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DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS FOR DEEP EXCAVATIONS

IN METRO MANILA
Roy Anthony C. Luna, MSCE 1, 2
Jose Carlo Eric L. Santos, MSCE 1, 2
Michael Paolo V. Follosco, MSCE1
John Michael B. Gargullo 1
Regine Chloe S. Albea 1
Gian Paulo D. Reyes 1
Neil Angelo G. Luzano 1
Mark Albert H. Zarco 2
2

AMH Philippines, Inc., Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines


Institute of Civil Engineering, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines

Abstract:
With the rapid and continuing urban development in various cities in Metro Manila, the Philippines' national capital
region, comes the increasing number of high-rise buildings, typically with multi-level basements. With deep
excavations ranging from 15 meters to 25 meters, usually with adjoining buildings or major roads, the stability of
vertical cuts, and consequently, the protection of adjacent property and construction safety, becomes a primary
concern.
Metro Manila's regional bedrock, the Guadalupe Tuff Formation (GTF), is a horizontally-bedded rock composed of
tuffaceous sandstone, siltstone, and shale. With a residual soil mantle ranging from 1.0 meter, to as much as 15 meters
in some areas, the design of adequate excavation protection is a major challenge. This paper presents the typical
characteristics and geotechnical properties of the GTF, based on the results of several tests for various projects.
Practicable engineering measures for excavation protection - soil nails and ground anchors, diaphragm walls, and
secant piles - and their design considerations are presented. Modeling and analysis using limit-equilibrium approach
and finite-element method are discussed. Case studies are presented.
Keywords: Stability analysis, Deep excavations, Finite element method, Limit equilibrium approach, Excavation
protection

INTRODUCTION

The rapid urbanization in Metro Manila, has led to


dramatic increase in construction of high rise buildings.
High rise buildings which are classified as having eight
(8) storeys and higher typically require deep excavations
ranging from 15 meters to 25 meters, depending on the
number of basement levels.
These massive buildings transfer high magnitudes of
loads into the underlying foundation, and in order to
achieve structural stability, deeper excavations are
typically warranted to attain high soil bearing capacities.
Some of the problems arising during the excavation for
basements/foundation systems are the exposure of the
foundation of the adjoining buildings or major roads, the

stability of the soil mass being retained, and ensuring that


no excessive lateral displacement (which may damage
the adjoining property) takes place. Therefore, the design
of excavation protection becomes a primary concern.
This paper presents the excavation protection measures
commonly used in the country, as well as the design
approaches in establishing safety and stability of deep
excavations. Two types of stability analysis are discussed:
(1) Limit Equilibrium Approach and (2) Finite Element
Method (FEM).
Considering the continuing trend high-rise structures in
the coming years, particularly in the expanding and
emerging central business districts, the need for adequate,
reliable and cost-effective deep excavation protection
measures cannot be overemphasized.

GEOLOGY OF METRO MANILA

The Geology of Metro Manila, based on the map


published by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB),
is mostly underlain by the Guadalupe Tuff Formation
(GTF). GTF is a horizontally bedded rock referred to as
adobe. It consists of well laid rock formation of
tuffaceous sandstone, tuffaceous siltstone and shale
being the weakest member. It is the regional bedrock
with varying thickness of sedimentary soil cover
composed of clays, silts, and sands.

3.1 Soil Nail Walls


This technique involves a passive steel
reinforcement (e.g., rockbolts, soil nails) encased in
grout, and the application of reinforced shotcrete as
facing. The strength of this support system relies on
the mobilization of the tensile strength of the steel,
as well as the bond strength between the grout and
the surrounding ground.
3.2 Shotcrete
Shotcrete is defined as pneumatically placed
concrete. A Portland cement concrete mixture is
conveyed through a hose and nozzle, and shot onto
a surface at high speed by means of air pressure.
It is reinforced by conventional steel rods, steel
mesh, and/or fibers. Fiber reinforcement (steel or
synthetic) is also used for stabilization in
applications such as slopes or tunneling.

Fig. 1 Geology of Metro Manila (Source: MGB)

3.3 Diaphragm Wall


Diaphragm wall is generally a reinforced concrete
wall designed to retain soils during the construction
of underground structures. The technique involves
excavating a narrow trench that is kept full of an
engineered fluid of slurry. It provides rigid, cost
effective solutions for permanent retaining walls and
shafts, with less construction joints than bored pile
walls.

