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Braced Cuts and
Cofferdams
Prepared By:
Prof. Dr. Ing. Farouk El-Kadi
Professor of Geotechincal Engineering
Faculty of Engineering
Ain Shams University
Shorouk Academy
Faculty of Engineering
Civil Engineering Department
Course : Foundation Engineering 2 Fourth Year Civil
Year : 2012 - 2013
Version : 00
Dams and Levees
Content
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Dams
1.3 Hydrology and Hydraulics
1.4 Types of Dams
1.4.1 Concrete Dams
1.4.2 Earth Dams
1.4.3 Rock fill Dams
1.4.4 Roller compacted concrete Dams
1.5 Geotechnical analysis and design of Earth Dams
1.5.1 Seepage
1.5.2 Slope stability
1.6 Lessons from Dams failures
1.7 Levees
1.8 Summary
Brace Excavation
(2) Braced Cuts
Content
1) Construction and construction elements.
2) Loading (Earth pressure).
3) Design of structural elements.
4) Check to avoid heave in cohesive soil.
5) Stability of the bottom of cut in sand.
1- Construction and construction elements
Braced cuts
Braced Cut .
:
a- Vertical wall soldier beam and lagging as sheet pile.
b- Wale.
c- Strut.
(b) Braced cut using soldier beams
2- Loading (earth pressure)
(Braced Cut)
( earth pressure )
.
( earth pressure )
:
No deformation (Rigid wall).
Translation or rotation for the supporting wall.

( Braced Cut ( ) .)
2.1) Apparent pressure diagrams for
sand, firm clay and soft to medium clay
Terzaghi and peck method based on the following :

Excavation 6.0m
Artificial loading diagram is used for determining strut loads
Water table is below bottom of excavation
Pore pressure is not considered .
A stability expression (N) has been developed to indicate
the performance of excavation in clay .

(1)

Ground movement becomes significant if :

3 (2)

Failure is likely if:

6

Terzaghi Peck (1967) unit pressure for sand

= 0.65 K
a

K
a=
tan2(45 /2)

Tschabotariaff gives ( ) as follows

=0.8 K
a
cos (3)
Calculation of Earth Pressure
For clay
Terzaghi- Peck (soft- to- med.) Clays
P= 1.0 K

H (4)
K
a
= 1-m
2

For N 3-4 m=1.0

m< 1.0 for normally loaded clay
For stiff fissured clay
P= 0.2-0.4H (5)
Tschebotarioff (stiff clay)
P= 0.3H (6)
Med clay
P=0.375H (7)
2.2) Non- uniform soils
2.2.1 Braced cut passes through layers of both sand and clay (see Fig
I). An equivalent value of cohesion C
e
( = 0 concept) is
determined using the following equation suggested by (Peck
1943).
H = total height of the cut.
= unit weight of sand.
H
s
= height of the sand layer.
K
s
= a lateral earth pressure coef. .
= angle of friction of sand.
q
u
= unconfined compressive strength of clay.
n' = a coef. Of progressive failure .
= saturated unit weight of clay layer.
With the values of and C
e
the distribution of apparent earth
pressure given in (Fig II )Can be used
2.2.2 Braced cut passes through a number of
clay layers (Fig III)
When the braced cut passes
through a number of clay
layers, the equivalent values of
C
e
and are determined from
the following equations (Fig.
III).
Where c
1
, c
2
,c
n
are
untrained cohesions of layer 1,
2n and H
1
, H
2
, H
n
are the
thicknesses of these layers (Fig.
III).
Likewise,
3.0 Design of structural element (Braced Cut)

.

( Sheet pile )

( Wales )
.
(
(Wales
( Struts .)
( 3. I )

:
- ( Sheet pile )
- ( Wales )
- ( Struts )
3.1) Design of sheet pile
The sheet pile will be designed/m.
The reaction on the wales will be calculated.
The sheet pile can be calculated as continuous beam
resting on the wales (A,B, C, and D) or to divide it in
three portions assuming two hinges one at B and one at
C (Fig 3. I).
The wales must be designed as continues beam resting
on the struts.
With the reaction in the struts, the struts can be designed
as compression member.
The moment in the strut due to its own weight and buckling
must be taken into consideration.
3.2) Design of braced cut using soldier beams (Fig
3. I I)
( )
( Soldier beam )
( Simple beam .)

