Assignment-1

UNDERGROUND SPACE TECHNOLOGY

MN-521

M. Tech, Department of Mining Engineering

IIT BHU – 2020
Submitted by
Debasish nath
19152010
 1. Construction methods of tunnel.

Different methods of tunnel construction

1.Cut and cover- In this type of tunnels, the tunnel structure is cast-in-situ or
precast in an excavation. After construction, the structure is back-filled with new
or excavated soil. Cut and cover construction is adopted when the depth of tunnel
is shallow and the safe excavation is possible from the surface with out collapsing
the walls of excavation and when it is economical and acceptable. This
methodology is usually used for the construction of underpasses, approach sections
of other tunnels & tunnels in flat terrain or shallow depth.

The tunnels may be constructed in place or by using precast sections. Two types of
cut and cover construction are; bottom-up and top-down.
2. Bored or Mined Tunnels - These tunnels are built without excavating the
ground surface. These tunnels are named according to the type of material through
which the tunnel is being excavated. When a tunnel passes through different types
of material it is known as mixed face construction. In bored tunneling , the
excavation takes place at the portal or at a shaft, thus there is a minimum impact on
usual traffic, air & noise quality, and utilities. Linings are the most important
component of these kind of tunnels. For depths 10 m to 12 m, cut-and-cover is
usually more economical and practical than mined tunneling

3. Rock Tunnels- Rock tunnels are excavated through the rocks either by drilling
or by blasting. The tunneling method utilizes mechanized excavators in case of soft
rocks or rock tunnel boring machines (TBM). Sequential Excavation Method
(SEM) is also used in some cases. The behavior of rocks can change place to place
and type to type so depending on this stabilization measures ranging from no
support at all to anchor bolts to steel sets to even heavily reinforced concrete lining
and combination of all these are used. It is one of the most challenging tunneling
geology.

Fig- Unlined Rock Tunnel in Zion National Park, Utah

Soft Ground Tunnels-

When tunnels are excavated in soil using a shield or pressurized face TBM, or by
mining methods commonly known as sequential excavation method (SEM) are
used they are called soft ground tunnels. Soft ground includes cohesive soils as
well as cohesionless soils and silty sands. Very soft ground tunnels when
excavated sequentially by small drifts and openings, it is known as New Austrian
Tunneling Method (NATM).
1- Immersed Tunnels – Immersed tunnels usually consist of very large pre-cast
concrete or concrete filled steel tunnel elements which are fabricated in the
land and later installed under water. After installation, these tunnels are
backfilled. There are lot of immersed tunnels around the world used for road
or rail connections. Immersed tunnels are fabricated in required lengths in
dry docks or in improvised floodable basins or on shipways. The ends of the
 elements are sealed with bulkheads at each end, and then floated out and
towed to the installation location.

Fig- Immersed Tunnel

2- Jacked Box Tunnels - In these types of tunnels, prefabricated box structures
are jacked horizontally through the soil against a thrust wall using methods
to reduce surface friction, like bentonite slurry. These are often used for
construction beneath runways or railroads embankments where surfaces are
shallow but the must not be disturbed since it can disrupt their the normal
services. The method was developed from pipe jacking technology. The
Jacked box tunneling is used in soft ground and for short lengths of tunnels.
 Fig- Jacked Box Tunnel Structure Construction Operation

Q-2 Different cross section of tunnel.

The shape of a tunnel cross section is also called profile. Various profiles are
conceivable, e.g. rectangular ones. The most widespread ones, however, are
circular (e.g. Fig.) and (mostly oblate) mouth profiles (Fig.). The choice of the
profile aims at accommodating the performance requirements of the tunnel.
Moreover it tries to minimise bending moments in the lining (which is often
academic, since the loads cannot be exactly assessed) as well as costs for
excavation and lining. Further aspects for the choice of the profile are: ventilation,
maintenance, risk management and avoidance of claustrophobia of users.
A mouth profile is composed of circular sections. The ratio of adjacent curvature
radiuses should not exceed 5 (r1/r2 < 5). The minimum radius should not be
smaller than 1.5 m. Note that in the case of weak rock the lower part of the lining
also receives load from the adjacent ground. Therefore, a curved profile is
advisable from a statistical point of view also in the invert (see also Sec. 16.3).

