Underground Space the 4th Dimension of Metropolises Bartk, Hrdina, Romancov & Zlmal (eds)

2007 Taylor & Francis Group, London, ISBN 978-0-415-40807-3

Structural behavior of SFRC tunnel segments during TBM operations

R. Burgers & J. Walraven

Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands

G.A. Plizzari & G. Tiberti

University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy

ABSTRACT: The paper addresses precast tunnel segments for the new Line 9 of Barcelona Metro. After
the experimental determination of the material properties, non-linear analyses allowed to study the structural
behavior of the tunnel segments under TBM thrust jack forces during construction process. The paper focuses
its attention to the advantages coming from the use of Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete (SFRC) in terms of crack
control and bearing capacity. Finally, Ultra High Performance Concrete (UHPC) has been investigated to study
if this material is suitable for the application in tunnel segments.

1 INTRODUCTION 40 km and is located from 30 to 70 m below the surface.

Every ring is made of 7 segments with a length of about
After more than 40 years of research, interest in Fiber 4.70 m and 1 key segment of half that length (Fig. 1).
Reinforced Concrete (FRC) is continuously growing Experiments have been performed to determine the
in many application fields. FRC is already widely used materials properties and the constitutive laws of SFRC
in structures where fiber reinforcement is inessential for use in tunnels.
for integrity and safety, such as in slabs on grade or in Numerical analyses have been performed by using
first phase linings. a finite element model based on Non Linear Fracture
For structural purposes, steel fibers are becoming
widely utilized since fibers enhance toughness of the
concrete matrix (which involves the ability to resist
stresses after cracking), improve impact and fatigue
resistance and make the crack pattern more distributed
with cracks having a smaller crack width.
Among the structural applications of steel fiber
reinforced concrete (SFRC), there is a growing interest
in precast tunnel segments to be used with the Tun-
nel Boring Machines, TBM (Blom, 2002, Plizzari and
Tiberti, 2006). These segments are generally made of
ordinary reinforced concrete; however, the addition of
fibers is gaining considerable attention among design-
ers and producers due to the enhanced toughness that
allows a partial or even total substitution of the conven-
tional reinforcement that, in such members, is charac-
terized by a curved geometry. Fibers also guaranties a
reinforcement in the corner of the segment or in the
large covers that are often required for fire resistance.
In the present paper, the structural behavior of the
segments for the Metro Line 9 of Barcelona (Spain)
are numerically simulated with non-linear analyses
(Plizzari and Cominoli, 2005). Figure 1. Transverse section of the tunnel for the line 9 of the
The TBM-excavated tunnel of Barcelona has a Barcelona Metro with evidenced the eight precast segments
diameter of approximately 12 m, a length of more than (Gettu et al., 2004).

