Isogeometric Boundary Element Method for the Simulation in Tunneling

sogeometric finite element methods and more recently boundary element methods have been successfully applied to problems in mechanical engineering and have led to an increased accuracy and a reduction in simulation effort. Isogeometric boundary element methods have great potential for the simulation of problems in geomechanics, especially tunneling because an infinite domain can be considered without truncation. In this paper we discuss the implementation of the method in the research software BEFE++. Based on an example of a spherical excavation we show that a significant reduction in the number of parameters for describing the excavation boundary as well as an improved quality of the results can be obtained.