The following relations refer to geometrical properties of mouth profiles. With the
initial parameters r1, r2, r3 it is obtained:
 r 1−r 2
sin β = r 3−r 2

c = √ r 32−2 r 2 ( r 3−r 2 ) −r 12
π 2 π 2
( 2
)
Cross section area= A = 2 r 1 + 2 −β r 2 + β r 3 −( r 1−r 2 ) c

Height H= r1+r3-c
Span D =2r1
Procedure-
1- Choose r1
b
2- Evaluate Cos β= 2 r 1

2
1 2 b
3- Evaluate r3 = sin β (a+ c−√ r 1 − 4 )

4- Choose r2,
Fig- Example of mouth profile
Q 3- Standard norms of ventilation and illumination in tunnels.
1. Ventilation in tunnels :
Concerning tunnel ventilation, two different systems of ventilation have to be
distinguished: ventilation during construction (i.e. during the heading of the tunnel)
and service ventilation (i.e. during the operation of the tunnel). Expenditures on the
latter amount up to 30 % of the total construction costs.
1.1 Ventilation during construction :
Ventilation during construction has the following aims:
Supply with oxygen: The O2-content of air should not fall below 20 vol. %. Below
18 vol. % breathing is not possible and protection masks should be used. The lack
of oxygen is due to:
o Combustion motors
o Breathing
o Oxidation of wood, coal etc.
o Groundwater dissolves more O2 than N2
Cleaning of air: The following pollutants have to be removed
 Dust from rock excavation and shotcreting
 Combustion motors
 Blasting fumes
 Gas egression from rock
 Radon decay products.
With respect to air pollution in working environments, maximum allowable
concentrations apply (MAC).3 These refer to exposures of 8 hours per day and up
to 42 hours per week. In addition, there are short time limits (Kurzzeitgrenzwerte,
KZG), which should not be exceeded in short exposures, and also instantaneous
values (Momentanwerte, R), which should never be exceeded.
Pollutants MAC
CO2 5000 cm3/m3
NOx 5 cm3/m3
CO 30 cm3/m3
SO2 5 cm3/m3
H2S 10 cm3/m3
Fine dust 4 mg/m3
 Fine quartz 0.125 mg/m3
Asbestos fibres 10000 fibers/m3

Fine SiO2 dust with a particle diameter ∅ < 5 µm is deposited in the

lungs and can cause the lethal illness ’silicose’ by hardening the lung tissue.
Radioactivity due to radon and its decay products should not exceed
1,000 to 3,000 Bequerel per m3 air.
Methane concentrations between 4 and 14 vol. % may cause explosions.
Ventilation also serves cooling purposes. One should take into account
that e.g. in the Simplon tunnel the temperature due to geothermy was
about 55◦ C and in the L¨otschberg tunnel 34 ◦ C. Apart from geothermy,
the hydratation of concrete can be an additional source of heat. In
Switzerland the temperature in working environments is limited to 28 ◦ C.
The following ventilation alternatives can be considered:
• Supply: supply with fresh air
• Extraction: extraction of polluted air (to be preferred for shotcrete
ap-plications).

The ductings are extendable tubes made of synthetic or steel sheets (Fig. 2.1).
Their cross section amounts to ca 1/60 to 1/30 of the tunnel cross section. The
required amount for fresh air is:
per person: 2,0 m3 /min,
per kW of diesel motors: 4,0 m3 /min.
Leaking from the ductings should be taken into account when estimating
the fresh air supply. Old ductings can loose up to 2/3 of the initially
introduced air due to leaking.
In case of drill & blast heading toxic blasting fumes are created. Therefore
work should not be resumed after blasting for 15 to 20 minutes. The
required fresh air supply is approx. 2 m 3 /(min · kg explosive), and the air
velocity averaged over the tunnel cross section should amount at least
0.3 m/s. Usually the fresh air is introduced near the face, so the most
polluted air is found near the portal.
Note that the ventilation can reduce the moisture of the shotcrete and
of the freshly excavated soil. A consequent loss of the ’apparent’ (or
capillary) cohesion of soil may cause collapse of the face if it is not
supported.
 CO concentration < 100 ppm
NO x concentration < 25 ppm
Opacity: extinction < 7 · 10 −3 m − 1
coefficient
Air velocity (averaged over the cross section) < 10 m/s

