Groundwater leakage induced by the deformation of large-diameter shield tunnel under temperature effect

• Published in: Journal of civil structural health monitoring Vol. 15; no. 7; pp. 2969 - 2984
• Main Authors: Liu, Jiguo, Cui, Qinglong, Yang, Xinxin, Yang, Linsong, Wu, Huaina
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 06.06.2025
• Subjects: Civil Engineering; Control; Dynamical Systems; Engineering; Measurement Science and Instrumentation; Original Paper; Vibration; Case study; Analytical model; Seasonal temperature effect; Segment joint opening; Underwater shield tunnel
• ISSN: 2190-5452; 2190-5479
• DOI: 10.1007/s13349-025-00968-0

The opening of joints between segments of the underwater shield tunnel is subject to considerable volume changes due to seasonal temperature variations. The groundwater leakage induced by the deformation of large-diameter shield tunnels has become a major threat to tunnel waterproofing and the structural safety during the operation period. This paper presents two case studies of large-diameter shield tunnels with frequent joint leakage during the operation period. The field monitoring results show that temperature is the most important factor that influences the segment strain and joint opening during normal operation. The yearly irreversible opening of the circumferential joint opening is as remarkable as that caused by seasonal temperature variations and the longitudinal joint opening has a good linear relationship with water level and is relatively less affected by temperature. An analytical deformation model is proposed to quantify the effect of temperature on the circumferential joint opening and segment contact stress in the shield tunnel. The proposed analytical analyses of circumferential joint deformation made for shield tunnels to determine joint opening response give good results compared to field monitoring analysis. This analytical method effectively considers the seasonal temperature effect on the structural damage behavior and is a simple and visual method.