Investigation of the diaphragm wall isolation of vibrations’ transferred through the subsoil

Abstract

Abstract Diaphragm walls are deep extended walls through granular or cohesive soils in shallow water table areas. This paper focus problems involved in excavating diaphragm walls including dynamic impact on the environment. Construction of diaphragm wall involves extracting a soil trench while simultaneously keeping heavy viscous slurry (bentonite) filling the excavation to provide lateral pressure that must be at least equal or greater than lateral soil pressure. Extraction of soil with machinery causes vibrations to be transmitted to the adjacent buildings. The research presented in the paper is also to assess the effectiveness of the concrete diaphragm wall in damping vibrations transmitted to the surrounding buildings. The first execution phase of the technology when a vertical finite-length trench element is excavated under a hydrostatic support from inside of a bentonite slurry is under consideration.