In rail tunnels (in particular metros), cooling, i.e. the removal of warm
air (e.g. due to locomotives), is another task of ventilation.
Road traffic produces the maximum pollution at speeds of 10 to 15
km/h. The increase in the number of vehicles equipped with catalysers
resulted in a considerable reduction of fresh air requirements of road
tunnels which, de-pending on the ratio of trucks and on the slope,
amounts to between 30 and 50%.
Four types of ventilation techniques can be distinguished:
Natural longitudinal ventilation: This ventilation is accomplished by
the pressure difference between the portals and also by the piston
action of the vehicles.
Fans: These have a spacing of ca 10 tunnel diameters and produce a
longi-tudinal ventilation. The blowing direction is reversible. Large
ventilators achieve a higher thrust related to installation costs.

Fi g.Ventilation fans

Semi-transverse ventilation: Fresh air is supplied from special

pathways perpendicular to the tunnel’s longitudinal axis, whereas the
polluted air escapes from the portals (supply system), see Fig. left.
This is appro-priate for tunnels with 2 to 4 km length and medium
traffic load. Alterna-tively, the used air is extracted through specials
ducts (extraction system, Fig. 2.5 right), while fresh air enters through
the portals. Thus, the worst air quality is found in the middle of the
tunnel. The air velocity reaches its maximum near the portals.
 2

Fi g. Examples of semi-transverse ventilation (supply and extract)

F i g. Supply and extract channels above the carriageway. The separating vertical
wall has not yet been mounted.14

Transverse ventilation: Fresh air is introduced and polluted air

(which moves upwards) is extracted perpendicular to the tunnel axis
(Fig. 2.7).

Air ducts with cross sections up to 30 m2 are used. Not only

aerodynamic considerations are taken into account but also the necessity of
access for main-tenance. Long tunnels may require ventilation shafts (Fig.
2.8) or ventilation adits that are driven parallel to the tunnel.
According to the German standards for the equipment and service of
road tunnels (RABT), the ventilation systems shown in Table 2.1 should
be used with regard to construction type and tunnel length.
If the outlet of polluted air has an adverse environmental impact,
cleaning (by means of electrostatic filters etc.) should be considered.
 Fi g. 2.7. Examples for transverse ventilation

Tunnel length in km
bidirectional one-directional ventilation
1 tube 2 tubes
< 0, 4 < 0, 7
natural ventilation with CO-warning
< 2 < 4 longitudinal ventilation
< 4 < 6 - fans
- fans and ventilation shaft
< 0, 5 < 2 semi-transverse ventilation
< 1 < 2 - reversible
< 2 < 6 - semi-transverse ventilation
transverse ventilation

Table 2.1. Ventilation systems according to RABT

ILLUMINATION IN TUNNELS
The objectives of tunnel lighting :

• Firstly, to allow traffic to enter, pass through and exit the enclosed
section safely.

• Secondly, to do so without impeding the through-flow of traffic.

These aims are achieved by the adequate illumination of the tunnel interior,
which allows drivers to quickly adjust to the light within, identify possible
obstacles, and negotiate their passage without reducing speed. These
requirements apply during the day when the contrast between outside and inside
is significant and at night when it is less, but reversed.

The 5 zones of tunnel lighting:

CIE guidance (CIE 88-1990)states that the amount of light required within a
tunnel is dependent on the level of light outside and on the point inside the
tunnel at which visual adaptation of the user must occur. When planning the
lighting of a tunnel, there are 5 key areas to consider:

1 Access zone

Not within the tunnel itself, this is the stretch of road leading to its entrance.
From this zone, drivers must be able to see into the tunnel in order to detect
possible obstacles and to drive into the tunnel without reducing speed.

The driver’s capacity to adapt in the access zone governs the lighting level in the
next part of the tunnel. One of the methods used by CIE to calculate visual
adaptation is the L20 method, which considers the average luminance from
environment, sky and road in a visual cone of 20°, centred on the line of sight

of the driver from the beginning of the access zone (see below).

2 Threshold zone

This zone is equal in length to the ‘stopping distance’. In the first part of this
zone, the required luminance must remain constant and is linked to the outside
luminance (L20) and traffic conditions. At the end of the zone, the luminance
level provided can be quickly reduced to 40% of the initial value.