1461
Mechanics (NLFM; Hillerborg et al., 1976) with a
smeared crack approach. The numerical model has
been validated by using the experimental results
of splitting tests performed on SFRC specimens
(Schntgen and Erdem, 2003). During the validation,
different concrete crack models have been tested and
compared.
2 MATERIALS
The experimental characterization of the material
properties of SFRC was performed on a concrete
matrix having the same mix-design of the one used
for the Line 9 of the Barcelona Metro.
Segments were reinforced with steel fibers Wirand
FF1 having a length Lf of 50 mm, a diameter f of
1.0 mm and an aspect ratio Lf /f equal to 50. These
fibers are cold drawn, have a hooked shape, a rounded
shaft and a tensile strength higher than 1100 MPa.
Fibers were used with the volume fractions (Vf ) equal
to 0.58% (45 kg/m3 ).
Fracture properties of FRC were determined by
using eight notched beams (150 150 600 mm)
tested under 4-point bending according to the Italian
Standard (UNI, 2003; Fig. 2). In addition, 4 beams
of plain concrete were used as reference specimens.
The slump of the fresh concrete was always greater
than 150 mm. Specimens were stored in a fog room
(R.H. > 95%;T = 20 2 C) until 24 hours before test-
ing. The mechanical properties of concrete (average
values), as determined after about 60 days of cur-
ing are the following: tensile strength (determined
from cylinders having = 80 mm and L = 240 mm)
fct = 4.10 MPa, compressive strength (from cubes with
a side of 150 mm) fc,cube = 64.1 MPa andYoungs mod-
ulus (from compression test on cylinders = 80 mm,
L = 240 mm), Ec = 37000 MPa.
Fracture tests were carried out with a closed-loop
hydraulic testing machine by using the Crack Mouth
Opening Displacement (CMOD) as control parameter,
which was measured by means of a clip gauge posi-
tioned astride a notch at midspan, having a depth of
45 mm. Additional Linear Variable Differential Trans-
formers (LVDTs) were used to measure the Crack
Tip Opening Displacement (CTOD) and the vertical
displacement at midspan and under the load points
(Fig. 2).
Inverse analyses of the bending tests, based on
NLFM (Hillerborg et al., 1976), allowed to deter-
mine the best-fitting post-cracking law (-w) for
the SFRC adopted in the present research (Roelfstra
and Wittmann 1986). The Youngs modulus (Ec ) was
the one experimentally measured from the cylinders
while the Poisson ratio () was assumed equal to 0.2.
The softening law was approximated as bilinear where
the first steeper branch can be associated with the
1462
Figure 2. Instrumentation for the notched specimen used
for the 4 point bending beam tests.
Wirand FF1 - 45 - C50/60 - Vf=0,57%
8,0
f
ct
Nominal Stress sN [MPa]
7,0
6,0
s
5,0 1
4,0
Gf
w w
1 w c
3,0
Experimental
2,0
FEA DIANA Smeared
1,0
0,0
0,0 0,1 0,2 0,3
CTODm [mm]
Figure 3. Experimental and numerical results obtained from
SFRC beams and the bilinear law adopted.
bridge action of concrete between microcracks while
the second branch represents the residual stress due to
fiber bridging (Fig. 3). The numerical analyses were
performed by assuming both a discrete crack and a
smeared crack approach with Diana ver. 9.1 (2005);
the latter was also used for the numerical simulations
of the tunnel segments.
The material parameters identified from the bend-
ing tests are the following (see Fig. 3): fct = 4.10 MPa,
1 = 2.134 MPa, w1 = 0.023 mm, wcr = 5.35 mm. The
best-fitting numerical curves obtained with Diana are
compared with the experimental ones in Figure 3.
Firstly, numerical analyses of tunnel segments were
carried out with different amounts of steel fibers;
secondly, the response with Ultra High Performance
Concrete (UHPC) has been investigated. The post-
cracking properties of concrete with different fibers
contents were assumed starting from the bi-linear law
experimentally determined from concrete C50/60
with 45 kg/m3 of steel fibers.
The stressstrain relations and the values of UHPC
were obtained according to den Hollander (2006). The
stress-strain diagram for UHPC is given in Figure 4.
UHPC was made with two types of fibers: micro
and macro (l = 50 mm) fibers; the latter govern the
ultimate tensile strain. The characteristic values of the
stressstrain diagram are given in Table 1.
Figure 4. Stressstrain diagram for UHPC with strain
hardening (den Hollander, 2006).

