Soft Ground Tunneling For MRT in Urban Areas

Soft Ground Tunneling for Rapid Mass Transit Systems in Urban Areas
SOFT GROUND TUNNELING FOR RAPID MASS TRANSIT SYSTEMS

IN URBAN AREAS
(Literature Review)
Muhammad Shakeel
Master Student in Asian Institute of Technology Bangkok, Thailand
1. Introduction
As the time passes, there is a significant change around the world in terms of population, urbanization and standard of
living. It demands a proper allocation and redistribution of limited urban space to the various urban functions both
existing as well as new. Underground space has been created in urban areas for traffic and utilities. It also is being
used for storage, underground stations and many other usages. It is also studied that underground space not only the
requirement of congested populated cities but it also improves the life style of people. Tunneling in urban areas is one
of the most efficient usages of underground space.
For safe tunnel excavation make its use very frequent in urban areas. Especially now a days, very fast and safe tunnel
excavation can be done by TBM without leaving excessive settlement and damages to the surface structures. TBM can
be worked every type of soil, shallow overburden, below ground water table and varying soil formations. Earth
pressure balance shield, slurry pressure balance shield and varying density shield are commonly used for soft ground
tunneling depending on the soil nature.
Conventionally open cut, cut and cover, NATM and STM can be used for tunneling according to the suitability.
The countries are innovating and implementing new technologies and constructing versatile structures. Mass Transit
Systems is one of the said projects. Underground Tunneling in soft soil is less destructive than the cut and cover and in
most of the countries the depth of the tunneling is kept shallow i.e. in the soil, which shows the necessity of the Soft
Ground Tunneling in urban area and it will also increase in future.
The increase In Underground Tunneling projects is significant in the past decades. There are large no of projects
around that involves the Underground Tunneling in Soil. These projects includes Mass Transit Systems, Hydropower
generation Projects, Highways etc.
The soft ground is referred to as soil. The soil is mainly classified in to two main types i.e. Cohesive Soil and
Frictional Soil. During the construction of the tunnels both the soils behave differently.

2. Engineering geological investigations of mechanized tunneling in soft ground
For successful mechanized tunneling, characterization of sub-surface and proper investigation of geotechnical risks
are vital important for the selection of Tunnel Boring Machine and its efficient use.

Figure 1 Underground MRT Tunnel and Station

3 | P a g e A S I A N I N S T I T U T E O F T E C H N O L O G Y B A N G K O K , T H A I L A N D

Characterizing the ground along the tunnel and predicting the geological, hydro-geological and geotechnical
conditions with respect to mechanized tunneling are essential tasks to perform before the design and construction of a
tunnel. Any unforeseen adverse geological and hydro-geological condition, especially in mechanized tunneling
projects, can increase construction time and cost and cause more risks for the workers, additional environmental
damages and more ground settlement problems (Rienzo et al., 2008). Failure of proper investigation of geological and
geotechnical risks will make the project delay, costly and disputed.

Figure 2. Flow chart of engineering geological investigation for mechanized tunneling in soft ground (Sadegh Tarigh Azali - Engineering
Geology 166 (2013) 170185)
3.Geological and Geotechnical Hazards with respect to mechanized tunneling
After the soil characterization and proper assessment of geological, geotechnical and hydrological parameters various
hazards scenarios are possible to face with varying probability. Following are the common possible hazards which
mechanized tunneling may have to face.
3.1 Stickiness and clogging of soil:

Some types of cohesive soils, especially those consisting of highly plastic clays, have the tendency to develop sticky
behaviors (adhesion of clay particles to metal surfaces and/or cohesion of clay particles and their sticking to one
another), which may lead to clogging in the cutter head, working chamber, and screw conveyor of an EPB machine
and induce balling problems in the pipes and at the separation plant of a slurry TBM or obstruct the shield advance
due to friction (Marinos et al., 2008).


