M5 East - Design of a shallow soft ground shotcrete motorway tunnel.

P. W. Gibbs Hyder Consulting J. Lowrie Hyder Consulting S. Keiffer Jacobs Associates L. McQueen Golder Associates ABSTRACT: The Princes Highway Exit Ramp Road Tunnel is part of the M5 East Tunnels located in the southern suburbs of Sydney. The M5 East Motorway is currently under construction by the BHBB Joint Venture for the RTA. The Princess Hwy Tunnel presented one of the most challenging design tasks for the project. The 12m span tunnel was excavated with shallow cover within a Palaeochannel infilled by alluvial/colluvial soils below major railway lines. The tunnel was to be excavated without significant impact on the overlying operational freight and passenger rail service. The design solution involved dewatering, ground improvement, presupport, staged excavation, and sprayed shotcrete lining. Observational techniques were used during construction to monitor excavation, allow prompt reaction if required and assist in the validation of the design. 1 INTRODUCTION Golder Associates and Taywood Engineering provided advice on durability. During the construction phase Mueller & Hereth provided on site design support. This paper addresses the challenges of designing a road tunnel in soft ground with low cover u nder major railway lines. The paper is focused on the temporary sprayed shotcrete lining system installed prior to the final lining. 2 GEOLOGY

The M5 East Motorway is major link in the ring road network of Sydney. The M5 East Tunnels are 4km in length and are located in the south-western suburbs. The mainline tunnels and most of the ramps are driven through Hawkesbury Sandstone. The exception to this is the Princess Highway Ramp Tunnel which passes through 48m of soft ground. The works were designed and built by the Baulderstone Hornibrook Bilfinger Berger (BHBB) M5 East Joint Venture for the Roads and Traffic Authority of New South Wales. BHBB engaged Hyder Consulting to carry out the design of the Driven Tunnels. The Design Team included the in-house resources of Hyder Consulting and Jacobs Associates. Geotechnical investigation was carried out by
Figure 1 Tunnel Longitudinal Section

The geotechnical conditions consisted of fill, overlying alluvial/colluvial soils, and Hawkesbury Sandstone. The soils in which the tunnel was driven are part of a deep alluvial/colluvial infilled paleochannel. This palaeochannel within the sandstone bedrock was orientated north-south and up to 20 m deep. The soil deposits range from yellow-brown

loose to medium dense silty Sand/Sand with some silt (Unit 1 Sand), to grey medium dense clayey Sand to silty Sand with clay (Unit 2 Sand). Within this Unit 2 Sand, it is anticipated that weakly iron cemented zones occur up to 300 mm in width. The crown of the Princes Highway ramp tunnel is entirely within this palaeochannel for approximately 48m of tunnel. Refer Figure 1 for Tunnel Longitudinal Section. 3 TUNNELLING OPTIONS

4.1 Dewatering The existing groundwater level ranged from RL 5.6 to RL 9.0. As part of the design effort a deep test pit was performed to observe flowing water within the excavation. It was observed that water flows substantially reduced the stability of the noncohesive soils in the palaeochannel. It was anticipated that should groundwater levels remain where observed in test borings and the pit, the excavation face of the tunnel will become unstable, and subsequently, face loss as described above will be unacceptably large. With the baseline knowledge observed in explorations, a numerical model of groundwater was established. This model of the groundwater flows was modified to reflect the construct ion program. It showed that the lowering of the groundwater within the alluvials, by use of a construction dewatering system, was required. In addition to construction dewatering, horizontal drainage pipes were required to be installed in the face of the excavation, to drain away any pockets of groundwater. These pockets may exist within isolated areas of the alluvials, which may be missed, trapped, or otherwise not drained by the construction dewatering system. Routine probing ahead to locate such water prior to excavation advance was required. Where probing encountered water, the conditions of the draining water were observed. Where fine soils flow with the water, grouting was to commence immediately. 5 GROUND IMPROVEMENTS & PRESUPPORT

A number of options were considered to tunnel in soft ground under a major rail link during the Olympic period in Sydney. These options included open cut, micro tunnelled pipe canopy and jet grouting. Sprayed shotcrete lining was selected based on railway operations, ability to control settlements, pretreatment requirements and site access considerations. 4 SETTLEMENT CONTROL

Ground settlement induced by tunnelling in soft ground can have a significant impact on surface structures and requires careful consideration when choosing the tunnelling method. As construction proceeds there is an almost immediate ground movement, generally recognised as relaxation of the ground towards the tunnel face. Settlement occurs at the ground surface in front of and to the side of the tunnel advance and becomes fully developed after passage of the full tunnel face. Under normal circumstances both vertical and horizontal ground movements occur. These ground relaxation settlements are usually characterised by the term volume loss expressed as a percentage of the excavated volume of the tunnel. This volume loss is made up of face loss and loss from the peripheral profile. In order to minimise the settlements construction dewatering, ground improvement, and tunnel presupport were carried out prior to excavation commencing. In addition to these pre-excavation measures, ground relaxation and the resulting settlements was further minimised by utilising a tunnel support system which was installed quickly. The design utilised a Sprayed Concrete Lining and staged excavation sequence to minimise relaxation of the ground surrounding the tunnel as the excavation was advanced.

