Masonry wall deformation mechanisms induced by tunnelling: a hybrid modelling study

Deformation/damage mechanisms of masonry buildings affected by tunnelling remain an area of uncertainty within building damage assessments. This paper presents a hybrid centrifuge–numerical modelling study of the interaction between tunnelling-induced ground displacements and a masonry wall with a strip foundation, with particular focus on the effects of load redistribution within non-linear masonry walls. A new coupled centrifuge–numerical modelling (CCNM) method was adopted, including a physical model domain in the centrifuge comprising the tunnel, soil and strip foundation, and a numerical model domain in Abaqus consisting of a masonry wall with the non-linear concrete damaged plasticity (CDP) constitutive model; the two domains share settlement/load information at the shared foundation–wall boundary. This novel approach allowed, for the first time, a centrifuge-experiment evaluation of tunnel–masonry wall interactions that accurately captured the complex behaviour of masonry, including yielding and load redistribution. Key mechanisms between deformations, load redistribution, angular distortions and tensile damage inside the walls are investigated with respect to wall height/storeys, door/window openings, stiffness and self-weight. The paper also explores the relationship between wall characteristics and soil shear and volumetric strains during tunnelling and discusses the effect of local stiffness degradation inside the walls.