• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.263-278
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• 2022

This paper contains experimental study for the development and performance of TBM backfill material with thixotropic properties. The LW backfill material is widely applied to fill the cavity on the back side of the shield TBM excavation, but has disadvantages such as settlement caused by strength reduction, material separation by groundwater, and reduced plasticity. In this paper, laboratory tests and a model test were conducted to assess the performance of inorganic thixotropic backfill material proposed to improve these problems. The results of laboratory tests show that 1 hr-uniaxial compressive strength of ITB was 12 times higher than LW, and the rate of bleeding of 20 hr was 8.3 times lower, and the result of flow table test was more than 27 times higher. This result indicated that the inorganic thixotropic backfill material has superior properties to LW backfill in terms of strength reduction, material separation, and thixotropy. In the model experiment, a model injection device tester was manufactured and the injection performance and filling rate were verified. When material was injected in the water, it was visually checked whether material separation occurred, and it was confirmed that the filling rate was 96% or more. Comparison results with the test of LW and ITB materials was concluded that ITB can reduce the material separation by groundwater and the occurrence of tunnel cavity.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.225-235
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• 2013

Cutter forces acting on a disc cutter in TBM are the key parameters for TBM design and its performance prediction. This study aimed to experimentally evaluate cutter forces with different ring shapes in a hard rock. The stiffness of a cutter ring was indirectly estimated from a series of full-scale linear cutting tests. From the experiments, it was verified that the rolling stress acting on a V-shape disc cutter was much higher than on a CCS disc cutter even though the penetration depth by a V-shape disc cutter could be increased in the same cutting condition. Finally, it is suggested that a prediction model considering the shape parameters of a disc cutter should be used for its better prediction.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.19 no.5
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• pp.440-449
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• 2009

LCM test is one of the most powerful and reliable methods of experiment for the cutter head design and the performance prediction of TBM. In many cases, however, the predicted design model can be directly applied to the field design, because this test may have an uppermost limit in preparation and/or transportation of the large size rock samples and the test for the jointed rock mass is not easy. When the proper and reasonable numerical modeling is considered to overcome this limit, the most adequate cutter head design for TBM could be presented without any complicate preconsideration in the field. In this study, the crack propagation patterns dependent on the contact point of disc cutter and the angle of rock joint are analyzed for the rock specimen with a single joint using the UDEC. The authors could derive the appropriate contact points of disc cutters and their space with respect to the joint angle in rock mass thru the numerical analysis.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.54-65
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• 2013

The LCM (Linear Cutting Machine) test is one of the most powerful and reliable methods for designing the disc cutter and for predicting the TBM (Tunnel Boring Machine) performance. It has an advantage to predict the actual load on disc cutter from the laboratory test on the real-size large rock samples, however, it also has a disadvantage to transport and/or prepare the large rock samples and to need an extra cost for experiment. In order to overcome this problem, lots of numerical studies have been performed. In this study, the PFC3D (Particle Flow Code in 3 Dimension) has been adopted for numerical analysis on optimum cutter spacing and failure aspects of Busan Tuff. The optimum cutting condition with s/p ratio of 16 and minimum specific energy of $14MJ/m^3$ was derived from numerical analyses. The cutter spacing for Busan Tuff had the good agreements with those of LCM test and numerical analysis by finite element method.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.395-401
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• 2015

An investigation of the tunnel face, as well as related measurement data collected during tunneling, is necessary for rock classification and to determine tunnel stability and the cost efficiency of tunneling. However, systematic management and efficient use of such data have yet to be successfully implemented domestically, and the number of experts in this field in Korea is limited. Thus, measures to develop and implement systematic management and effective use of data and expertise are urgently needed. This study aimed to develop measures to efficiently provide online tunnel design and construction data using a building information model (BIM)-based data visualization approach, based on an integrated 3D tunnel model generation module and a web viewer module. The development technology was verified through ○○ tunnel design and construction. Directions for future study and system improvement are proposed.

