Large deep foundation pits are usually in a complex environment, so their surface deformation tends to show a stable rising trend with a small range of fluctuation, which brings certain difficulty to the prediction work. Therefore, in this study we proposed a nonlinear autoregressive exogenous (NARX) prediction method based on empirical wavelet transform (EWT) pretreatment is proposed for this feature. Firstly, EWT is used to conduct adaptive decomposition of the measured deformation data and extract the modal signal components with characteristic differences. Secondly, the main components affecting the deformation of the foundation pit are analyzed as a part of the external input. Then, we established a NARX prediction model for different components. Finally, all predicted values are superpositioned to obtain a total value, and the result is compared with the predicted results of the nonlinear autoregressive (NAR) model, empirical mode decomposition-nonlinear autoregressive (EMD-NAR) model, EWT-NAR model, NARX model, EMD-NARX model and EWT-NARX model. The results showed that, compared with the EWT-NAR and EWT-NARX models, the EWT-NARX model reduced the mean square error of KD25 by 91.35%, indicating that the feature of introducing external input makes NARX more suitable for combining with the EWT method. Meanwhile, compared with the EMD-NAR and EWT-NAR models, the introduction of the NARX model reduced the mean square error of KD25 by 78.58% and 95.71%, indicating that EWT had better modal decomposition capability than EMD.

Natural hydraulic lime soil has good mechanical properties; as an earthen ruin restoration material, its durability is insufficient. Despite natural hydraulic lime being a topic that has been studied for several years from different researchers, it has not yet been fully considered for the improvement of durability. This work aims to experimentally investigate the enhancement of the durability properties of hydraulic lime-based. The performance of natural hydraulic limestone by adding sodium methyl silicate and organic silicon is examined and the effect of adding sodium methyl silicate on its performance and microstructure is studied. The 6%, 10%, and 15% lime–soil comparison test blocks of sodium silicate were compared with different lime–soil comparison test blocks not mixed with sodium methyl silicate; in addition to compression resistance, shear resistance, water absorption, and erosion resistance, dry–wet cycles were carried out, as well as microstructure testing and analysis. The results show that the addition of sodium methyl silicate enhances the compressive strength of hydraulic lime-modified soil, reduces its saturated water absorption, reduces its shear strength, improves its resistance to dry and wet cycles, and forms on the surface of the modified soil particles. The hydrophobic layer further improves its erosion resistance and water resistance. When the sodium methyl silicate content is 0.3%, the natural hydraulic lime soil has good mechanical properties and good durability, which is the optimal ratio.

Silt has the characteristics of developed capillary pores and strong water sensitivity, and capillary water is an important factor inducing the erosion and slumping of silt sites. Therefore, in order to suppress the effect of capillary water, this article discusses the improvement effect of sodium methyl silicate (SMS) on silt. The effect was investigated by capillary water rise testing and contact angle measurement, and the inhibition mechanism is discussed from the microscopic view by X-ray diffraction (XRD) testing, X-ray fluorescence (XRF) testing, scanning electron microscope (SEM) testing and mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) testing. The results show that SMS can effectively inhibit the rise of capillary water in silt, the maximum height of capillary rise can be reduced to 0 cm when the ratio of SMS (g) to silt (g) increases to 0.5%, and its contact angle is 120.2°. In addition, considering also the XRD, XRF, SEM and MIP test results, it is considered that SMS forms a water-repellent membrane by reacting with water and carbon dioxide, which evenly distribute on the surface of silt particles. The membrane reduces the surface energy and enhances the water repellence of silt, and combines with small particles in the soil, reduces the number of 2.5 μm pores and inhibits the rise of capillary water.