( Wales )
( Continuous beam ) ( Struts .)
Struts
buckling .
(Fig 3. I I) Braced cut using soldier beams
4- Check to avoid heave in cohesive soil
Braced cuts in clay become
unstable as a result of heaving of
the bottom of the excavation.
The failure surface for this case in
a homogenous soil is given in (Fig
4. I).
The ultimate bearing capacity at
the base of a soil column (see Fig
4. I) with a width B can be given
as:
The vertical load/unit area along
plane (f i) is
The factor of safety against bottom
heave is
If F.S is less than 1.5, the sheet pile
is driven deeper.
5.0 Stability of the bottom of cut in sand (Fig 5.I, 5.II)
The bottom of a cut in sand is generally stable.
When the water table is encountered, the
bottom of the cut is stable as long as the water
level inside the cut (excavation) is higher than
the ground water table.
In case dewatering is needed (Fig 5.I) the
factor of safety, against piping should be
checked.
To check the factor of safety, draw flow nets
and determine the max. exit gradient [i
max(exit)
]
(fig 5.II).
a = Length of the flow element.
N
d
= number of drops.
The factor of safety against piping can be
expressed as
F.S must be more than 1.5
Piping in Sand
To avoid piping (see
seepage) the following
charts are given (after
NAVFAC DM-7 1971)
Fig(a): for determining
sheeting pentration in
granular soil
Fig (b) Piling penetration
to prevent piping
Typical Single Wall Configuration of Retained Excavation
Common Types of Braced Cuts
Types of Coffer Dams
Earth cofferdam ( fig1)
Well-adapted to depth of water up to
3ms
Local soil clay core or sheet pile
Upstream slope covered with a rip rap
2- rock fill coffer dam ( fig2)
usually provided with an impervious
membrane of soil to reduce seepage
3- single sheet pile coffer dam( fig3)
Suitable for moderate flow velocities
of water depth of water about 4.0 ms
depth of penetration in soil must be
calculated
4-Double wall sheet piling coffer
dam ( fig4 )
Double wall sheet piling coffer dams
higher than 2.5m should be strutted
Sometimes inside berm is provided
Fill material should have high coef. of
friction
It has the advantage of less leakage
Suitable up to a height of 10 m
Coffer Dams Cont.
5. Braced Coffer dams (Fig.5)
Used to isolate a working area
surrounded by water
H must be higher than the flood
level.
Care must be taken during
dewatering inside the coffer
dam.
6. Cellular Coffer dam (Fig. 6,7)
Special shapes of sheet piles (Fig
8) to form a series of cells. There
are 2 types
a. Diaphragm type (Fig. 6)
b. Circular Type (Fig.7)
Cellular Coffer dams
content
1.0 Diaphragm type.
2.0 Circular type.
2.1 Design of cellular coffer dams on rocks.
2.1.1 Location of saturation line for
determining the weight of the soil in
cell.
2.1.2 Average width.
2.1.3 Safety against sliding.
2.1.4 Safety against overturning.
2.1.5 Safety against slipping.
2.1.6 Safety against vertical shear.
2.1.7 Stability against bursting.
2.2 Design of cellular coffer dam on soil.
Cellular coffer dams
There are two types:
a- Diaphragm type (Fig
I).
b- Circular type (Fig II).
1.0 Diaphragm type:
It consists of circular arc on the
inner and outer sides which
are connected by straight
diaphragm walls.
The cells are filled with coarse-
grained soils which increase
the weight of the coffer dam
and its stability.
The leakage through the
coffer dam is also reduced.
Filling of all cells must be
approximately at the same
time to avoid rupture of
diaphragms due to unequal
pressure on the two sides.
2.0 Circular type:
It consists of large diameter main
circular cells interconnected by
arcs of smaller cells.
The walls of connecting cells are
perpendicular to the walls of the
main circular cells of large
diameter.
The circular-type cellular coffer
dams are self-sustaining, and
therefore independent of the
adjacent circular cells.
Each cell can be filled
independently.
The stability of such cells is much
greater as compared with that
of the diaphragm type.
Because the diameter of circular
cells is limited by interlock
tension, their ability to resist large
lateral pressure due to high
heads is limited.
Failure Modes of Filled Cells
1-a) Internal Shear (tilting),
vertical shear and horizontal
shear
1-b) Rotational Shear Surface
2. Interlock separation.
3. Base failure and sliding.
4. Piling rise on loaded side.
5. Overturning
6. Distorted T-connection
2.1 Design of cellular coffer dams on rock
2.1.1 Location of saturation line for determining the weight of soil in cell
For determining the weight of the soil in the cell, it is required
to locate the saturation line.
The approximate location of the saturation line for different
types of fill materials, as shown in fig.
For a perfectly draining fill, the saturation line is shown in [fig.
(a)].
The lower half may be assumed saturated for analysis.
For other type of fill, the saturation line at a slope of 2:1 is
assumed [Fig. (b)].
In case of a berm, the
saturation line drops down to
the top of the berm [Fig. (c)].
For stability analysis, two
extreme locations (marked 1
and 2) of saturation line
should be investigated in this
case.
2.1.2 Average width and estimation for the diameter of main cell
The design of coffer dam is made for a
section 1m long and uniform, average
width.
The average width is obtained by
equating the section modulus of the
equivalent rectangular section to the
actual section modulus.
An approximate value of the average
width may, however, be obtained by
equating the equivalent rectangular
area to the actual area of the coffer
dam between center to center.
2.1.2 Average width and estimation for the diameter of main cell
cont.
The TVA engineers gave the following
relations for computing the average
width.
The above values of the average
width are assumed in the preliminary