In general, these sedimentary deposits thicken towards


the direction of Manila Bay in the west. Towards Makati,
Mandaluyong, San Juan and Quezon City in the east, the
GTF is normally encountered at a shallow level, usually
within a few meters depth.

3.4 Bored Piles (Tangent & Secant Piles)


Secant or tangent piles are columns constructed
adjacent (tangent) or overlapping (secant) each other
to form structural walls that resist lateral pressures
and groundwater inflow for bulkhead support, earth
retention, groundwater control, or slope stability.

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Fig. 2 Photo of Guadalupe Tuff Formation or adobe

EXCAVATION PROTECTION METHODS

To ensure the stability of the soil mass, as well the


adjacent structures during excavations, the provision of
excavation protection or retaining structures is essential.
Some of excavation protection methods commonly used
in the country are as follow:

SEISMIC CONSIDERATIONS

Excavation protection systems are considered as


temporary structures with design life of three (3) years
or less. Still, the design considers that the structure will
be in place and retain soil for a finite period of time.
In designing temporary excavation supports, seismic
loadings need not be considered (i.e., seismic coefficient,
kh = 0). Temporary excavation support methods tend to

be flexible enough that moderate seismic events do little


or no damage to these systems (MacNab, 2002).
Nevertheless, it is prudent to consider a small to
moderate seismic coefficient in designing excavation
protection works, in addition to high porewater pressure.

LIMIT EQUILIBRIUM APPROACH FOR


ANALYSIS AND DESIGN OF DEEP
EXCAVATIONS

At present, limit equilibrium approach is used in most


slope stability analyses because of its accuracy and
simplicity. This method aims to analyze the stability of
any mass of soil or rock assuming progressing failure
along a potential slip surface. It involves introducing a
seismic coefficient to a conventional slope stability
analysis and determining the resulting factor of safety.
Typically, a slope is deemed to be safe if the resulting
factor of safety is greater than 1.1 to 1.3.

Fig. 1 Limit equilibrium modelling using Slide 6.0

Fig 2 Sample output of Slide 6.0 showing failure planes

5.1 Methodology for Limit Equilibrium Approach

6
In limit equilibrium approach, the mass is divided into
small slices along an assumed or known failure surface.
The forces that are acting on each slice such as weight,
normal and tangential reactions, and shear forces are
determined. By equilibrium conditions, the moment of
the driving forces about the center of the failure surface
should be equal to the moment of the resisting forces.
Procedures for slope stability analysis (SSA) can become
quite rigorous because of the complex equations
involved. For this reason, commercial computer software
have been developed for performing slope stability
analysis, which can be used for numerous iterations and
for a varying set of boundary conditions. The final output
shows data and a figure of the slip circle with the least
factor of safety for the slope being analyzed. Below is an
example of a mathematical model of a vertical cut using
Rocscience Slide 6.0.

FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS FOR DEEP


EXCAVATIONS

The Finite Element Method (FEM) is a numerical


technique used for finding approximate solutions by
continuum-based methods. It is the process of
discretizing the soil (or any object of interest) into
smaller elements and simultaneously solving the relevant
equations. The soil mass and structural elements are
idealized as a piecewise homogeneous continuous body,
which is assumed to be both porous and deformable. The
governing equations describing the flow of water and
deformation of the body are derived on the principles of
conservation of mass, momentum and energy. These
equations together with the prescribed boundary
conditions result in a non-linear boundary value problem
that is solved numerically. The main advantage of this
method is its ability to estimate the deformations leading
up to the failure of the slope.

6.1 Methodology for Finite Element Analysis


The analysis using finite element method is a
rigorous process which entails complex equations
and calculations. A finite element analysis software,
such as Plaxis, can be utilized to perform such
analysis.
Plaxis is a finite element modeling software capable
of two and three-dimensional analysis of
deformation and stability for various problems in
geotechnical engineering. Plaxis is also capable of
creating complex soil and structure interactive
models and can constitute nonlinear strength, time
dependent and anisotropic behaviors of soils and
rocks. It provides more thorough analysis and
investigation of the problem using 2D and 3D Finite
Element Method analysis with more refined soil
model.

