ANALYSIS OF DIAPHRAGM WALL USING PLAXIS 2D/OPENSEES.PY

Rapid urbanization and population growth have significantly increased the demand for underground infrastructure such as metro rail systems, deep basements, and utility corridors.Diaphragm walls are widely adopted as earth-retaining structures for deep excavations due to their high stiffness, low permeability, and ability to control ground deformation.Finite Element Method (FEM)-based software such as PLAXIS 2D is commonly used for diaphragm wall analysis; however, access to such commercial software is often limited due to licensing constraints.This study presents a comprehensive numerical analysis and parametric investigation of diaphragm wall behavior for an underground metro excavation using OpenSeesPy, an open-source FEM framework.A two-dimensional plane strain model was developed incorporating soil-structure interaction, staged excavation, groundwater effects, and strut support systems.A parametric study was conducted by varying wall thickness, soil stiffness, and construction sequence.The results demonstrate that soil stiffness is the most influential factor governing wall deformation, followed by construction methodology and wall thickness.The study establishes OpenSeesPy as a reliable and cost-effective alternative to PLAXIS 2D for academic and preliminary design applications.