Characteristics of a Large-Scale Deep Foundation Pit Excavated by the Central-Island Technique in Shanghai Soft Clay. II: Top-Down Construction of the Peripheral Rectangular Pit

AbstractBecause of its large size (30,000 m2 in plan), the 17.85- to 25.89-m-deep foundation pit of the 492-m-high Shanghai World Finance Center building was excavated by the central-island technique, i.e., bottom-up construction of the central cylindrical shaft first and then top-down construction of the peripheral rectangular pit. As part of the comprehensive study on the characteristics of this large-scale foundation pit, this study mainly focuses on the behaviors of the peripheral pit via the following investigated items: (1) lateral wall deflections; (2) vertical wall movements; (3) lateral ground movements; (4) axial forces in the cast floor slabs and braced struts; (5) lateral earth pressures on both sides of retaining walls; (6) variation of pore pressures along depth and deep artesian water levels; (7) ground settlements; (8) subsurface settlements; (9) basal heaves; (10) vertical column movements; and (11) column stresses. To explore the potential effects of pit sizes on the excavation behaviors...