When such clogging occurs, operation need to be stopped for cleaning the machine cutter and chamber which effect
on the schedule of the project and therefore impact on the project budget. It is therefore important that in geotechnical
investigation such behavior of soils should be measured qualitatively and quantitatively.
Clay clogging is categorized in three types depending on consistence (Ic) and plasticity indices (PI) of the fine soil.
The categories of clogging potential proposed by Thewes and Burger (2004) and the recommended changes in the
procedures of EPBM tunneling are as follows:

Soils with high clogging potential cause substantial excavation problems and require daily cleaning operations.
Machine modification only leads to the reduction, not the eradication of the problem.
Soils with medium clogging potential can be handled following a number of mechanical modifications in the shield
machine and soil transport system, along with changes in the operation of the machine.
Soils with low clogging potential require a reduction in the advance rate, but making major alterations to the EPB is
unnecessary.

The below figure shows the clogging risks which is related to plasticity index to consistency index.

Figure 3 Clogging Risks of Cohesive Soil (data points shown from the metro project in Iran)
3.2 Soil with low fine content:
The slurry shield method is applicable to a wide variety of soils, from clay to sand and gravel (EFNARC, 2005), while
the use of EPB machines is limited to relatively soft and fine-grained soils (particles smaller than 75 m or particles
able to pass through a No. 200 sieve). Therefore, another difficult soil for EPB tunneling is coarse-grained soil with
insufficient fines combined with free water. In order for an EPB to properly control face pressure while excavating, it
must dissipate the face pressure along the length of the screw conveyor. Toothpaste is a term often used to describe
the ideal consistency of conditioned soil mixture for an EPB-TBM. The material in the screw must be a stiff viscous
fluid like toothpaste in order to properly dissipate the face pressure. Some coarse-grained soils have insufficient fines
to achieve the consistency of toothpaste. Instead, they tend to drain free water and segregate it, providing undesirable
spoil characteristics for the EPB-TBM spoil (Ball et al., 2009). Coarse-grained soils that segregate and drain free
water do not behave like a viscous fluid, and could not be expected to dissipate pressure along a screw conveyor. If
fine particles are absent in the grain size distribution, they must be added artificially (bentonite, polymers, foam)
(Wassmer et al., 2001). How much fines are needed is a point of discussion. In the British Tunneling Society (BTS)
guideline for closed face tunneling, a minimum value of 10% is recommended (BTS, 2005); but this would rely on the
addition of polymer. Without the addition of polymer, 20% fines is the considered minimum.
3.3 Permeability of soil:
Regarding permeability, the British Tunneling Society (BTS) and the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) (BTS, 2005)
indicate a ground permeability of 10E5 m/s as the point of selection between EPBMs and slurry TBMs (Marinos et
al., 2008). Typically, the use of EPB-TBM is optimal in grounds with permeability less than 10E5 m/s. If the
permeability is higher and the tunnel alignment is under a water table, pressurized water could flow into the tunnel
through the screw. Therefore, the type and quantity of conditioning agent to be added to the plenum and the screw
conveyor become relevant (Guglielmetti et al., 2007). For higher permeability values (N10E5 m/s), the use of a
slurry-TBM is more suitable than an EPB-TBM. Nevertheless, a slurry- TBM applies the face-support pressure
through the formation of a cake between the slurry and the soil. The higher the soil permeability is, the more
difficult the cake formation will be.


3.4 Abrasiveness of soil:
The abrasiveness of soil or rock describes the wear and tear of tools. In abrasive ground the wear can occur on various
parts of the TBM, so the abrasiveness not only determine the tool wear but also the time to repair or change of the
wearing tools which ultimately effect on the project schedule and budget of the project. To see the abrasiveness of the
soil NTNU or LCPS tests should be performed.