Table 1. Material properties for the adopted UHPC mixture. Figure 5. Spalling cracks observed during construction of
Line 9 of the Barcelona Metro.
Material
property Symbol Value The research work presented herein focuses on the
last topic. In order to verify the influence of steel
Compressive strength fck 200 MPa fibers on the crack development in segmental linings
Design comp. strength fc1 120 MPa during construction, several non-linear analyses were
Design tensile strength t1 fct1 8 MPa
carried out.
Design tensile strength t2 fct2 9 MPa
Design tensile strength t3 fct3 5 MPa Based on the material properties described in 2,
Yield compressive strain c1 1.75 the total strain rotating crack model provided by
Ultimate compressive strain cu 3.00 DIANA was adopted for FE simulations of the SFRC
Ultimate tensile strain ctu 10.00 tunnel segments. The numerical analyses were car-
Specific weight c 28 kN/m3 ried out by adopting a 3D solid model with 5184 first
Youngs modulus Ec 55000 Mpa order hexahedral elements (eight nodes brick elements
HX24L). The constitutive law for concrete under com-
pression was assumed according to Thorenfeldt (1987)
that is a suitable model for a concrete grade C50/60.
3 DESIGN ASPECTS Moreover, the increase of compressive strength due to
lateral confinement has been implemented according
An open question for the construction companies and to Selby and Vecchio (1993).
the designers concerns the reinforcement for these pre- During excavation process, 30 TBM actuators act
cast elements. Generally, reinforcement is designed on the Barcelona Metro lining. The average service
according to the design actions on the tunnel segments, load applied by a single actuator is 3 MN.The load con-
resulting from segment transportation, placing process figuration used in Barcelona is a combination of the
and soil pressure in the final state. French and Japanese jack configuration. In practice,
In particular, during construction, the thrust forces two pairs of thrust jacks act on each tunnel segments
and the grout pressure are the most critical factors. whereas four bearing pads are positioned in the rear
Cracks often appears in the tunnel lining in the phase face of the tunnel segments (ring joints).
in which these forces occur. Some examples of cracks One single segment with his two pairs of actuators
that have been observed in Line 9 of the Barcelona was considered and its boundary conditions (i.e. pres-
Metro are shown in Figure 5. Possible causes of these ence of adjacent segments) were simulated by elastic
cracks could be: eccentricity, inclination of the thrust springs whose stiffness was previously calibrated.
jacks. Also a number of phenomena due to the trum- Noticing that also ring joints have been simulated by
pet shape as the torsional deformation or an uneven using no-tension elastic springs positioned on the
support of the ring joint cause these cracks. bearing pad surfaces (Fig. 6).
It is desirable to mitigate or reduce these cracks Figure 6 shows the loading scheme when thrust
as much as possible since they determine a loose of jacks are exactly placed in position and the support
quality and leakage and high repair costs. Cracking of the ring joint is uniform.
phenomena can be limited by introducing a change Figure 7 shows the numerical results in terms of load
in tunnel design by using, for example, an oppor- (from the actuators) versus the average longitudinal
tune configurations of the thrust jacks and supports. displacement under the loading surfaces. The segment
Alternatively, they can be reduced by using FRC. collapses at a total load of 30.7 MN; since the service

1463
Figure 6. Scheme of a segment with the load from the two
pairs of jacks, four rear bearing pad supports and spring
representing the stiffness of the neighbor segments.

