CONTENTS

 ABSTRACT 2
 INTRODUCTION 3
 HISTORY 3-4
 REVIEW OF RESEARCH STATUS 5-8
 GENERAL 8
 TYPES OF IMMERSED TUNNELS 9-10
 REASON FOR CHOOSING SFT 11
 ADVANTAGES OF SFT 11-12
 BASIC PRINCIPLE OF SFT 12-13
 DESIGN PRINCIPLE AND PROCESS OF SFT TUBE 13-14
 CONSTRUCTION METHOD 14-15
 STRUCTURAL COMPONENETS OF SFT 16-20
 VANTELATION 20-21
 COMPETITIVE FEATURES OF SFT 21-22
 CONCLUSION 23
 FURTHER WORK 24-25
 REFERENCE 26

1
 SUBMERGED FLOATING TUNNEL
SHIVANI ,OM PRAKASH
DEPATMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING
AP GOYAL SHIMLA UNIVERSITY

Abstract
Submerged Floating Tunnel (SFT) is a new type of transport structure. It is
different from the general bridges and tunnels engineering, it has a significant
advantage over conventional structures in crossing long, large and deep water
areas. Hence, SFT has great potential for development of infrastructures in
crossing straits. Aiming at features of SFT, this article discuses some challenges
and problems, which are faced in design and construction of SFT, such as wave
load determination, vortex-induced vibration, immigration and reduction of
accidental load and situation, durability, innovational construction method, risk
identification and control etc. The state-of-art and works done by Zhejiang
University in the relative areas of SFT were introduced. The technological
difficulties and corresponding solution were proposed. At last, the several key
problems to be needed further research were proposed, so as to provide
reference for the design, construction and project risk analysis of future SFT.

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 SUBMERGED FLOATING TUNNEL
INTRODUCTION:-
Paths of transport which are partly or wholly constructed under a body of
water. A submerged floating tunnel also known as submerged floating tube
bridge, suspended tunnel or Archimedes bridge, is a proposed design for a
tunnel that floats in water supported by its buoyancy.

HISTORY

The first underwater tunnel was build over four thousand years ago, but
floating tunnels are much more recent. Certainly an engineer and builder of
railways, S. Préault , proposed but did not build an SFT across the
Bosphorus in 1860, an elegant underwater railway viaduct with spans of
about 150 m founded on piers, located some 20 m below the surface. Per
Hall proposed a deeper SFT for the Bosphorus in 1976, but by 1977 his
proposal had become a buried immersed tunnel for environmental reasons
(fish habitat). An immersed tunnel is now in place beneath the Bosphorus
awaiting the last of the TBMs to reach it. Going back now to 1882, Edward
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 Reed proposed a submerged railway tunnel across the English Channel
supported on caissons, but Parliament in England rejected it for fear of
invasion. It was patented and since then, many other patents have been
taken out for SFT, including some in the UK, USA, Norway, Sweden and
Italy. Once the first immersed tunnel had been successfully built in 1893,
the way was open also for constructing SFT – initially at least those that
would be pier supported. Since 1923 [3], the potential of an SFT has been
recognized in Norway as a way to create a practical castal highway across
fjords that would otherwise be too deep even for bored tunnels to make
sense; some of the existing bored tunnel connections even with 10% grades
are very, very long. This need for shorter shallower tunnels for a number of
fjord crossings has led to detailed investigations and field tests that still
continue today. The most wellknown crossing evaluated in some detail in
Norway is for Hogsfjord , but the SFT was abandoned for local political
reasons. Private investors have examined a number of other locations.
Another serious contender is the Sula-Hareld crossing. The first of a series
of Strait Crossing Symposia in Norway began in 1986 (the fifth was in 2009)
in which SFT have played an increasingly greater part.

