The capability of Qom soil for unsupported excavation adjacent to nearby building

Considering the rapid development of the Qom, excavation is required in order to expand underground space for both public and private sectors. Qom soil often consists of clay and some sand that is dominantly by carbonaceous materials. Excavation adjacent to nearby building problem in urban areas is still a challenging task for practicing engineers. As some buildings are very close to open-cut sites, induced ground movement may cause damage to these structures. Most common types of excavations in Qom are unsupported vertical excavation adjacent to nearby building which the height of them is different. In accordance with the most recent studies, horizontal strain and angular distortion of buildings caused by excavation are considered to be the most important factors for damage assessment. Accordingly, the present study presents a before-event damage evaluation for structures adjacent to open-cut excavation in Qom. In the presented investigation, a series of finiteelement analyses were conducted in order to characterize the ground surface movements. Load/Deformation analysis has been used for finite element analysis. After identifying horizontal and vertical movements, the category of damage is specified by interaction chart proposed by Burland. Finally, the category of damage for Qom and Tehran Soils in similar height is compared. The discussed approach in this research can use for any building damage assessment adjacent an excavation in any soil.

Keywords:

Qom soil , building damage assessment , ground movement , unsupported excavation , finite element analysis