Development of the safety control framework for shield tunneling in close proximity to the operational subway tunnels: case studies in mainland China
IntroductionChina’s largest cities like Beijing and Shanghai have seen a sharp increase in subway network development as a result of the rapid urbanization in the last decade. The cities are still expanding their subway networks now, and many shield tunnels are being or will be constructed in close proximity to the existing operational subway tunnels. The execution plans for the new nearby shield tunnel construction calls for the development of a safety control framework—a set of control standards and best practices to help organizations manage the risks involved.Case description Typical case studies and relevant key technical parameters are presented with a view to presenting the resulting safety control framework. The framework, created through collaboration among the relevant parties, addresses and manages the risks in a systematic way based on actual conditions of each tunnel crossing construction. The framework consists of six parts: (1) inspecting the operational subway tunnels; (2) deciding allowed movements of the existing tunnels and tracks; (3) simulating effects of the shield tunneling on the existing tunnels; (4) doing preparation work; (5) monitoring design and information management; and (6) measures and activation mechanism of the countermeasures. The six components are explained and demonstrated in detail.Discussion and EvaluationIn the end, discussions made involve construction and post-construction settlement of the operational tunnel, application of the remedial grouting to rectify excessive settlements of the operational tunnel, and use of the innovative tool of the optical fiber measurement for tunnel movement monitoring.ConclusionsIt is concluded that the construction movement of the tunnel can be controlled within 15 mm when the shield machine is <7 m in excavation diameter. The post-construction settlement of the tunnel buried in the very soft ground is much greater than its construction settlement, and last several years until reaching a final stable state. Two cases are outlined to demonstrate the feasibility of using the remedial grouting to reduce the long-term settlement of the operational tunnels. The more and more segmental tunnels being constructed, there is an increasing need of the optical fiber measurement for tunnel movement monitoring in the near future.
Research on Construction Safety Risk Assessment of New Subway Station Close-Attached Undercrossing the Existing Operating Station
With the large-scale construction of urban rail transit, it will lead to the intersection and transfer of various lines, resulting in more transfer stations. The transfer station is a collection point for multiple subway lines, which is difficult to construct and has a high construction risk. The construction of the new subway station and the operation of the existing subway station are mutually influenced during the close-attached undercrossing construction. Considering the two objectives of ensuring the smooth operation of the existing subway station and the safe construction of the new subway station, this paper comprehensively analyzes the possible safety risk factors during the construction of the new subway station close-attached undercrossing the existing operating station and identifies 75 preliminary risk factors by means of literature review and on-site investigation. Then the Delphi Method and Entropy Weight Method are used to screen the preliminary risk factors, and the main risk factors with greater influence are retained, so that 49 key risk factors are obtained. According to the list of key risk factors, a safety risk assessment index system including 2 first-level indexes, 12 second-level indexes, and 49 third-level indexes is established. Based on the index system, this paper establishes a safety risk assessment model by using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Fuzzy Matter Element Method (FMEM). The model first calculates the weight of each index by using AHP, calculates the comprehensive correlation degree of each index by using FMEM, classifies the risk grade of each index according to the comprehensive correlation degree, and determines the risk grade of the project. Finally, the safety risk assessment model is applied to the Dongdalu Station project of Chengdu Rail Transit Line 8. The result shows that the risk grade of this project is moderate risk, which is basically consistent with the actual situation, indicating that the model has good practicability. In this paper, a new safety risk assessment model for subway close-attached undercrossing construction is proposed, which fills the gap in the field of safety risk assessment for the construction of the new subway station close-attached undercrossing the existing operating station.
Effects of tunnelling on existing support systems of perpendicularly crossing tunnels
The interactions between perpendicularly crossing tunnels in the Sydney region are investigated using a full three-dimensional (3D) finite element analysis coupled with elasto-plastic material models. Special attention is paid to the effect of subsequent tunnelling on the support system, i.e. the shotcrete lining and rock bolts, of the existing tunnel. The results of the analysis show that in a region such as Sydney, with relatively high horizontal stresses, installation of the new tunnel causes the shotcrete lining of the existing tunnel to be in tension in the side facing towards the tunnel opening and in compression at the crown and invert. The pre-stressed rock bolts are usually tensioned more in the sections closest to the tunnel opening. For this particular study, if a new tunnel is driven perpendicularly beneath an existing tunnel, significant increases are induced in the bending moments in the shotcrete lining at the lateral sides of the existing tunnel and in the axial forces at its crown and invert. The increase in side bending moments causes further tensile cracking but the crown and invert stresses remain within the thresholds for both compressive failure and tensile cracking for shotcrete lining of typical concrete quality. Moreover, the driving of the new tunnel causes the tensile forces in the existing side rock bolts to increase and those in the existing crown rock bolts to decrease. In contrast, if the new tunnel is driven perpendicularly above the existing tunnel, compressive failure of the existing shotcrete lining is induced at the crown of the deeper tunnel for concrete of typical capacity and a significant tensile force increase of the existing rock bolts around the crown. It is concluded that in order to ensure the stability of the existing tunnel, local thickening is needed at the sides of the existing shotcrete lining if the shallow tunnel is installed first and local thickening is needed at the crown if the deep tunnel is installed first.