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 REVIEW OF RESEARCH STATUS

Wave Force

At present, Morison equation is mainly used to calculate the fluid force

acting on SFT. Hiroshi Kunisu (1994) used Morison equation and boundary
element method to analyze SFT’s behaviour under wave force with
different anchorage types. They thought that the wave force acting on SFT
tube is mainly inertia force. Mai Jiting, etc. (2003) found that SFT’s
property also has effect on wave force by Morison equation and linear
wave theory. The period of wave has obviously effect on the magnitude of
wave force. Mai Jiting, etc. also calculated wave load by diffraction theory
and source-sink method. She pointed out attention should be paid to the
wave-current effect and the change of wave force in vertical direction.
Wang Guangdi used numerical simulation method to analyse flow field and
=pressure distribution around the surface of SFT tube with four different
shapes (circle, polygon, curve shape and oval). In order to consider the
changes of wave force with depth, combining with Morison equation, the
author, etc proposed layered integration method to calculate horizontal
and vertical wave force.

Vortex-induced Vibration

Vortex-induced vibration (VIV) will be caused on SFT tube and anchor

cables by the action of vortex. When the frequency of vortex is close to the
natural frequency of structure or components, vibration amplitude will
increase sharply because of vortex-excited resonance. As the main support
components, the stability of anchor cables in wave and current is directly
related to the safety of SFT. Li Jian, etc. studied vortex-induced lock in
velocity of anchor cables and pointed out the movement of cable is very
complex. Mai Jiting, etc. researched transverse vortex-induced response of
tension legs in SFT under current effect. Chen Jianyun, etc. established
vortex-induced vibration equation of anchor cables based on Morison
equation, analyzed influence of inclined angle, tension and cable length on
transverse vibration. According to Hamilton principle and Morison
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 equation, the author, etc. deduced the motion differential equations of
anchor cable-tube coupling system to analyze the nonlinear vibration
characteristic in five typical work cases and different parameters. The
results showed that:

1) The coupling vibration between cable and tube is obvious

2) The initial disturbance of SFT tube has a great influence on instantaneous

amplitude of anchor cables.

3) The vortex-induced vibration of anchor cables can stimulate parametric

vibration of system.

4) The stable amplitude of system depends on the size of the vortex-

excited force.

5) The reasonable inclined angle of anchor cables is between 45°~ 60°.

Generally, there are three kinds of methods to avoid VIV of anchor cables:

1) Choosing reasonable structure parameters.

2) Installing damping devices.

3) Using additional disturbing flow device. Chao Chunfeng did the

experimental study on the effect of three different disturbing flow device,
including spiral fringe, control rod and fairing. The results showed that the
spiral fringe has the most obvious effect in all.

Accidental Situation Analysis

During the operation of SFT, there are various accidental situations, such as
earthquake, collision caused by shipwrecks, fishing trawler and vehicles,
even terrorist attacks. Though accident occurrence probability is low, the
consequence is very serious. At present, the study of accidental situations

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 mainly focuses on the earthquake. Fogazzi and Di Pilato developed a
program to simulate fluid-structure interaction and soil- structure
interaction using three-dimensional beam element. A large deformation
cable element is developed and multi-supporting seismic effect of SFT is
studied. Luca Martinelli, etc. proposed a new method to get response
spectrum based on median pseudo-acceleration response spectrum.
Meanwhile, they also developed a cable element with three nodes
considering fluid action, and analyzed the nonlinear seismic time history
response of SFT. Xiao, etc. used finite element method to study transverse
seismic response of SFT with different boundary conditions of revetments,
including simply- supported, fixed and elastic support. Chen Jianyun, etc.
studied the influence of seabed geological properties on dynamic water
pressure (P-wave) of SFT with rigid cables. Sun Shengnan stimulated
interaction between SFT and fluid under seismic excitation and did the first
experiment test to study the seismic response of SFT. Chao Chunfeng etc.
derived the calculation equations and boundary conditions of SFT under the
P-wave action with the help of wave equation theory. In their work, it is
assumed that:1) the only rigid displacement and no elastic deformation
take place in vertical plan of SFT; the dynamic effect caused by seawater
and tube mass is only considered; the influence of seawater up and down
the tunnel, anchor cable’s rigidity and the distance between anchor cable is
also considered. In addition, aiming at the problem of transverse seismic
response of SFT and combining with the typical seabed geotechnical
properties of the South China Sea, the author, etc (2015) used linear soil
spring to simulate the restriction effect on SFT tube and adopted large mass
method to analyze the transverse displacement, bending moment, torsion
and cable tensions of SFT across Messina strait under the seismic action . At
present, there are very few researches on the dynamic response of SFT
under impact loads. With equivalent mass method, Hui Lei obtained local
displacements and strains of tube at the impact point. Based on the law of
conservation of energy in the elastic collision, Sung-il Seo, etc calculated
the maximum deformation and internal force of SFT which was regarded as
elasticity support beam. The results were checked by finite element
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 analysis. Yun Lee adopted ANSYS LS-DANY to analyze the global and local
collision response of SFT in different collision angle, got the maximum
moment and displacement according to the force equilibrium equation and
energy balance equation.