35

30
Figure 8. Scheme of the measurements of the splitting
25 cracks.
Total load [mN]

20

15 35
Service Load
10 30
Normal loading configuration

25
Total load [mN]

0 20
0 0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5
Average displacement under load surfaces [mm]
Figure 7. Load displacement curve with the nominal load
scheme.
load is 12 MN, the safety factor is 2.58. The compres-
sive strength of concrete is almost reached in longi-
tudinal stresses under loading surfaces (c = 55 MPa,
fc = 58 MPa). As shown in Figure 7, the first cracks
appear between the loading surfaces, due to spalling,
at approximately 6.0 MN (0.5 times service load). The
spalling cracks develop with an increase of load and
penetrate more deeply in the segment.
Splitting cracks appear under the loading surfaces
at 17.5 MN, due to splitting stresses in radial direc-
tion (r ). In the classical elastic solution, the depth of
the disturbed zone is approximately the width of the
structure that means, in this case, the thickness of the
lining.
After cracking, the splitting stresses decrease in the
cracked zone and are redistributed over a larger area
with respect to the classical elastic solution. Because
of the concrete toughness provided by fibers, cracks
develop in a stable way.
Figure 9 shows the development of the splitting
crack width under the load. The graph represents the
relative displacements of two nodes: one located inside
of segment and the other on the outside. Three pairs
of nodes are taken on 20, 30 an 40 cm along the
longitudinal direction from the TBM side of the seg-
ment (Fig. 8). The graph evidences that there exists a
redistribution of stresses after cracking.
3 3,5
15
Normal loading situation, 20 cm
10 Normal loading situation, 30 cm
Normal loading situation, 40 cm
5
0
0 0,2 0,4 0,6 0,8 1,0
Displacement [mm]
Figure 9. Development of splitting crack width under
the load.
However, a number of irregularities can occur in
practice. As a consequence, the ring joint may not be
plane and the thrust jacks may be not exactly on place.
For this reason, a possible eccentric placement of the
thrust jack, its orientation and an uneven support in the
ring joint have been investigated. In particular, numer-
ical results of and eccentric load are presented herein
in comparison with normal load conditions.
Eccentric placement of thrust jack in radial direc-
tion has been considered because it will increase the
spalling stresses and can damage the segment. The
eccentric placement has been modeled in FE analy-
sis as a triangular pressure distribution on the loading
surface. This provokes an eccentricity of 37.3 mm
(Fig. 10).
When the above mentioned eccentricity is present
outward (Fig. 10b) the ultimate load decreases sig-
nificantly. In fact, the numerical analyses show a
maximum load of 23.6 MN, that corresponds to a
safety factor of 1.97 (Fig. 11). Spalling cracks ini-
tially appear between the thrust jacks; they start with a
load of 5.0 MN and significantly influence the segment
collapse.

1464
 35
Inside tunne l Inside tunne l
30

25

Total load [mN]

20

15 Normal loading situation, 20 cm

Normal loading situation, 30 cm
Outside tunne l Outside tunnel 10 Normal loading situation, 40 cm
Eccentricity outside, 20 cm
(a) (b) 5 Eccentricity outside, 30 cm
Eccentricity outside, 40 cm
0
Figure 10. Eccentric pressure of the thrust jack inward (a) 0,0 0,2 0,4 0,6 0,8 1,0 1,2 1,4 1,6
and outward (b). Displacement [mm]

35
Figure 13. Development of splitting stresses under the load.
30

25
Total load [mN]

20

15
Service Load
10
Eccentricity outside
5
Normal loading configuration

0
0 0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5
Average displacement under load surfaces [mm]
Figure 14. Cracks between the jack loads observed in the
Line 9 of the Barcelona Metro and FE crack patterns.
Figure 11. Loaddisplacement curve with and without
eccentricity.
35

30

25
Total load [mN]

Amounts of Fibers s1 [MPa]

15kg/m3 0.711
20 30 kg/m3 1.423
45 kg/m3 2.134 C50/60, 15 kg/m3 FF1
60 kg/m3 2.845
15 75 kg/m3 3.557 C50/60, 30 kg/m3 FF1
C50/60, 45 kg/m3 FF1
10
C50/60, 60 kg/m3 FF1
5 C50/60, 75 kg/m3 FF1
Figure 12. 3D scheme to of the dominant mechanism in the
0
case of the outward eccentricity due to spalling cracks and 0 0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3
bending moments. Average displacement under load surfaces [mm]

Because of the eccentricity, the segment tilts out-
ward providing a non-smooth support. Consequently,
a bending moment occurs, as shown by the 3D model
in Figure 12.
Splitting stresses initiate at an earlier load level
(11.4 MN instead of 17.5 MN without eccentricity);
this is probably due to higher local stresses in the
longitudinal direction. The development of these split-
ting cracks under the load is schematically shown in
Figure 13.
The cracks between the loads develop over the total
depth of the segment due to the increased bending
moment for the outward tilting. It can be noticed that
similar deeply penetrating cracks between the thrust
jacks have been observed in the Line 9 of the Barcelona
Metro. Figure 14 exhibits the location of the cracks of
the segment as well as the crack patterns obtained by
Figure 15. Load-displacement curves for a segment with
different amounts of steel fibers.
numerical simulations. In the Barcelona Metro tun-
nel these cracks appeared when 9.3 MN were applied
by the jacks (corresponding to 0.78 times the target
load) whereas the numerical crack patterns refers to a
load of 11.4 MN. Looking at the similarities between
the numerical and the actual cracks in the tunnel,
eccentricity could explain the presence of these cracks.
The normal load situation has been simulated by
considering also SFRC with a different amount of steel
fibers. The adopted fiber contents are 15, 30, 45, 60
and 75 kg/m3 . The numerically obtained ultimate load
ranges from 24.3 MN (for 15 kg/m3 ) to 33.5 MN (for
75 kg/m3 ; Fig. 15). The constitutive post-cracking laws
for the different fiber contents are shown in Figure 15.