3 Transition zone

Over the distance of the transition zone, luminance is reduced progressively to

reach the the level required in the interior zone. The reduction stages must not
exceed a ratio of 1:3 as they are linked to the capacity of the human eye to adapt
to the environment and, thus, timerelated. The end of the transition zone is
reached when the luminance is equal to 3 times the interior level.

4 Interior zone

This is the area between transition and exit zones, often the longest stretch of
tunnel. Lighting levels are linked to the speed and density of traffic, as

outlined in the table below.

Extra urban, low traffic, 1.5 to 3cd/m2

low speed (<70km/h)

Extra urban, high traffic 2 to 6cd/m2

and/or speed (>70km/h)

Highway 4 to 10cd/m2

Urban 4 to 10cd/m2

5 Exit zone

The part of the tunnel between interior zone and portal. In this zone, during the
day time, the vision of a driver approaching the exit is influenced by brightness
outside the tunnel. The human eye can adapt itself almost instantly from low to
high light levels, thus the processes mentioned when entering the tunnel are not
reversed. However, reinforced lighting may be required in some cases where
contrast is needed in front of or behind the driver when the exit is not visible, or
when the exit acts as entrance in case of emergency or maintenance works
where part of a twin tunnel may be closed. The length is a maximum 50m

and the light level 5 times the interior zone level.

Q.4 Support system for different rock mass structure in tunneling .

Ans. Selection and design of the support system are only two of many
interrelated factors in the overall design of a serviceable and economical tunnel.
The type of support, the method of excavation, and the character of the ground
are inseparable considerations. If the route is laid out to encounter the worst
rather than the best geological features, or if the construction method is ill-
suited to the geology, no amount of refinement of the lining can appreciably
influence the economy of the job. Nevertheless, for each tunnel layout and each
construction method, some types of lining are preferable to others. Initial
support during construction and final support during the functional life of the
tunnel pose separate requirements; sometimes both are best satisfied by a single
support system. Rational design presupposes a knowledge of the demands on
support systems, criteria for successful performance, familiarity ,~vith the
capabilities of available systems, and methods of analysis verified by
experience. Improved practice in the future is likely to have its roots in a clear
understanding of the shortcomings and requirements of today's practices. This
paper summarizes several current studies on the various aspects of design of the
support systems for transportation tunnels.

TYPES AND FUNCTIONS OF TUNNEL SUPPORT SYSTEMS :

The basic functions of a tunnel support system are to keep the tunnel stable and
to make the opening usable. The specific purposes of support systems, however,
depend greatly on the purposes of the tunnel. Traditionally, tunnel supports
have been classified into two groups, temporary and permanent. In modern
transportation tunnels, however, no such clear distinction can be drawn. Modern
supports do not rot away and thus are not as temporary as the timber sets used
years ago. The first supports installed will probably carry all the loads ever
expected on th tunnel as long as the supports do not deteriorate. These supports,
which carry either the full load or the greatest share of the load, are called the
primary support system. The primary support system must provide the initial
support for the opening, control the deformations within the tunnel, and
minimize disturbance to adjacent and overlying structures. Any lining that
covers the primary support system is called the secondary liner. In a
transportation tunnel, a secondary liner may be required to provide corrosion
protection for the primary support system, to provide watertightness, or for
environmental reasons such as aesthetics. It may be uneconomical and
unnecessary to make transportation tunnels watertight because infiltrating water
can often be easily controlled and drained from the tunnel. Thus, except for the
case of a watertight tunnel, the secondary liner need not be designed as a
structural member. In a watertight tunnel, the secondary liner can be designed to
share the load with the primary support system. A savings of up to one-third of
the total cost of a tunnel can sometimes be achieved by eliminating the
secondary liner altogether. On some projects merely making the primary
support system corrosion-resistant has permitted elimination of the secondary
liner.

TYPES OF PRIMARY SUPPORT SYSTEMS IN ROCK TUNNELS:

Three main types of primary support systems are presently used in rock tunnels.
They are rock bolts, steel sets, and shotcrete. Shotcrete is a pneumatically
applied large-aggregate concrete. The need for a secondary lining in a

tunnel supported by shotcrete depends on the purpose of the tunnel. Table 1

gives present use of the three types of primary support systems for rock tunnels
in various rock conditions. Each of the three support systems can be used under
a wide range of tunneling conditions, with some limitations in the poorer quality
rock. Recently, the Bernold System has been used with considerable success in
poor quality rock in Europe.The system consists of the use of pumpcrete to fill
the annulus between curved expanded metal sheets that are placed close to the
face. Movable steel sets provide temporary support until the concrete cures.