GENERAL

Tunnels in water are by no means new in civil engineering. Since about 1900,
more than 100 immersed tunnels have been constructed. Bridges are the most
common structures used for crossing water bodies. In some cases immersed
tunnels also used which run beneath the sea or river bed. But when the bed is too
rocky , too deep or too undulating submerged floating tunnels are used .

Advertisements The Submerged Floating Tunnel concept was first

conceived at the beginning of the century, but no actual project was
undertaken until recently. As the needs of society for regional growth and
the protection of the environment have assumed increased importance, in
this wider context the submerged floating tunnel offers new opportunities.
The submerged floating tunnel is an innovative concept for crossing
waterways, utilizing the law of buoyancy to support the structure at a
moderate and convenient depth .The Submerged floating Tunnel is a tube
like structure made of Steel and Concrete utilizing the law of buoyancy .It
supported on columns or held in place by tethers attached to the sea floor
or by pontoons floating on the surface. The Submerged floating tunnel
utilizes lakes and waterways to carry traffic under water and on to the
other side, where it can be conveniently linked to the rural network or to
the underground infrastructure of modern cities.

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 TYPES OF IMMERSED TUNNEL
• Concrete

• Steel – Single Shell

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 – Double Shell (USA)

– Sandwich (Japan)

10
 REASON FOR CHOOSING FLOATING TUNNEL

Floating tunnel is the totally new concept and never used before even for
very small length. It can be observed that the depth of bed varies from
place to place on a great extent. The maximum depth is up to 8 km. also at
certain sections. The average depth is 3.3 km. The two alternatives are
available for constructions are bridge above water level or tunnel below
ground level. Since the depth is up to 8 km it is impossible to construct
concrete columns of such height for a bridge. And also the pressure below
8km from sea surface is nearly about 500 times than atmospheric pressure
so one cannot survive in such a high pressure zone.

So the immersed tunnels also cannot be used. Therefore, floating tunnel is

finalised which is at a depth 30m from the sea level, where there is no
problem of high pressure. This is sufficient for any big ship to pass over it
without any obstruction

ADVANTAGES OF SFT

• Very soft ground no problem

• Earthquakes can be handled

11
 • High quality from precasting
• Flexible construction programme
• Less risky than bored tunnel
• Have been built in busy waterways
• Ideal for tall ships where soils are poor
• They don’t spoil the view!

BASIC PRINCIPLE OF SFT

SFT is a buoyant structure which moves in water. The relation between

buoyancy and self weight is very important, since it controls the static
behaviour the tunnel and to some extend, also the response to dynamic
forces. Minimum internal dimension often result in a near optimum design.
There are two ways in which SFT can be floated. That is positive and
negative buoyancy.

12
 Positive buoyancy: In this the SFT is fixed in position by anchoring either by
means of tension legs to the bottom or by means of pontoons on the
surface. Here SFT is mainly 30 metres below the water surface.
Negative buoyancy: Here the foundations would be piers or columns to the
sea or lake. This method is limited to 100 meters water depth

SFT is subjected to all environmental actions typical in the water

environment: wave ,current , vibration of water level, earthquake,
corrosion, ice and marine growth. It should be designed to with stand all
actions, operational and accidental loads, with enough strength and
stiffness. Transverse stiffness is provided by bottom anchoring.

