Characteristics of ground surface settlement during excavation

The objective of this paper is to study the characteristics of ground surface settlement during excavation. Ten excavation cases in Taipei with good-quality construction and field observation data are selected to study the characteristics of excavation behavior. The location of maximum lateral wall deflection, magnitude of maximum lateral wall deflection, relationship of maximum lateral wall deflection and maximum ground surface settlement, location of maximum ground surface settlement, and apparent influence range are thus established based on the actual excavation cases. Finally, an empirical formula is proposed to predict the ground surface settlement profile at the center section of an excavation, where the behavior may be characterized by plane-strain conditions. Key words : excavation, surfac settlement, wall deflection, plane strain, empirical formula.