PLANNING AND DESIGN OF TUNNEL SUPPORT SYSTEMS:

Planning and design decisions are of two classes, conceptual and detailed.
Decisions of the first class are based on considerations of such factors as the
purpose of the project; the depth, alignment, and geometry of the opening; the
external environment; and the required watertightness. The results of these
decisions constitute the conceptual design of the underground opening. It may
include several alternatives. The detailed design is then performed to provide
several alternate construction methods and support systems that meet the
requirements of the conceptual design. The tunneling scheme that results in the
lowest total cost for the project is selected.Few decisions in the design process
can be made completely independently of each other. The geology associated
with alternate axes at different depths and alignment should be a fundamental
consideration in the conceptual design. The selection of the depth and alignment
determines the geologic materials that must be tunneled. The materials
encountered, in turn, dictate which types of construction methods are feasible.
Other construction niethods, even though intrinsically cheaper, no longer can be
considered. The support system must be compatible with the geology and the
construction method. Hence, with the geology and construction method fixed,
only a few support systems can be considered.

The selection of the route alignment and grade is one of the most important
decisions to be made. If unfavorable conditions will be encountered, the
resulting high construction costs cannot be offset by refinements in the design
of the support system.

The design of a support system is usually a matter of selection. The selection is

more complex than indicated by Tables 1 . Throughout planning and design, the
engineer needs to be aware that the geology of the material to be tunneled is the
most important variable in establishing the design, construction, and, ultimately,
the cost of the tunnel.
MODERN CONCEPTS OF THE DESIGN OF TUNNEL SUPPORT
SYSTEMS:

During excavation, most of the existing stresses in the ground are redistributed

around the opening by mobilization of the strength of the soil or rock. The
redistribution is often described as arching. Usually only enough support must
be added within a short time after excavation to help the soil or rock hold itself
up. Current soil and rock mechanics practice is to recognize and treat the
behavior of any system as a complex function of the interaction of the behavior
of the individual components of the system. In contrast, previous concepts and
theories for the design of tunnel supports have been based solely on assumed
loading diagrams; hence, they are unsatisfactory. Furthermore, because the soil
or rock being tunneled does not meet the appropriate assumptions, elastic and
elastic-plastic theories are rarely satisfactory for predicting the loads in tunnel
supports. The designer must somehow account for the deformation in both the
soil or rock and the support. The best way to visualize this interaction
phenomenon is by the simplified ground reaction curve shown in Figure 1.

A schematic load-deformation diagram is shown in Figure 1. The ordinate

represents the load in a support when deformation of the tunnel walls has
ceased. As the soil or rock deforms toward the tunnel, more strength of the
medium is mobilized and more stress is redistributed around the opening. The
ground reaction curve qualitatively reflects this redistribution. For any given
radial deformation, the ordinate of the ground reaction curve represents the load
that must be applied to the walls of the opening to prevent any further
deformation.

The inevitable deformation that occurs before the supports can be installed is

denoted by line OA. If at this stage a perfectly incompressible support is

installed, the load in the support is represented by the ordinate of the ground
reaction curve, line AA', at that deformation. But supports are, in fact, not
incompressible. The stress-strain curve of the support is represented by the
support reaction curve. While the supports deform radially, the walls of the
tunnel also deform until equilibrium is reached at a deformation of the walls of
the tunnel equal to OB, a deformation of the supports equal to AB, and a load in
the supports equal to BB'.

Unfortunately, at the present time the ground reaction curve cannot be

theoretically defined in most materials. Furthermore, even if theory could be
used to predict the curve, the large local variations in construction procedures
would inhibit the usefulness of the curve for practical design of supports.
Research and field instrumentation are continuing to develop these concepts,
but for the present the semi-empirical methods described in the following
sections appear to be best for practical design of tunnel supports.
GUIDELINES FOR THE SELECTION OF PRIMARY SUPPORT SYSTEMS
FOR ROCK TUNNELS: