6.5 Retaining wall

To better understand the development of deformations and stresses during excavation, a series of centrifuge model tests was carried out at Tokyo Institute of Technology. A centrifuge excavator with which the process of excavation can be simulated in-flight was developed. With this excavator, three different tests were conducted; namely unsupported excavation, and excavation with a supporting wall with or without ties. Two different clay layers with increasing strength, one normally consolidated clay and the other overconsolidated clay, were dealt with. Earth pressures on sheet pile walls and deformations of the walls and clay were measured during excavation.

Kimura, T., Takemura, J., Hiro-oka, A., Suemasa, N. and Kouda, N. (1993) : Stability of unsupported and supported vertical cuts in soft clay, Proc. of 11th Southeast Asian Geotech. Conf., pp. 61-70.