Figure 4 Classification of abrasiveness coefficient for various types of soils (after Thuro and Ksling, 2009)
3.5 Oversize grains:
Oversize grains (cobbles and boulders), frequently found in tunnels excavated through soils, can pose major problems
for full-face TBMs in terms of advance rate reduction, cutter damage, and abrasive wear (Dowden and Robinson,
2001). Cobbles and boulders are commonly found in glacial, alluvial and residual soils (Hunt and Del Nero, 2010).
When a full-face machine encounters a boulder, there are a number of possibilities. If the boulder is not too large, it
can be ingested by a properly designed TBM mucking system. If the boulder is too large to be ingested, and the
ground is firm, it may be broken up by a suitably equipped machine cutter head (tunnel boring machines equipped
with disc cutters). If the soil matrix is weak, the boulder may be dislodged, and it may either be pushed radially
outward by the rotary action of the cutter head, and beyond the tunnel periphery, or it may stay in the face area and
eventually block further progress of the machine until it is manually removed. Depending on the prevailing face
condition and cutter head chamber configuration and accessibility, manual breakup and removal can be relatively easy
or very time consuming.
To cope with boulders and protect the machine during the excavation, the cutter head should be equipped with disc
cutters. Due to the rolling movement of the disc cutters, single pieces so-called chips are broken out of the boulder.
Otherwise, it may be necessary to manually split or remove the boulders in the tunnel face.
3.6 Groundwater Fluctuation:
As the earth pressure is directly related to the groundwater level, so the proper estimation of groundwater level and its
fluctuation is very important for the stability of tunnel face to avoid any potential in stability. Therefore, groundwater
should be monitored through boreholes or piezeometer at regular interval.
4. Tunneling Methods
Due to last certain decades the demand of transportation usage has increased tremendously due to limited space and
higher population growth. This leads to various underground excavation techniques for tunneling.
1. Open Cut tunneling method
2. Cut and cover tunneling
3. Mechanized tunneling
4. Sprayed concrete tunneling or NATM
5. Shallow tunneling method (STM)

5.1 Open cut tunneling method

In this method an open trench is done to the required depth, then the tunnel is constructed accordingly and open trench
is backfilled.

Figure 5 Open Cut Tunnel Method
5.2 Cut and Cover Tunneling Method
Cut-and-cover is a simple method of construction for shallow tunnels where a trench is excavated and roofed over
with an overhead support system strong enough to carry the load of what is to be built above the tunnel. Two basic
forms of cut-and-cover tunneling are available:

1-Bottom-up method:
A trench is excavated, with ground support as necessary, and the tunnel is constructed in it. The tunnel may be of in
situ concrete, precast concrete, precast arches, or corrugated steel arches; in early days brickwork was used. The
trench is then carefully back-filled and the surface is reinstated.

Figure 6 Cut and Cover Method

2-Top-down method:
Side support walls and capping beams are constructed from ground level by such methods as slurry walling, or
contiguous bored piling. Then a shallow excavation allows making the tunnel roof of precast beams or in situ
concrete. The surface is then reinstated except for access openings. This allows early reinstatement of roadways,
services and other surface features. Excavation then takes place under the permanent tunnel roof, and the base slab is
constructed.
5.3 Mechanized Tunneling Method:
As underground excavation leads to various problems and especially in urban areas such as groundwater inflow,
surface settlement which may damage the surface structures, environment issues. To minimize these issues the use of
mechanized tunneling is increasing day by day especially urban tunneling works. By use mechanized tunneling
method even for shallow overburden all types of excavation potential can be minimized. There are various types of
tunneling boring machines are developed and selected accordingly.

5.4 Sprayed Concrete Tunneling Method (SCL or NATM)
Sprayed concrete lining or New Austrian Tunneling Method was initially developed for rock tunneling but later can
also be used for soft ground tunneling. According to it, excavate the small area and then immediate apply the shotcrete
support that act as temporary support and then remaining area will be excavated and immediate support is to be
applied. Later permanent support shall be installed according to the requirements.

5.5 Shallow Tunneling Method (STM)
It is widely accepted that one of the major principles of the NATM is the deliberate mobilization of the strength of the
ground around a tunnel to the maximum possible extent by allowing a controlled ground deformation (Brown, 1981;
Sauer, 1988; Will, 1989; Health and Safety Executive, 1996). But for tunneling in urban afreas the ground settlemnt
should be controlled that is the contradiction of NATM.
Figure 8 NATM Tunneling Method
Figure 7 Mechanized Tunneling by TBM

Shallow tunneling method (STM) can be adopted for shallow tunneling in densify urban areas.
Mechanical characteristics of STM:
Limited Arching effect:
Arching effect is one of the most universal phenomena encountered in soils both in the field and in the laboratory
(Terzaghi, 1943). Arching can be best described as a transfer of stresses between a yielding mass of geomaterial and
the adjoining stationary members induced by stress redistribution. The shearing resistance tends to keep the yielding
mass in its original position resulting in a change of the pressure on both of the yielding parts support and the
adjoining medium. The concept of arching is illustrated in below figure (Terzaghi, 1946). Due to arching, the height of
the relatively loose overburden above the tunnel roof resulting from the excavation of the tunnel is D (the height of the
arching zone) instead of H (the overburden depth).