5.1 Chemical Grouting It was anticipated that the crown of the tunnel would be within the Unit 1 Sands for approximately 18 m from the tunnel portal. The description of Unit 1 sand ranges from loose silty Sand to medium dense silty Sand with Silt. Grain size dis tribution tests on this material indicate less than 15 % of a given sample consists of silt. In addition, observations made during the test pit excavation indicated that within this Unit 1 Sand, clean sand lenses may exist. In order to maintain a stable tunnel crown, the design required that the Unit 1 Sands be improved through the injection of Chemical Grout from the portal face. The ground improvement was targeted at creating a grouted sand mass with an average unconfined compressive strength of at least 0.35 MPa.

5.2 Pre-Support In this design we proposed the use of an overlapping grouted steel pipe canopy. The primary purpose of the canopy was to provide a grouted continuum acting as an arch which aids stress flow around the tunnel and minimises pressure at the tunnel face. The secondary purpose of the canopy was to act as mechanical presupport spiling. The specified overlap between successive rounds of canopy tubes was selected to ensure competent embedment into the face. Grouting through the cano py tubes increases the stiffness of the ground in the vicinity of the excavation and hence aids in the control of ground movement. The improved material properties provided around the tubes were taken into account in the numerical analysis. The canopy tubes were installed using a propriety system which utilised a lost cuttershoe and retractable drill bit followed by incremental casings fitted with grouting valves. The canopy tubes were grouted in place via the longitudinally spaced valves into the surrounding ground mass. The drilling system incorporating the shoe, drill bit, and casing minimised the possibility of voids being formed during the installation. Each canopy round was installed from a single face chainage and drilling and grouting of the can opy tubes was undertaken sequentially to ensure the formation of a complete functioning arch. 6 INITIAL GROUND SUPPORT

Work in conjunction with t he excavation sequence to limit surface settlements CONSTRUCTION SEQUENCE & ANALYSIS

Sprayed Concrete Lining Method implies an incremental excavation sequence, and the creation of temporary sprayed concrete linings. The control of convergence and settlement is principally achieved by limiting the length of advance per stage, providing appropriately shaped excavations and by providing early ring closure. Numerical analyses were performed using the computer program FLAC to assess construction s e q u e n c e an d a i d i n p r e d i c t i n g g r o u n d displacements. The program allows modelling of sequential excavation and installation or removal of support elements at any stage of the analysis. It models the interaction of the ground and the various structural elements and provides detailed information on the state of stress in the ground, the loads in the structural support elements, the behavioural mechanisms of the ground and support system, and the displacements of the ground and structural elements. The analytical model was used to assess the stability and the deformation characteristics of the tunnel opening in relation to the ground surface, the different soil types and layers, and the surcharge loads associated with the trains. In the analyses, soil elements are modelled as continuum elements with a Mohr-Coulomb failure criterium. Estimates of the strength and deformability properties of the soil elements were provided by Golder Associates, and are presented in Table 1. TABLE 1: SUMMARY OF SOIL PROPERTIES SOIL (kN/m3) C (kPa) LAYER Unit 1 Sand 18 2 32 Unit 2 Sand 19 5 34

To control relaxation, support must be applied to the ground immediately following excavation. Immediate face support was achieved by applying a layer of sealing shotcrete usually 25 50 mm thick after the completion of each advance. Quickly installed short term support was provided by lattice girders and steel mesh erected after the sealing shotcrete. Lattice girders provide some support until such time as the primary shotcrete has been applied and gained strength. The initial support consists of continuous sprayed shotcrete shells with lattice girders and mesh in intimate contact with the ground. These shells are arches with closed inverts. The initial lining in the Soft Ground Tunnel was designed to perform the following functions: Adequately withstand the overburden loads on the lining. Adequately withstand any loading from the rail lines on the surface.

E 15 30

The pipe canopy, described above, was modelled as a ring of continuum elements with Mohr-Coulomb failure criteria assuming contact between the grout zones around each of the pipes. The shotcrete, lattice girder and mesh ground support system was modelled by linking beam elements around the perimeter of the opening. The beam elements provide response to both axial and flexural loading conditions. The capacity of the shotcrete and lattice girder support system was evaluated using the principles of moment thrust interaction diagrams based on the procedures of the American Concrete Institute 318-95.