DESIGN PRINCIPLE AND PROCESS OF SFT TUBE

SFT tube provides space for traffic and buoyancy for carrying different
dead and live loads. The design of SFT tube relates to oneself safety and
applicability. The design load, buoyancy to weight ratio, flow resistance
performance, durable performance and other factors are considered
comprehensively during the tube design process. By alternatives
comparison from technique, economy and environmental protection, the
optimal plan should extremely utilize the space to satisfy the traffic
headroom and meet the demand of ventilation and escape according to the
requirements of safety applicability, reliable quality, economical rationality
and advanced technology.

The principles of tube design are as follows:

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 • The buoyancy to weight ratio is less than 1.0, related researches show
that the ratio should be between 0.5 an0.8.

• Tube should meet the demand of strength, stiffness and stability during
construction and operation stages.

• The variation of surface curvature should be gentle to resist the

hydrodynamic. Meet the standard for classification of seismic protection of
buildings.

CONSTRUCTION

The concept of submerged floating tunnels is based on well-known

technology applied to floating bridges and offshore structures, but the
construction is mostly similar to that of immersed tunnels: One way is to
build the tube in sections in a dry dock; then float these to the construction
site and sink them into place, while sealed; and, when the sections are fixed
to each other, the seals are broken. Another possibility is to build the
sections unsealed, and after welding them together, pump the water out.
The ballast used is calculated so that the structure has approximate
hydrostatic equilibrium (that is, the tunnel is roughly the same overall
density as water), whereas immersed tube tunnels are ballasted more to
weight them down to the sea bed. This, of course, means that a submerged
floating tunnel must be anchored to the ground or to the water surface to
keep it in place (which of these depends on which side of the equilibrium
point the tunnel is).

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 Construction Method

Besides the theoretical analysis, there must be a set of construction

method to build a SFT. Because there is no existing SFT in the word, the
construction methods of immersed tunnel can be taken as a reference.
Main construction contents of SFT can be divided into three parts:
prefabrication of tube segments, transportation and installation of tube
segments, installation of anchor cables and foundation. (1) Prefabrication
of tube segments Tube segments of SFT are prefabricated in dry dock. The
length of each tube segment is determined by the anchor spacing and
transport conditions. The internal space of tube segments consists of
roadway, escape way, air convection channel, ventilating duct and so on. To
ensure the internal space to be airtight, double-walled section is usually
adopted, as shown in Figure 6. The complicated cross section and work
conditions requirement bring some difficulties to prefabrication: (1) The
accuracy of tube fabrication is high. The size of tunnel section must be
strictly controlled to meet the needs of underwater connection. (2) Tube of
SFT requires high waterproofness, which is mainly provided by structure
itself and material. Penetrating cracks are not allowed and surface cracks
should be avoided and controlled as much as possible. Thus high
performance fibre reinforced concrete is recommended. (3) It is necessary

15
 to take appropriate measures to control the hydration heat of large volume
concrete casting.

STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS OF SFT

Submerged floating tunnel consists of many structural components. These

components should provide strength and stiffness against the various
forces acting under the water surface. The three basic structural
components are:

• Tube

• Anchoring

• Shore connections

Tube: It should accommodate the traffic lanes and the equipment. External
shape can be circular , elliptical or polygonal. It may be constructed of steel
or concrete. Corrosion protection is the main issue. Tube is composed of
elements of length varying from one hundred meters to half a kilometre.

Anchoring: There are basically four types of anchoring:

• SFT with pontoons

• SFT supported on columns

• SFT with tethers to the bottom

• SFT unanchored

SFT with pontoons:

It is independent of water depth, the system is sensitive to wind, waves,

currents and possible ships collision. Design should be such that if one
pontoon is lost, then also the structure will survive.