However, in shallow tunnel this effect cannot developed adequately, so tunnel support may carry significant portion of
overburden load.
Limited Ground strength mobilization:
Against the NATM, in STM ground settlement needs to be strictly controlled as the tunnel is in highly density urban
area to avoid damages to the surface structures. Therefore the key principle for the STM is to control the ground
deformation in order to guarantee the tunnel stability and the environmental safety. Convergence confinement method
(CCM) can be used to predict initial requirement of support to controlled settlement. The schematic ground reaction
curve (GRC) is shown in above figure. Support characteristics curve (SCC1) can be used for shallow tunneling in
urban areas.
Preconditions for the STM:
Using specific construction techniques, the STM allows shallow tunneling in soft ground conditions, such as silt, clay,
sand and gravel. Two preconditions, namely stability of the cutting face and dry tunneling condition, must be satisfied
when using the STM.
Stability of the cutting face:
Generally, the self-stability of the shallow tunnel in soft ground is very limited. It is impossible to tunnel through a
cutting face with a very short stand-up time. Therefore, suitable measures should be taken to guarantee a long enough
stand-up time for the cutting face and the unsupported span before the support takes action.

Dry tunneling condition:
For shallow tunneling below the groundwater level or in the water-bearing ground, dry tunneling condition should be
guaranteed. Dry tunneling condition is essential in maintaining the stability of the cutting face by avoiding the
mechanical properties deterioration of the s rro nding gro nd d e to ater inflo and increasing the effecti e stress
Figure 10 Configuration of Ground Arch (After Terzaghi
1946)
Figure 9 Schematic representation of ground reaction curve

(D ) Typical layout of pipe roof protection
of the surrounding ground. Furthermore, dry tunneling condition could also improve the underground working
environment, hence increasing the working efficiency and decreasing the unsupported time of the free span behind the
cutting face.
Auxiliary methods for the STM:
An auxiliary method is a construction method of a secondary or special nature adopted to ensure tunnel construction
safety and surrounding environmental safety, where either conventional support patterns or sequential excavation
measures do not provide effective solutions or where they are not advantageous (Japan Society of Civil Engineers,
1996).

5. Mechanized Tunneling Technique and selection of TBM for Soft ground:
There are various types of tunnel boring machines are available for rock as well as soft ground tunneling and
according to the geology of the site, the suitable one is selected.
( C ) Typical Layout of footing reinforcement layout
(E) Typical Layout of contact grouting

For soft ground tunneling in urban areas following TBM are used:
5.1 Earth Pressure Balanced Shield (EPB)
For soft, cohesive soils tunnel boring machines with earth pressure support are a preferred option. So called Earth
Pressure Balance Shields (EPB) turn the excavated material into a soil paste that is used as pliable, plastic support
medium. This makes it possible to balance the pressure conditions at the tunnel face, avoids uncontrolled inflow of
soil into the machine and creates the conditions for rapidtunneling with minimum settlement.
The special feature of Earth Pressure Balance Shields is that they use the excavated soil directly as support medium.
This method is the first choice in cohesive soils with high clay and silt contents and low water permeability. A
rotating cutting wheel equipped with tools is pressed onto the tunnel face and excavates the material. The soil enters
the excavation chamber through openings, where it mixes with the soil paste already there. Mixing arms on the cutting
wheel and bulkhead mix the paste until it has the required texture. The bulkhead transfers the pressure of the thrust
cylinders to the pliable soil paste. When the pressure of the soil paste in the excavation chamber equals the pressure of
the surrounding soil and groundwater, the necessary balance has been achieved.