Fig. 3 Finite element modelling using Plaxis 2D

Fig. 4 Sample output of Plaxis 2D

CASE STUDY

7.1 Evaluation of Basement Excavation Protection


System using Finite Element Analysis
A proposed excavation protection system intended
to ensure safety of a multi-level basement
construction was evaluated to assess adequacy of the
designed soil nail, ground anchor, and shotcrete
system. The project site is bounded by city roads as
well as establishments that are 3 to 4 storeys high. A
construction of a 3-level basement for a high rise
tower is also in progress adjacent to the project site.
Because of these conditions, soil deformation should
be kept at a minimum to prevent damage to the
structures adjacent to the site. Plaxis 2D was used to
simulate the expected soil deformations that will be
incurred during the course of excavation activities.

In Plaxis, the geometry of the model can be easily


defined using the soil and structures mode, after
which, independent solid models can automatically
be intersected and meshed (triangular elements).
Fifteen (15) nodes are generated for each mesh, with
each node being solved for numerical solutions, i.e.
deformations, stresses, strains, etc.
Fig. 4 Excavation Section A

Fig. 5 Excavation Section B

The project site is predominantly underlain by


sandstone or adobe that is covered by medium stiff
to very stiff clays as much as 4 meters thick. Mohr
Coulomb parameters were derived and used as input
to the Plaxis 2D model of the excavation sections
that were deemed critical considering the estimated
excavation stages to simulate actual conditions.
The proposed excavation protection system consists
of multiple layers of 28 mm diameter soil nails with
varying lengths of 6 to 9 meters, two-strand 12.7mm
ground anchors that are 10.5 meters long, and 75
mm thick shotcrete wall facing with 6 mm diameter
welded wire fabric. Actual establishments within
the vicinity of the project site were taken into
account as surcharge loads, where one floor level is
equivalent to 20 kPa. Thus, the loads range from 60
to 80 kPa based on the number of storeys specified.
Meanwhile, traffic load for the roadways bounding
the project site was included as a 10 kPa surcharge
load.

Table 1. Summary of Results


Section
A (Right)
A (Left)
B (Right)
B (Left)

Exposed
Height
13.2 m
13.2 m
14.2 m
3.5 m

Allowable
Deformation
66.0 mm
66.0 mm
71.0 mm
17.5 mm

Lateral
Deformation
13.3 mm
10.6 mm
15.1 mm
13.0 mm

CONCLUSION
Exhaustive analysis and reasonably conservative
design for deep excavation protection measures is
essential in ensuring safety. Limit Equilibrium
Method is adequate in establishing global stability,
while Finite Element Method can be utilized for
deformation analysis.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors acknowledge the assistance provided by the
technical staff of AMH Philippines, Inc. in the
preparation of this paper.
REFERENCES

Fig. 6 Deformation Contour for Section A

Fig. 7 Deformation Contour for Section B


According to the Federal Highway Administration
Manual for Soil Nails and Ground Anchors, the
allowable lateral and vertical deformation for
excavations should not exceed 0.5%H, where H is
the total exposed height of the excavated soil.
Results of the Plaxis 2D simulation show that the
proposed excavation protection scheme provides
adequate support, with deformations within 20 mm
for 14 meters height of exposed soil. The following
table presents the deformations obtained from Plaxis
2D.

Abramson, L.W., Lee, T.S., Sharma, S. Boyce,. G.M.


(2002). Slope Stability and Stabilization Methods. 2nd
Edition.
Das, Braja M. (2006). Principles of Geotechnical
Engineering. 5th Edition.
Lazarte, C., Elias, V., Espinoza, D., Sabatini, P., (2003).
Federal Highway Administration - Geotechnical
Engineering Circular No. 7 Soil Nail Walls (FHWA0IF-03-017).
Federal Highway Administration (1998). Manual for
Design and Construction Monitoring of Soil Nail
Walls.
Nemati, K. (2007). Temporary Structures. Excavations
and Excavation Supports. University of Washington
MacNab, A. (2002). Earth Retention Systems Handbook.
McGraw-Hill.
Oregon Department of Transportation. (2013).
Geotechnical Design Manual Volume 2.

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