analysis.
The actual width to be provided is
obtained after the stability analysis.
The diameter "D" of the main cells is
chosen depending upon the height "H"
of the coffer dam. The diameter "D" of
the main cells is given by
The circular, cellular coffer dams are
economical up to a total height "H" of
15 to 18m.
2.1.3 Safety against Sliding
Coffer dam is subjected to horizontal
sliding force due to water pressure and
earth pressure.
The sliding is resisted by the frictional
resistance at the base of the coffer dam.
If berms are provided on the interior
side , the passive earth pressure also
helps in resisting the sliding.
Thus the factor of safety against sliding
is as given in equation(1)
2.1.4 Safety against overturning
Cofferdam should be safe against
failure due to over turning at toe (point
0).
Neglecting the passive resistance, the
factor of safety against overturning is:
The resultant of the forces must lie
within the middle third.
2.1.5 Safety against Slipping
As the cell tends to tip over the toe, the
fill material has tendency to run out.
The piles on the water side creep up
word as one unit.
The piles on the dry side slip relative to
each other.
This behavior occurs because the
frictional resistance between the fill and
the piles on the water side is smaller than
the frictional resistance along the
interlock.
On the water side, the force P
d
pushes
the pile against the fill.
The frictional resistance between the pile
and the fill equal P
d
.
The factor of safety against slipping is:
The value of friction coef. is
equal to tan .
= angle of friction between the
fill and pile.
The main width b required by
taking moments about the toe.
If the sheet pile is embedded in
the rock for a substantial depth,
the effect of the active and
passive pressure should be
considered when summing up the
moments about the toe.
2.1.5 Continue Safety against Slipping
2.1.6 Safety Against vertical shear
The cell may fail due to
vertical shear developed along
a plane through its center line.
The max. shear Q is
obtained by computing the
max. bending moment acting
on the cell, considering the cell
as a vertical cantilever.
The moment due to water
pressure P
w
Moment due to shearing force
Q
For stability, the shearing
resistance developed must be
greater than Q.
The shearing resistance is
equal to the sum of shearing
resistance of soil (S
1
) and the
resistance due to interlock (S
2
).
2.1.6.1 Shearing resistance of soil (S
1
)
2.1.6.2 Resistance due to interlock
(S
2
)
2.1.7 Stability against bursting (interlock separation)
The cell should be safe against bursting.
The stability against bursting depends upon interlock
stresses.
TVA engineers gave the following equation for the ring
tension (T
max
) for 90 - tees.
p = horizontal pressure due to cell fill.
H= depth of soil up to that level.
= angle which the T makes with the axis.
L = one-half the distance between centers of main
cells.
2.2 Design of cellular dam on soil
The procedure for the design of a coffer dam
embedded in deep soil is similar to that for a coffer
dam resting rock.
The following additional requirements must be
satisfied.
a- The sheet pile in sand must be driven to such a
depth that the bearing capacity at the level is
greater than the vertical force acting on the pile.
b- A minimum factor of safety of 1.5 is generally
recommended.
c- The maximum vertical force per unit length Q
developed is equal to frictional resistance between
the fill and the pile and is given by
Where H = height of cell above top of the stratum,
K
a
= coefficient of active earth pressure, = angle
of friction between fill and pile, = unit weight of
cell fill.
Where Q
ult
= ultimate load capacity against bearing
capacity failure.
2.2 Design of cellular dam on soil cont.
d- If the coffer dam is embedded in clay,
the ultimate load capacity is given by
Q
ult
= (5.7c)b
Where c = unit cohesion
e- The ultimate load capacity should be
greater than the fill load.
f- The factor of safety is given by
g- A minimum factor of safety of 1.5 is
recommended.
h- If the coffer dam is embedded in soft to
medium clay, it should be safe against
tilting caused by unequal settlement.
The tilting can be estimated from the
compressibility characteristics of the
soil.
i- Cellular coffer dams on a deep sand
deposit should have sufficient factor of
safety against piping failure.
2.2 Design of cellular dam on soil cont.
Fig. shows a coffer dam founded
on deep sand bed. Water
percolates under the base of
coffer dam and rises up in front
of the toe. The flow net can be
drawn as shown. The flow lines
are almost vertical in front of the
toe. If the seepage pressure is
equal to or greater than the
submerged unit weight, quickly
(boiling) conditions may
develop.
The factor of safety against
boiling is given by
Where i = hydraulic gradient at exit (=h/l), h = drop between last two
equipotential lines, l = length of the last flow filed.
If the factor of safety is less than 1.5, a loaded filter is provided as shown to
increase the downward force without increasing the seepage pressure.
The factor of safety can also be increased by reducing the gradient i by driving
the sheet pile deeper or by reducing the effective head by permitting some
water depth on the inner side.
The depth of the sheet pile below the ground surface is generally kept at least
equal to two-thirds of the height of the coffer dam
Stresses Around Vertical
Shafts and Tunnels
Stresses Around Vertical
Shafts and Tunnels
3.1 Stresses around vertical shafts
3.1.1 Introduction
3.1.2 Cylinder Coordinates
3.1.2 Stresses in soil using cylinder coordinates
3.1.4 Calculation of Stress surrounding the shaft after
excavations
4.0 Tunnels
Stresses in Soil Vicinity of a vertical Shaft
1 .
1.1