Throughout the course of the detailed design, more

than 3 different models were developed to evaluate different excavation sequences. The 3 models included a full face excavation cycle, two-staged left side/right side excavation cycle, and the three staged

Figure 2 Excavation Sequence

excavation cycle. In each case, the numerical analyses confirmed the validity of the ground support system to carry the anticipated ground and surcharge loads, and shows that the sequence of excavation and installation of support has an effect on the resulting ground movements. The results indicate that the most effective control of ground movement can be accomplished by completing the initial lining operation at the earliest possible stage. The modelling results for a 3 staged excavation, using a left/right top heading & bench, indicated that ground surface displacements could be controlled using a heading and bench excavation cycle. This was satisfactory provided a substantial temporary invert was installed concurrently with the top heading excavation. The analysis predicted that total displacement at the ground su rface would be approximately 45 mm. This value, when comparing to the other models, was greater, however, the sequence did allow for the installation of a continuous canopy. Additionally, it resulted in a relatively small initial excavation, which was anticipated to aid in the event that perched groundwater, loose ground, or other difficulties were encountered. After review by the BHBB JV, this was selected by the Contractor as the preferred excavation sequence and is summarised as follows: The face was divided into three parts the top heading, comprising two drifts and the bench. A temporary sprayed concrete wall divides the top heading drifts. The top heading drifts were advanced in typically 800mm cycles. It was considered that after assessment of actual conditions this could possibly be increased to 1000mm. The face was stepped and the bench inclined. The excavation of the drifts commenced following installation of the complete canopy fan. The left hand drift was driven to the end of the canopy, followed by the right hand drift. The outer walls of the drifts incorporated mesh and lattice girders. Temporary sprayed concrete was applied to the inner wall. As the second drift advanced the central wall was broken out, the area cleaned, mesh installed and sprayed concrete applied to complete the ring closure. Butt joints or lap joints were provided in the lattice girders, the latter providing tolerance for closure lengths. Following completion of the top heading, the bench excavation was undertaken. The bench excavation was undertaken in bays. Mesh and lattice girder

sections were installed and shotcrete applied to close the ring in each excavation cycle. The full width invert was advanced in 1600 -2400mm long cycles. Refer Figure 2 for excavation sequence. 8 SETTLEMENT RESULTS

It was anticipated that the ground surface within the vicinity of the tunnel will undergo 15 to 30 mm settlement associated with groundwater drawdown. This settlement is anticipated to occur over a longer period of time, across a wider area than the settlement trough indicated below. Consolidation settlements are not anticipated to effect the tunnel structure. 8.1 Predicted Values The numerical analysis, discussed above for design of the initial lining and sequence, generally provides reasonable estimates for the loads in the structural elements, and captures the overall behaviour reasonably well. However, using the models to predict ground displacements can be misleading, because all the sources of ground movement t hat occur prior to support installation are not captured in the model. With this is mind we also considered empirical relationships and case histories to predict an upper bound settlement estimate of 100mm. The design required significant instrumentation and monitoring efforts to be employed while construction is occurring. By monitoring ground movements, actual displacements can be recognised, and a reaction or rectification take place, concurrent to the tunnel activities. Threshold displacement criteria were established with the SRA such that activities such as re-ballasting of the railway tracks, alteration to the catenary towers and or lines, and maintenance of utilities could occur without interruption of services. 8.1 Actual Values The observed ground settlements ranged from 30 to 35mm and movements inside the tunnel were 15mm. The actual ground settlements correspond to the modelling that assumed instantaneous ring closure which we had assumed as a lower bound estimate. This result confirms the tunnelling approach to complete ring closure as soon as possible.

DESIGN VALIDATION

A major feature of Sprayed Concrete Lining which differentiates it from other soft ground tunnelling methods is the extensive use of temporary sprayed concrete linings to support the whole of the excavation over extended periods of time. During the driving of the Princes Highway ramp, there was continuous interaction between the Designer and the Contractor as the work proceeded. This interaction was important, as assessments and decisions depend not only on one individual but also upon an integration of the project team, including the engineers, supervisors and skilled operatives. Close collaboration was anticipated between the Designers and those carrying out the monitoring. Prior to commencement of excavation, the Contractor developed an excavation plan, which singled out points of responsibility within the organisation to ensure that the works are carried out to a high standard. In this design the closure of the sprayed concrete ring is of prime importance. The quality of the shotcrete, the formation of the excavation joints and the protection of the ring from damage during subsequent operations all required close attention. The rigorous following of specified procedures for monitoring, and the prompt and systematic reaction to the results of the monitoring ensured structural stability and assisted in the validation of the design. Designers formed part of the supervision team and were involved in the process controls, some of which are listed below: 10 Soil conditions and ground behaviour; Geometry of excavation; Shotcrete quality, including strength, thickness and joints; Performance of canopy tubes; The timing of support installation and ring closure; Performance of ground treatment; Review of instrumentation results. CONCLUSION

assist in the design validation. At all times the technical requirements of the design were coordinated with practical construction considerations.

The design of the Princess Highway Soft Ground Tunnel presented one of the most challenging design tasks for the M5 East Motorway Project. The successful design solution involved dewatering, ground improvement, staged excavation and sprayed shotcrete lining. Observation techniques were implemented during construction to monitor excavation, allow prompt reaction if required and