Rock Breakage

Session 10
Rock Breakage in Construction

Jian Zhao

Rock Breakage in Construction

Session Contents

• Construction Process and Rock Breakage

• Drilling for Site Investigations
• Rock Excavation for Slopes and Foundations
• Rock Excavation for Tunnels, Caverns and Shafts

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 Construction and Rock Breakage

Typical Construction Processes

Construction process involves planning, design and

construction.
During the planning and design stages, site
investigations and characterisations are conducted
to provide the information and data for planning and
design.

Planning Design

Site Investigation Construction

Construction and Rock Breakage

Typical Tunnel Construction Processes

Planning Investigation Design Construction

Concept
Regional
Route & Layout
Project
Detailed
Detailed
Excavation
Monitoring & Lining

Defining a Tunnel Project

Implementing a Tunnel Project

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 Construction and Rock Breakage

Rock Breakage Activities in Construction

Processes

Investigation: drilling and coring.

Construction: excavation for slope, foundation,
tunnel, and cavern.

© AlpTransit Gotthard

Drilling for Site Investigations

Drilling, Coring and Sampling

Percussion drilling is used for quick probing, e.g.,

depth of rock, cavity and rock boulders.
Coring is the most common drilling in site
investigation. Rock core samples are obtained from
coring.
Sampling is essential in investigation. Rock samples
are used for logging and testing to yield
engineering design parameters.

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 Drilling for Site Investigations

Coring Drilling Methods and Techniques

Rotary Power rotation of a core bit
coring cutting and barrel collecting
rock, with water circulation
removing ground-up material
and cooling core bit.
Wire-line As rotary coring. Core
coring samples obtained by inner
barrel retrieved by a wire-line
through drilling rod.
Horizontal As wire-line coring. Coring
directional inclination can change to
drilling horizontal. Direction and
inclination is controlled.
Coring through all type
of rocks, and obtaining
core samples with
diameter from 50 to
150 mm.
As rotary coring. Fast
and efficient for deep
coring on land and
offshore.
Generally in competent
rock. Useful for under
water, mountain and
obstructions.

Drilling for Site Investigations

Core Examination and Logging

Examination of cores
to provide geological
information and rock
mass parameters.
Often done by a team,
geologist, rock
engineer, drilling
technician.

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 Drilling for Site Investigations

Planning and Design Parameters from Cores

Rock Mass Rock Engineering Design
Core Logging
Classification Parameter

Rock mass quality, rock mass

RQD, joint spacing RMR, Q, GSI
strength, rock mass deformability

Joint surface Rock mass quality, rock mass

roughness, RMR, Q, GSI strength, rock mass deformability,
weathering and filling joint friction angle

Joint dip angle and Potential sliding planes in slopes

RMR, Q
direction and tunnels

Rock mass quality, rock mass

Point load strength RMR, Q, GSI
strength

Drilling for Site Investigations

Drilling, Sampling and Logging Procedure

• Drilling borehole by diamond

coring.
• Collecting rock cores and
storing in core boxes.
• Performing core logging.
• Conducting rock index and
simple strength testing.
• Completing core log and site
investigation report.
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 Drilling for Site Investigations

Subsurface Ground Visualisation

From drilling and logging, subsurface profile can be

visualised, for planning and design.

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Excavation for Slope and Foundation

Excavated Rock Slope in

Construction

Slopes are excavated for roads,

rails, and
buildings.
Normally single
bench, and can
be reinforced
or supported.

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 Excavation for Slope and Foundation

Rock Slope Excavation Methods

Blasting remains as the main methods for major

slope cutting in hard rocks.
Excavators can be used for cutting slopes in soft
rocks and for secondary breaking of hard rocks.
Expanding chemicals are used for very minor slope
cutting in hard rock and secondary breaking.
Methods selection depending on the excavation
scale, rock strength, and environmental constrains.

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Rock Slope Excavation

Slope Blasting

Rock slope excavated by drill-and-blast is the same

as that in open pit bench blast.
Blasthole is generally around 50 mm D and smaller
for smooth blast. Explosive is usually blast gelatins.
The final slope cutting is
usually by smooth blast
or presplit blast to
minimise blast damage
to the rock slope. © Safe Blast Consultancy

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 Rock Slope Excavation

Machine Excavation and Breaking

Rock slopes can be excavated by rock breaker and

jackhammer. They are used for small scale slope
cutting and face treatment.
Advantage: Easy to mobilise,
flexible to use.
Limitation: Noise, difficult
for very hard rocks.
Rock slope cutting and
stabilisation for The
Hillside Condominium

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Rock Slope Excavation

Rock Slope Excavation by

Chemicals

Non-explosive, expansion of Rock slope cutting and

chemicals to break rocks at stabilisation for The
Hillside Condominium
slopes. Main types are expanding
bentonite and liquid gas (CO2, N).
The breaking process is slow.
This is used to break hard rock
when the environment does not
allow blasting.
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 Excavation for Slope and Foundation

Rock Excavation and Slope Stability

Poor blasting damages the rock that forms the slope,

resulting poor slope quality and potential instability.
For slope excavation, excavation design need to
consider slope stability.
Sliding blocks For potentially instable rock
slopes, they can be reinforced
or supported by rock bolts,
Steel bolts
shotcrete, steel nets, and
protection measures.

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Excavation for Slope and Foundation

Rock Excavation for Foundations

Foundations on rock required solid and flat base.

