Diaphragm Walls
The Marina Bay Sands project is constructed on 560,000 square meters of reclaimed land underneath which is a thick layer of marine clay. Marine clay is a very soft material with poor structural properties. To ensure that the foundations of the towers are stable, the engineers used reinforced concrete Diaphragm walls to prevent the sides of the excavation from collapsing and flooding with water from the Marina bay. The Diaphragm walls as shown in the image, were built in a Donut formation (circle) and a Peanut formation (two circles together) allowed the site to be safely and quickly excavated. After only a year the Diaphragm walls were constructed and the site completely cleared ready for construction to begin.