The crossing of the historical centre of Roma by the new underground line C: a study of soil-structure interaction for historical buildings

This work deals with the soil structure-interaction problems posed by the construction of the third line of Roma underground (Line C), which, in its central stretch, crosses the historical centre of the city with significant interferences with the archaeological and monumental heritage. The paper describes the methodological approach developed to evaluate the effects of tunnelling on the existing monuments and historical buildings, starting from a careful geotechnical and structural characterisation and including the development of reliable geotechnical and structural models. Experts in several disciplines were committed to this multidisciplinary work, ranging from geologists to geotechnical and structural engineers, archaeologists, and professionals working in the field of conservation and restoration of works of art and monuments. The study of the interaction between the construction activities and the built environment was carried out following procedures of increasing level of complexity, from green field analyses, in which the stiffness of the existing buildings was neglected, to full soil-structure interaction analyses, performed in both two- and three-dimensional conditions, accounting for the stiffness of existing buildings and considering possible long-term effects. The paper illustrates the main aspects of this procedure, using the example case studies of the Basilica di Massenzio and of the building of the Amministrazione Doria Pamphili.