Rock excavation for foundation treatments:
• Remove weak and fractured rock;
• Cut to make flat base;
• For rock socketed pile foundation, rock wall of the
socket to be even in diameter.
Excavations are mostly done by machines, and can
be done by small scale blasting.

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 Excavation for Slope and Foundation

Rock Foundation on Slope

Foundations sometimes can be built on slopes.

Need to give special considerations for foundation
and slope
combined Rock slope cutting and stabilisation
for The Hillside Condominium
effects.

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Excavation for Slope and Foundation

Dam Foot and Abutment on Rock

Rock to support dam foundation and abutment

require to be treated to provide maximum bearing
capacity. These treatments sometimes involve
minor rock breakage, e.g.:
• Scaling and removing weak and fractured rock
and cutting the foundation base to be flat.
• Scaling and removing weak and fractured rock at
abutment supporting wall.
These are mostly done by machines and hand-hold
equipment, and occasionally by blasting.
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 Excavation of Rock Tunnels

Tunnels, Caverns and Shafts

Tunnels: Long, mainly for transport and access.

Caverns: Large and short, usually for storage and
space.
Shafts: Vertical, main for access and ventilation.
Tunnel Excavated by TBM, drill-and-blast, roadheader, and other
excavation machines
Cavern Excavated by drill-and-blast, roadheader, and other
excavation machines
Shaft Excavated by drill-and-blast, shaft sink, and other
excavation machines
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Excavation of Rock Tunnels

Rock Excavation Methods by Equipment

Excavation Method Key Characteristics
Primarily for hard rock, using explosives
Drill-and-blasting
to break rocks, flexible geometry
For all rock, cut by roller cutters, full face
Tunnel boring machines
and circular section.
Generally for soft and medium hard rocks,
Mobile excavators e.g., roadheader and excavator, for full
face or partial face excavation.

Using high water pressure, chemical

Waterjet, chemicals,
expansion or EM heating for small scale
electromagnetic waves
cutting or assisting machine excavation.

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 Excavation of Rock Tunnels

Rock Excavation Methods by Process

Excavation Method General Key Characteristics
For competent rocks and diameter up to 10 m,
Full-face excavation using TBM and drill-and-blast to excavate full
face.
For competent rocks with large opening size,
Multiple face
using drill-and-blast or roadheader to
excavation
excavate each faces.
For highly fractured and poor rock masses,
Pre-conditioned full-
excavation zones are temporarily improved
face excavation
before full face excavation.
For weak and poor rocks, face divided into
Sequential sections, sequentially excavated by machine
excavation (NATM) and temporally supported, internal support
removed to open-up. 23

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Excavation of Rock Tunnels

Tunnel Excavations

TBM: Gripper to shield TBMs for hard, soft and

mixed rocks. Fact advance rate.
Drill-and-Blast: Mainly for hard rocks. Moderate
advance rate.
Roadheader: Mainly for short
tunnels or section, low to
medium strength rocks. Low
advance rate.
Excavators: For soft rocks. © NFM

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 Excavation of Rock Tunnels

Cavern Excavations

Drill-and-Blast: Most common method due to large

span and short length. Often
done in multiple face,
heading and benches.
Roadheader and excavators:
Machine excavation is
possible for low to medium
strength rocks. Multiple
machines may be used for
the desired advance rate. © jtc.gov.sg

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Excavation of Rock Tunnels

Shaft Excavations

Drill-and-Blast: top-down, pilot, and Alimak.

Top-down
Pilot

© cedd.gov.hk

Drill and blast

Mucking
Supporting Alimak
© ISRM

© Unknown

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 Excavation of Rock Tunnels

Shaft Excavations

Shaft machines: raise boring, shaft

sinking, shaft boring. Shaft
boring

© Herrenknecht © Herrenknecht

Raise boring

Shaft sinking

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Excavation of Rock Tunnels

Underground Excavation Method Selection

Opening geometry: size, shape, length, alignment.

Ground condition: geology,
groundwater, rock strength,
rock mass quality.
Location: access, site
availability.
Cost and safety: capital,
duration, risk.
© Atlas Copco

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 Rock Reinforcement and Support

Rock Reinforcement and Support

Support Type Function

Fastening individual blocks, forming rock arch and

Bolt
ring, taking stress

Providing reactive pressure, locking block

Shotcrete
movement, protecting rock surface

Steel sets Providing reactive pressure, limiting convergence

Wire mesh Protecting block falling, reinforcing shotcrete
Concrete lining Providing reactive pressure, limiting convergence

Providing reactive pressure, limiting roof

Pillar
movement

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Excavation of Rock Tunnels

Rock Reinforcement and Support Examples

©Bekaert

© AlpTransit Lötschberg

© Public Transport Victoria

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 Excavation of Rock Tunnels

Rock Excavation in Urban and Built Area

Vibration and noise: vibration and noise from rock

excavation, particularly blasting are limited.
Settlement: Ground settle due to tunnelling are
monitored and limited.
Recommended maximum
Building and Structure Types
PPV (AS2187.2 – 1993)
Housing and low rise residential buildings,
10 (mm/s)
commercial buildings not included below
Commercial and industrial buildings or structures
25 (mm/s)
of reinforced concrete or steel constructions
High rise, hospitals, long floor spans, dams or
5 (mm/s)
historic buildings where no specified limit exists
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Rock Breakage in Construction

Session Summary

• Construction Process and Rock Breakage

• Drilling for Site Investigations
• Rock Excavation for Slopes and Foundations
• Excavation of Rock Tunnels, Caverns and Shafts

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