Influence of the cracking consideration in the displacements of a shallow tunnel lined in steel-reinforced concrete: numerical model

abstract: The study of shallow tunnels introduces different aspects when compared to deep tunnels analysis. Among these characteristics can be emphasized the non-uniform shape of the deformed cross-section and the impossibility of some simplifications such as the consideration of homogeneous stresses around the excavation. Since the tunnel lining is subject to combined bending and compression, shallow tunnels are more susceptible to the development of final tensile stresses (not founded in deep tunnels) and the consequent concrete cracking. This paper presents a numerical simulation in finite elements with the ANSYS software. The purpose of the study is to analyze the cracking influence in the displacements of shallow tunnels, treating the concrete behavior by three different models: elastic, viscoelastic and viscoelastic with cracking effects.