• Plant Journal
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.42-46
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• 2021

The equation of motion of the drill string along the excavation trajectory was analyzed using the Lagrangian approach together with the finite element method (FEM). A drill string of circular cross section is constructed by combining a plurality of circular axes each having 12 degrees of freedom (DOF). FEM analysis can observe the vibration and dynamic changes of the entire drill string, and it is easy to apply comprehensive boundary conditions to reproduce the simulation of a realistic drill string. In this study, the constructed FEM motel was simulated. In order to apply the FEM program to the actual drill trajectory, the dynamic analysis of the curved beam was verified by comparison with the actual values. The dynamic change over time was observed.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.151-163
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• 2011

The LCM test is one of the most powerful and reliable methods for designing the disc cutter and for predicting the TBM (Tunnel Boring Machine) performance. It has an advantage to predict the actual load on disc cutter from the laboratory test on the real-size large rock samples, however, it also has a disadvantage to transport and/or prepare the large rock samples and to need an extra cost for experiment. Moreover it is not easy to execute the test for jointed rock mass, and sometimes the design model estimated from the test can not be applied to the real design of disc cutter. In order to break this critical point, lots of numerical studies have been performed. PFC2D can simulate crack propagation and rock fragmentation effectively, because it is useful in particle flow analysis. Consequently, in this study, the PFC2D has been adopted for numerical analysis on cutting power of disc cutter according to the different angle of joint, the different direction of joint, and the different space of joint with jointed rock mass models. From the numerical analyses, it was concluded that the bigger cutting power of disc cutter was needed for reverse cutting direction to joint rather than for forward direction, and the cutting power of disc cutter was increased with decreasing the dip angle of joint and decreasing the space of joints in reverse cutting direction. The more precise numerical model for disc cutter can be developed from comparison between the numerical results and LCM test results, and the resonable guideline is expected for prediction of TBM performance and disc cutter.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.383-399
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• 2020

Optimizing the spacing of the disc cutter is a key element in the design of the TBM cutter head, which determines the drilling performance of the TBM. The full-scale linear cutting test is known as the most reliable and accurate test for calculating the spacing of the disc cutter, but it has the disadvantage of costly and time-consuming for the full-scale experiment. In this study, through the numerical analysis study based on the discrete element method, the tendency between Specific Energy-S/P ratio according to uniaxial compression strength and penetration depth of rock was analyzed, and the optimum spacing of 17-inch disc cutter was derived. To examine the appropriateness of the numerical analysis model, the rolling force acting on the disc cutter was compared and reviewed with the CSM model. As a result of numerical analysis for the linear cutting test, the rolling force acting on the disc cutter was analyzed to be similar to the rolling force derived from the theoretical formula of the CSM model. From the numerical analysis on 5 UCS cases (50 MPa, 70 MPa, 100 MPa, 150 MPa, 200 MPa), it is found that the range of the optimum spacing of the disc cutter decreases as the rock strength increases. And it can be concluded that 80~100 mm of disc cutter spacing is the optimum range having minimum specific energy regardless of rock strength. This tends to coincide with the optimal spacing of previously reported disk cutters, which underpins the disk cutter spacing calculated through this study.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.513-527
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• 2018

The Tunnel Boring Machine(TBM) is relatively insufficient to cope with unpredicted changes in ground conditions as compared with Conventional Tunnelling Methods. Therefore, it is very important to predict the TBM performance at the design stage and estimate the advance rate for the calculation of the construction period. In this study, we added data to 211 TBM databases constructed in the previous study and analyzed the correlation between TBM outer diameter, maximum thrust, maximum cutterhead torque, cutterhead driving power and RPM, which are the main design and manufacturing specifications of TBM. As a result of the analysis from results obtained in the previous studies, it was confirmed that TBM outer diameter is very effective and important in estimating maximum thrust, maximum cutterhead torque, and cutterhead driving power of the TBM. As a result of comparing the regression equations derived from other TBM databases outside the country and the regression equation obtained from the present study results, the maximum thrust showed a similar tendency to each other, but the maximum torque estimated from the regression equation of this study was higher than that of other countries in the case of the large scale TBM.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.403-421
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• 2023

As the number of underground structures has increased in recent decades, it has become crucial to predict geological hazards ahead of a tunnel face during tunnel construction. Consequently, this study developed a finite element (FE) numerical model to simulate electrical resistivity surveys in tunnel boring machine (TBM) operations for predicting mixed ground conditions in front of tunnel faces. The accuracy of the developed model was verified by comparing the numerical results not only with an analytical solution but also with experimental results. Using the developed model, a series of parametric studies were carried out to estimate the effect of geological conditions and sensor geometric configurations on electrical resistivity measurements. The results of these studies showed that both the interface slope and the difference in electrical resistivity between two different ground formations affect the patterns and variations in electrical resistivity observed during TBM excavation. Furthermore, it was revealed that selecting appropriate sensor spacing and optimizing the location of the electrode array were essential for enhancing the efficiency and accuracy of predictions related to mixed ground conditions. In conclusion, the developed model can serve as a powerful and reliable tool for predicting mixed ground conditions during TBM tunneling.