The face pressure acting from the water and earth pressure is balanced by soil paste as shown in below figure. It is
suitable for clayey soil of low permeability but it can be used for various soils by conditioning it.

5.2 Slurry Pressure Balance Shield (SPB)
SPB utilize the fluid mixture which is used to carry the excavated material outside and maintaining the front face
pressure to minimize the settlement. The fluid mixture is also acting as machine coolant and also as lubricant.
Bentonite suspension in water with additives is used as fluid mixture. It form a cake on the tunnel face keeping water
on other side which then excavated and mixed with slurry and transferred to the surface.
It is suitable for coarse grain (sand) soil but it can be used for various types of soils after soil conditioning. The
pressure at the face of tunnel exerted by the water and soil is balanced by fluid mixture.

Figure 11 Earth Pressure Balanced Shield
Figure 13 EPB Principal Figure 12 Suitability of EPB

Figure 15 Blowouts and sinkhole formation by using slurry shield in Karstic limestone

5.3 Variable Density TBM (Karstic Limestone with High Water Table)
The high groundwater table and erratic Karstic feature renders EPB TBMs not suitable to tunnel in highly Karstic
limestone ( Kuala Lumpur Limestone Formation) conditions. Slurry Shied TBMs are usually used for such conditions
but lessons learnt from the SMART Project also revealed that the standard Slurry Shied TBMs not able to prevent
incidences of sinkhole formation and blowouts.
The Karstic environment means that the standard Slurry Shield TBM frequently encountered chambers or fissures into
which the slurry will escape resulting in high volume and pressure loss. If the fissures lead to the surface, the slurry
will escape to the surface, resulting in a blowout. On the other hand, if the slurry escapes into an underground cavity,
it will result in a loss of face pressure, thereby creating sinkholes on the surface.
To overcome these situations, the Variable Density TBM was developed which enables the density and viscosity of
the slurry to be varied. This prevents the slurry from escaping into cavities or blowing out from fissures leading to the
surface. With this, the face pressure of the TBM is preserved, and the terrain is kept stable during the excavation
process. The variable density slurry shield enables the TBM to alter the density and viscosity of the slurry according to
soil condition when tunneling. Slurry of higher viscosity can stop slurry of lower viscosity from escaping into cavities
or blowing out from fissures leading to the surface. This in turn preserves the face pressure of the TBM, keeps the
terrain stable during the excavation process, and prevents upwards flows of slurry, reducing the risk of slurry fountains
on the built-up surface.

6. Soft ground Response induced by Tunnel Excavation
Soft ground in tunnel excavation means, tunneling in cohesive (clay) or cohesionless (sand) soils. It is identified that
Figure 14 Slurry Pressure Balanced Shield (SPB)
Figure 16 Variable Density TBM in Karstic Limestone

6.1 Undrained component of volume loss
In tunnel construction the amount of excavation is large than the tunnel volume. The ration of excavated volume to the
tunnel replaced volume is called volume loss, V
L
. The need of extra volume is due to the advancement of TBM for
further excavation. It causes the disturbance and surface settlement and a settlement trough is developed at the surface.
The volume of settlement trough is equal to the volume loss.
Source of volume loss after Attewell (1978) includes:
1. Face loss
2. Shield loss
3. Tail loss
4. Radial loss

Zone 1 is face loss, inward movement of ground from ahead zone of influence (f). It can be controlled by
face pressure.
Shield loss occurs in Zone 2 and represented as s. During tunneling the diameter excavated is larger than
the tunnel diameter to easy advancement of the TBM. This extra volume is called annular gap that to be
filled by grout. The soil tends to move inward radially which cause settlement.
As the annular grout not hardened the movement of soil continue that is termed as tail settlement t, occurs
in Zone 3.
The last component is radial loss that will remain continue due to the shortening of support lining and
annular filled grout because load is transferred from one boundary to the other boundary.
6.2 Tunnel face stability (ITA/AITES Report 2006, Settlement induced by tunneling in soft
ground)
Analyzing tunnel face stability provides an indication of the most probable failure mechanisms, as well as of
parameters to be taken into consideration in the evaluation of ground movements induced by tunneling. Based on the
nature of the grounds encountered, two types of failure mechanisms may be observed.
In the case of cohesive soils face failure involves a large volume of ground ahead of the working front. This
mechanism leads to the formation of a sinkhole at the ground surface with a width larger than one tunnel diameter.
Figure 18 Soil Movement around tunnel in Clay
(after Kimura and Mair, 1981)
Figure 17 Soil Movement around tunnel
in sand (after Potts, 1976)
Figure 19 Volume loss components

