Numerical modeling and back analysis of a retaining system for a deep excavation

Today, as a result of the rapid increase in the population, intended use of the buildings began to change especially in residential and commercial buildings in urban areas. With new developments, deep excavations have become very important to improve the usage area in buildings. The excavation support system is necessary to prevent the damage that could occur at buildings, roads and other existing structures around the excavation. Geological condition of the area and the existing structures around the excavation affects the planned retaining system. In urban areas, generally clearance space is limited for using anchored retaining walls for deep excavations. In these situations, where anchored retaining walls cannot be employed, strutted retaining walls are preffered to provide support during the excavation. Excessive lateral retaining wall displacements and the associated ground settlements are often the primary cause of the damage of the adjacent buildings. Deformations can be estimated with numerical methods, but these estimates should also be checked with field measurements. In this study, strutted diaphragm wall analyses were performed using finite element method in PLAXIS 3D software. Soil models in PLAXIS 3D were compared during the analyses. The foundation excavation analysis of Park Inn Otel/İZMİR is performed as the implementation of the finite element analysis method for deep excavation supporting systems. The purpose of the research on deep excavations was to develop a deeper understanding of the behavior of excavation support systems. The major aim of this study is to compare the forces and deformations measured from the diaphragm wall, to the results from the three-dimensional finite element software i.e., PLAXIS 3D. Results from this study showed that the finite element analysis can be used to estimate the performance of the deep excavation correcty.