Mitigation of Risks Associated with Deep Excavations: State of the Art Review

Abstract

Deep excavations inevitably initiate lateral and vertical ground deformations due to the stress relaxation and bottom heave associated with the excavation process. Thus, adjacent buildings and utilities become kinematically loaded by the induced ground deformations. To date, the ground displacements induced by deep excavations and their associated risks cannot be truthfully evaluated utilizing only systematic engineering calculations for many reasons including the need to account for the natural variability of geomaterials and the uncertainties in soil properties, the ground constitutive behavior, modeling of construction stages, three-dimensional effects of deep excavations, time-dependent natures of the ground deformations as well as the crucial needs to incorporate human factors such as workmanship in the predicting models. The aforementioned aspects require comprehensive knowledge and vast experience not only in deep excavations and their effects on structures and utilities but also in all geotechnical engineering aspects. In this article, a state-of-the-art review of the powerful approaches in quantifying risks associated with deep excavations and their contemporary mitigation methods are highlighted.