Numerical study on face movement and collapse around shield tunnels in sand

The face stability control is a key operation during shield tunnel excavation. The study of supporting earth pressure in chamber takes a major role in the design of such kind of underground structures and many centrifugal-model tests have been carried out in recent years. A three dimensional fast Lagrangian differential finite element method which could reflect the large strain behavior of material was employed to simulate the deformation and failure of excavated face. Based on the numerical analysis, some insights were given and discussed.