In the case of cohesionless soils, failure tends to propagate along a chimney like mechanism above the tunnel face.
Both mechanisms have been evidenced in centrifuge tests carried out in clays and dry sand as shown in below figures.

6.3 Propagation of Movements towards the surface
Ground movements initiated at the tunnel opening will tend to propagate towards the ground surface. The extent and
time scale of this phenomenon will typically be dependent upon the geotechnical and geometrical conditions, as well
as construction methods used on the site.
Two propagation modes have been identified, based on the conclusions of in situ measurements and observations.
These modes can be used to evaluate, in a transverse plane, the degree of propagation of displacements initiated at the
opening. They will be referred to, in the following, as primary mode and secondary mode (Pantet, 1991).
The primary mode occurs as ground stresses are released at the face. It is characterized by the formation of a zone of
loosened ground above the excavation. The height of this zone is typically 11.5 times the tunnel diameter and about
one diameter wide. Two compression zones develop laterally along the vertical direction. For deeper tunnels
(C/D>2.5), the observed tunneling impact at the ground surface is generally limited (Cording and Hansmire, l975;
Leblais and Bochon, 1991; Pantet, 1991).
The secondary mode may occur subsequently, when the tunnel is located close to the surface (C/D < 2.5) and
insufficient confining support exists. These conditions result in the formation of a rigid ground block, bounded by
two single or multiple shear planes extending from the tunnel to the surface. Displacements at the ground surface
above the opening are of the same order of magnitude as those generated at the opening.
These ground response mechanisms typically lead to vertical and horizontal displacements that tend to develop at the
ground surface as excavation proceeds; this results in what is referred to as the settlement trough.
For practical purposes, the observed three-dimensional trough is conventionally characterized by means of a
transverse trough and a longitudinal trough along the tunnel
center-plane.

Figure 21 Face Collapse in granular dry soil
Figure 20 Face collapse in clay soil
Figure 23 3D Settlement trough
Figure 22 Soil movement (a) Primary (b) Secondary mode

6.4 Effect of Ground Water
Numerous examples can be found of difficulties and accidents in underground works that were caused by
groundwater. It must be emphasized that groundwater control is a prerequisite for the successful completion of
underground works.Settlements induced by groundwater typically fall under two categories. The first category refers
to the occurrence of settlements almost concurrently with construction. Lowering of the groundwater table, prior to
excavation (through drainage) or as a consequence of tunneling, may cause immediate settlements to occur in layers or
lenses of compressible soils, as well as in weathered rocky materials. The impact of such lowering of the groundwater
table varies in proportion to its magnitude and radius of influence:
when localized, induced deformations are often prone to generate large differential settlements
that can be damaging to the surrounding buildings;
when widely spread, their consequences are generally less severe
The occurrence of groundwater at the tunnel face may induce settlements as a result of:
the hydraulic gradient weakening the mechanical conditions at the face and on the tunnel walls
thereby increasing ground deformations;
worsening effects on preexisting mechanical instabilities (washed out karsts, etc);
worsening of the mechanical properties of the ground in the invert, particularly when the
sequential method is used, with the risk for punching of the foundation ground by the temporary
support due to loss of confinement.
The second category refers to delayed settlements that are typically observed in soft compressible grounds. As a result
of the tunneling works, the ground can be locally subjected to stress increase and subsequently excess pore pressures.
Similar mechanisms can develop at a larger scale with fully pressurized shield tunneling. Moreover, as a result of
seepage towards the tunnel walls that inevitably occurs during and/or after construction, either along the more
pervious materials present around the opening or through the tunnel liner, consolidation will take place within the
entire ground mass. The magnitude of consolidation settlements will be larger in areas experiencing higher reductions
in pore pressures.
6.5 Effect of worksite conditions
This includes the settlements induced by the general worksite conditions, especially vibrations induced by boring
whether with the sequential or shielded method and muck removal operations. Settlements of this type have been
observed in soft ground conditions, or in good ground with poor surface backfill material.
7. Potential Problems in Soft Ground Tunneling in Urban Area
There are many potential problems associated with tunneling in urban areas; the most important ones are as follows:
o Surface settlement trough leads to buildings (tilting or distortion) and roads settlement
Structure located in the vicinity of a tunnel under construction will experience the following movements:
uniform settlement (or heave)
differential settlement (or heave) between supports
overall or differential rotation
overall horizontal displacement
differential horizontal displacement in compression or extension.
o Collapse due to instability problem
o Groundwater fluctuation

