Gianluca Bella, Giulio Antonucci, Gennaro Scognamiglio

Abstract: The minimization in the travel time for people and good is a fundamental factor in the economic progress of any nation. Achieving this objective can be realized through tunnelling, which often involves digging at significant depths. When tunnelling at high depths, the rock masses, especially if they are weak, can generate significant stress, so leading to substantial deformation during excavation operations. These large deformations around the tunnel frequently exceed the capacity of standard rock support systems, making it challenging to maintain the tunnel's stability and safety during construction. The current study deals with Finite Element analysis to investigate the stress-strain behaviour of the rock support of a deep tunnel under squeezing conditions. The rock support performances are evaluated and compared considering several fracturing conditions by means of a wide GSI range at simulating a decrease of the rock mass properties due to the proximity of tectonized zones. Different rock mass types are also studied with variations of mi parameter and uniaxial compressive strength. The performances of the rock supports - sliding or stiff ribs - are evaluated and compared in terms of stresses and strain acting on.

Keywords: Squeezing, tunnelling, weak conditions, sliding ribs

Date Published: January 23, 2025
DOI: 10.11159/ijci.2025.001

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