Preloading in struts in braced excavation helps eliminate the potential movement. The application of preload decreases the shear stress in soils established previously by excavation. As a result of stiffening of soils, the soil movement is declined accordingly.
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However, the use of very high preloads in struts may not be desirable because the local outward movement at struts may cause damage to nearby utilities.
This question is taken from book named – A Self Learning Manual – Mastering Different Fields of Civil Engineering Works (VC-Q-A-Method) by Vincent T. H. CHU.
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