Calculation Method of the Finite Soil Pressure for a New Foundation Pit Adjacent to an Existing Subway Station

Abstract

The study aimed at the simple prediction problem of finite soil pressure for a new foundation pit adjacent to an existing subway station. Failure modes of the finite soil were proposed. Considering the friction between the soil and the structural interface, the formulas for calculating the finite soil pressure were derived with the horizontal differential element method, and the distribution was discussed. Furthermore, a simple calculation method for the resultant force of the finite soil pressure and the height of the action point was proposed with the principle of area equivalence. With the example and model tests, the rationality of the above method was verified. The influences of parameters on the resultant force of the soil pressure and the relative height of the resultant force were analyzed. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) The finite soil pressure has a nonlinear distribution and is lower than the conventional soil pressure. (2) Compared with other existing methods and model test results, the proposed finite soil pressure calculation method and simplified method are rational. (3) The finite soil pressure increases with the ground overload and soil weight and decreases with the internal friction angle and the structure-soil friction angle. (4) The relative height of the resultant force of the finite soil pressure increases with the structure-soil friction angle and decreases with the internal friction angle. (5) The proximity and covering soil thickness of the existing subway station have a lesser influence on the finite soil pressure, whereas the internal friction angle, weight, structure-soil friction angle and ground overload have a greater influence on the finite soil pressure. (6) The structure-soil friction angle has a greater influence on the height of the action point. The height of the resultant force is one-third of the enclosure structure depth if the structure-soil friction angle is 0.