1465
 5 40
Crack width at 24.3 mN [mm]
4
3
2
Crack width
1
Ultimate load
0 0
0 15 30 45 60
Amount of steel fibres [kg/m3]
Figure 16. Influence of the amount of steel fibers on the
ultimate load and on the maximum crack width.
90
80
70
Total load [mN]
60
50
40
30
20
10
0 fibers in concrete or r.c. structures for the durability
0 0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5
Average displacement of the load surfaces [mm]
Figure 17. Total load vs. average displacement of load-
ing surfaces for UHPC and C50/60 with 45 kg/m3 FF1 steel
fibers.
Numerical results show a significant increase of bear-
ing capacity of the segment for fiber contents up to
45 kg/m3 ; beyond this dosage, fibers has not effect in
this tunnel (Fig. 16).
The maximum crack width (at 24.3 MN) for the dif-
ferent amounts of steel fibers is shown in Figure 16.
It can be observed that the maximum crack width sig-
nificantly decreases with larger fiber contents and that
fibers play a major role on cracking phenomena; this
also emphasizes the role of fibers on structural durabil-
ity. By comparing a concrete with 60 kg/m3 and with
75 kg/m3 , it can be noticed that 25% of extra fibers
does not increase the bearing capacity but reduces the
maximum crack width by a factor of 2.5. This can be
explained by the two major cracks in the analyses with
60 and 75 kg/m3 and by the presence of one mayor
crack in the analysis with 15, 30 and 45 kg/m3 .
Finally, the behavior of a tunnel segment made
of UHPC has been investigated. Numerical results
gave an ultimate load of approximately 85 MN,
corresponding to 2.66 times the ultimate load of a
C50/60 concrete with 45 kg/m3 of fibers (Fig. 17).
By using UHPC, the crack width at ultimate load
is approximately 7.1 mm. The maximum crack width
present with a load of 68.6 MN is 2.375 mm, which
is similar to the one with a C50/60 concrete with
45 kg/m3 of steel fibers with a total load of 24.3 MN.
4 CONCLUDING REMARKS
35
The present paper shows results of a numerical study of
Ultimate load [mN]
30
25
precast tunnel segments for the Line 9 of the Barcelona
20
Metro. The numerical model shows reasonable results
in terms of bearing capacity and crack development in
15
a segment during TBM operations.
10
Eccentric placement of the thrust jack is one of the
5
possible explanations of longitudinal cracks that are
often present the in tunnel linings, including the one
75 90
of the Barcelona Metro. In fact, the presence of eccen-
tricities is one of the possible unfavorable conditions
that causes higher stresses in the lining. In this load-
ing situation, it has been demonstrated that the ulti-
mate load reduces significantly and larger cracks are
present.
The bearing capacity of the segment under jack load
increases with the fiber content up to a maximum value
(45 kg/m3 in the considered case) that depends on the
collapse mechanism.
UHPC The crack width gets benefits from the presence of
C50/60, 45 kg/m3 FF1 fibers and continuously reduces when the fiber content
increases. This results underlines the importance of
4 4,5 5 5,5 6 aspects.
Because of the enhanced compressive and tensile
strength as well as the higher toughness, a tunnel seg-
ment made of UHPC with steel fibers can carry very
high thrust forces and only small cracks occur. As a
consequence, by using these materials, for a given
thrust force the lining thickness could be reduced.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The research project was financed by Officine
Maccaferri S.p.A. (Bologna, Italy) whose support is
gratefully acknowledged.
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