Finite element analysis for a deep excavation in soft clay supported by lime-cement columns

Journal article, 2023

The aim of the paper is to simulate the response of a deep excavation supported by sheet pile walls and
lime-cement columns. The application of the deep mixing technique using lime-cement products in deep
excavations changes the initial state of the natural soil and creates substantial displacements associated with
the installation effects. In this paper, the influence of lime-cement stabilisation was investigated using the finite
element method for an instrumented braced excavation. The 2D finite element analyses were performed with
advanced constitutive models for both natural clay and stabilised soil, exploiting the laboratory test made on
both field mixed and laboratory mixed stabilised clay samples. The numerical results show that taking account
of installation effects provides realistic predictions of deformation, excess pore water pressure evolution, as
well as the structural forces in the struts.