Figure 24 Building Tilting and sinkhole formation

Causes of Potential Damages:
The common causes of potential damages due to tunnel excavation are:
Weak ground
Uncontrolled groundwater
Wrong selection of TBM
Varying geological conditions
Inexperience workers
Unforeseen buried obstructions
8. Conclusions & Recommendations
This paper illustrates the brief description of soft ground tunneling for MRT in urban areas. For the successful
completion of the project and to minimize the potential problems to the adjacent structures engineering geological,
geotechnical and hydrological investigation is prime important. After proper completion of investigation and sub
surface characterization the soil classification and hydrological conditions must be defined. On the basis of that
method of construction and approach will be adopted. For mechanized tunneling, SPB is preferred to use for coarse
grain soil while EPB can be used for cohesive soil. Variable density TBM is preferred to deploy if the substrata consist
of highly Karstic Limestone underneath overburden to avoid blowout and sinkhole formation at the surface.For
conventional method NATM is not preferred for shallow tunneling in urban areas because it allows deformation to use
Figure 25 Typical Idealized building response (after Attewell 1986)


the ground strength. Shallow tunneling method (STM) can be adopted for shallow tunneling in urban areas with some
auxiliary measures to control the surface settlement.
As the tunneling for MRT is in highly congested areas so the surface settlement and its monitoring during function are
very important for the safety of surface structure as well as tunnel working itself.
9. References
Shallow tunneling method (STM) for subway station construction in soft ground (Tunneling and Underground Space
Technology 29 (2012) 1030)
Qian Fang, Dingli Zhang, Louis Ngai Yuen Wong
Ground movements in EPB shield tunneling of Bangkok subway project and impacts on adjacent buildings (Tunneling
and Underground Space Technology 30 (2012) 1024)
A. Sirivachiraporn , N. Phienwej
Mechanized tunneling in urban areas Design methodology and construction control Engineering geological
investigations of mechanized tunneling in soft ground: A case study, EastWest lot of line 7, Tehran Metro, Iran
(Engineering Geology 166 (2013) 170185)
Sadegh Tarigh Azali, Mohammad Ghafoori , Gholam Reza Lashkaripour, Jafar Hassanpour
Predicted and measured tunnel face behaviour during shield tunneling in soft ground (Tunneling and Underground
Space Technology 21 (2006) 264)
S.H. Kim, G.H. Jeong, J.S. Kim
Geotechnical Aspects of the Bangkok MRT Blue Line project by Chanaton Surarak (Phd Thesis)
ITA/AITES Report 2006 on Settlements induced by tunneling in Soft Ground (Tunneling and Underground Space
Technology 22 (2007) 119149)

http://www.mymrt.com.my/en/underground-works (MRT project in Kuala Lumpur Karstic limestone)
http://www.tunneltalk.com/Kuala-Lumpur-MRT-Nov12-Worlds-first-Variable-Density-TBM-ready-for-Klang-
Valley.php
Some experience from the soft ground tunneling in urban area
Seung-Ryull Kim, ESCO Consultant & Engineers Company Ltd Seoul, Korea

Soft Ground Tunneling For MRT in Urban Areas

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Soft Ground Tunneling for Rapid Mass Transit Systems in Urban Areas

SOFT GROUND TUNNELING FOR RAPID MASS TRANSIT SYSTEMS

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