaxial
Triaxial Apparatus
Apparatus

HPTA
High
High Pressure
Pressure Triaxial
Triaxial Apparatus
Apparatus

Case study

LVDT
Load Cell

Proximity
Transducers
LDT

Case study

Internal Pressure max 64 MPa

Specimen diameter 50, 70, 100 mm
and height up to 200 mm
Maximum vertical load 200 kN

Radial

Axial

Case study

Case study

Vertical
strainverticale
rate
Vel.
deformazione
[%/min / 1000]

100

q/q f = 0.55
q/q f = 0.78

10

q/q f = 0.87
q/q f = 1.00

1
0.1
0.01

0.001
0.1

10

100

1000

Tempo [min x 100]

Time

(q/qf = mobilised strength)

Creep Tests in
undrained conditions
on clay-shales for the
study of time
dependent response of
tunnel face

Case study
Plasticity
F=

Viscoplasticity
F>0

Elasticity
Elasticit
F<0

ELASTO-VISCOPLASTIC MODEL
(Lemaitre and Chambon, 1996)

Plasticity
F=0

The viscoplastic strains depend on the

deviatoric stress state only and do not induce
volumetric strains

Problematiche aperte esempi

Case study

Axial Strain (%)

Time (hour)

Test
Model

Time (year)

Case study
axis-symmetric conditions
circular cross section
initial state of stress constant and isotropic
coupled analysis in undrained conditions
two cases considered:
- Osteria Access Adit (depth = 148 m)
Mohr-Coulomb elasto-plastic perfectly plastic model
- Raticosa Tunnel (depth = 50 m)
Elasto visco-plastic model

Case study
04/07/98

Longitudinal displacement [mm]

140
120
100

Sliding
micrometer
installation (zero):
03/07/98

05/07/98
07/07/98
08/07/98

MohrMohr-Coulomb
computed
computed
values
values

80
60
40
20
0
0
75

5
70

10
65

15
60

20
55

25

50

Face advance [m]

Osteria Access Adit

30

45

Case study
04/07/98

Longitudinal displacement [mm]

140
Sliding
micrometer
installation
(zero): 28/06/98

120
100

05/07/98
06/07/98
15/07/98

Serie1
Visco-plastic
Lemaitre
Serie4
computed
Serie6
values
Serie8

80
60
40
20
0
0

10

15

20

Face advance [m]

Raticosa Tunnel

25

30

Conclusions

Introduzione
We have discussed some of the current issues in
the analysis and design methods for tunnels in
squeezing rock conditions. Performance interactive
monitoring of tunnel response associated with
numerical modelling is shown to be an essential
tool for successful design and construction
A case study of a tunnel excavated along the
Apennines in clay-shales has been used to illustrate
how to deal with full face excavation. It is
important to be able to decide the constitutive
model to adopt for the ground, being it timeindependent or time-dependent