Seismic response of mountain tunnel induced by fault slip

Abstract

Abstract With the rapid development of Chinese transportation networks, such as the Sichuan-Tibet railway, numerous tunnels are under construction or planned in mountainous regions. Some of these tunnels must traverse or be situated near active fault zones, which could suffer damage from fault slip. In this study, the seismic response of a mountain tunnel subjected to coseismic faulting was analyzed using a fault-structure system in a two-step process. Firstly, a nonuniform slip model was proposed to calculate the ground deformations and internal displacements induced by a specific active fault on a geological scale, considering nonuniform slips on the fault plane. The 1989 Loma Prieta and 2022 Menyuan earthquakes were chosen as case studies to validate the proposed slip model. Secondly, the calculated displacement of the Menyuan earthquake was used as the input load for the discrete–continuous coupling analysis of the Daliang tunnel on an engineering scale. The simulated deformation of the Daliang tunnel aligned with the on-site damage observations following the Menyuan earthquake. Lastly, the effects of different fault conditions on the tunnel seismic response were investigated. The results indicate that the distribution of the peak longitudinal strain of the lining is governed by fault mechanisms, and the degree of fault slip significantly influences the response of the tunnel. A tunnel passing through an active fault with a wider fault fracture zone and smaller dip angle experience less damage.

Keywords

• Active fault
• Tunnel
• Nonuniform slip model
• Discrete–continuous coupling analysis