Abstract

In cable tunnel construction using TBM, the vertical shaft is an essential structure for entrance and exit of TBM equipment and power lines. Since a shaft penetrates the ground vertically, it often encounters rock mass. Blasting or rock splitting methods, which are mainly used to the rock excavation, cause public complaints due to the noise, vibration and road occupation. Therefore, mechanical excavation using vertical shaft excavation machine are considered as an alternative to the conventional methods. However, at the current level of technology, the vertical excavation machine has limitation in its performance when applied for high strength rock with a compressive strength of more than 120 MPa. In this study, the potential utilization of waterjet technology as an excavation assistance method was investigated to improve mechanical excavation performance in the hard rock formations. Rock cutting experiments were conducted to verify the cutting performance of the abrasive waterjet. Based on the experimental result, it was found that ensuring excavation performance with respect to changing in ground conditions can be achieved by adjusting waterjet parameters such as standoff distance, traverse speed and water pressure. In addition, based on the relationship between excavation performance, uniaxial compressive strength and RQD, it was suggested that excavation performance could be improved by artificially creating joints using the abrasive waterjet. It is expected that these research results can be utilized as fundamental data for the introduction of vertical shaft excavation machines in the future.