.

6
60 ( 1 .)

Ring Compression
Stresses in Soil Vicinity of a vertical Shaft
1.2

.
40 250 10
45 ( 1973
)

( .)
6
)
.
2.0 Cylindrical Coordinates

Cylindrical Coordinates
Axis-symmetrical Case
3.0 Stresses at The Location of Shaft Before Excavation
The stresses at any point
(P
r,z
) before excavation of
the shaft are given in fig.(3)
We must notice that

z
,
r
,

in this case are

principale stresses. Then the
shear stresses
rz
are zero

= 1

=
0
2

=
0
3

= (4)
4.0 Stress in Soil after excavation
4.1 Using Lames theory
The martial located within the boundaries
of the proposed shaft can be replaced by an
equivalent liquid of unit weight (
L
) equal
to (K
o
). The state of stress in soil will not
change (Fig. 4) ( = unit weight of soil)
=

=
0
5
No effect on the stresses in the soil in the
vicinity of shaft.
The stresses due to equivalent liquid
pressure using Lames formulae for thick
cylinders, we get the following stresses at
point (p) due to pressure of equivalent
liquid



Shaft
Lame
Biot
4.0 Stress in Soil after excavation
4.2 Using Biot theory
o After the shaft has been excavated Fig 5,
the shear stresses and radial stresses on the
interior surface are zero.
o The effect of excavation the shaft can be
considered equivalent to that of pumping
the liquid out of
a cylindrical hole whose dimensions are
identical with those of the shaft (Biot 1935)
o The stresses after excavation are:

=



=

=
0


=
0
1

0
2

=



=
0
1 +

0
2

2
Tunnels
Stresses in soil at any point P(r,z) before the excavation
on the tunnel

= 1

=
0
2

=
0
3
Tunnels
Using the same method as in the case of shaft the
stresses after excavation of tunnel will be:

=
0
1

0
2

=
0
1 +

0
2