16
 SFT supported on columns: It is an “underwater bridge” with foundations
on the bottom, in principle the columns are in compression but they may
also be a tension type alternative. Water depth will play an important role
in this case and a few hundred meters depth is considered a limit at the
present time. However, much deeper foundations are at present under
investigation.

17
 SFT with tethers to the bottom : It is based on tethers being in tension in
all future situations, no slack in these tethers may be accepted in any future
load cases. The present practical depths for this type of crossing may be
several hundred meters, whether the tethers are vertical or a combination
of vertical and inclined.

SFT unanchored: It is interesting as it has no anchoring at all except at

landfalls and is then independent of depth. There is obviously a limit to the
length but only further development will answer this. Perhaps an
alternative for light traffic should be designed, possibly a 100 or 200 meter
long.

Connection: The connections of the tube to the shore require appropriate

interface elements to couple the flexible water tube with the much more
rigid tunnel bored in the ground. This joint should be able to restrain tube
movements, without any unsustainable increase in stresses. On the other
hand , the joints must be water tight to be able to prevent entry of water.

18
 Additional care in shore connections is required, especially in seismic areas
, due to the risk of submarine landslides

Structural design of SFT tube: SFT tube keeps balance under the action of
buoyancy and cable tension bears vehicle load, wave-current load,
temperature load and so on. In the system transformation during
prefabrication, floating, installation and operation, the stress of tube is
complex, so the tube design should carry on longitudinal and transverse
analysis under these working conditions.

SFT tube load is divides into permanent load, variable load and accidental
load. The permanent includes structure weight, buoyancy, hydrostatic
pressure, concrete shrinkage etc.

The variable load includes vehicle load, water head load, wave-current
load, temperate load, construction load etc. The accidental load includes
seismic, sunken ship load, blast load, leakage etc. SFT tube is designed
under ultimate limit state and serviceability limit state just as traditional
hydraulic structure design, moreover, the stress and displacement should
be analyzed and checked under progressive damage Limit state and fatigue
limit state based on structural reliability theory.

Tube joint design Joint design of SFT tube should conform to four
principles:

• Not seepage in construction and operation stage, reliable water tightness

and durability. Concise design, stressing definite and working
independently.

• Transferring construction load effectively in construction stage and

convenient construction

• Transferring stress and deformation effectively in construction stage, fine

seismic performance.

• There are two ways of tube joint based on stiffness and deformation: rigid
joint and flexible joint.
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 Waterproofing and corrosion protection design of SFT tube Tube
ventilation design is an important link of SFT design, and quality of
ventilation scheme and operation effect has direct relation to engineering
cost, operation environment, disaster-relieving function and operation
benefit. The aim of tube ventilation is to guarantee allowable concentration
of harmful gas represented by carbon monoxide, provide healthy
environment and suitable visibility for people and vehicle in tunnel, and
control pervasion of smog and heat for evacuation and extinguishment
when fire occurs.

Ventilation

• Usually the first item to investigate

• Directly affects choice of cross-section: – Longitudinal and Saccardo

Nozzle – Semi-transverse

– Fully Transverse

Tube ventilation should accord with following requirements

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 • Design wind speed of one-way traffic tunnel is not more than 10m/s;
design wind speed of two-way traffic tunnel is not more than 8m/s.

• Noise produced by ventilation fan and exhaust emission meet the

environment protection guidance.

• Ventilation type is stable when the transportation condition changes or

fire occurs. Downstream direction of operation ventilation is stable.

COMPETITIVE FEATURES OF SFT

Invisible Crossing waterways, whether being from main land to islands in

the sea or maybe more important crossing an inland lake, perhaps the one
we are at now will in many cases meet protests both from tourist interests
and also from the public in general. Lakes of special beauty or perhaps
historical value should be preserved for the future, the crossing of such
areas and lakes with SFT may make this possible.

Length only from shore to shore The actual SFT structure is only as long as
the distance between the shores. If desired the SFT may be connected
directly to tunnels and then be completely out of sight for any desired
distance.

Very low gradient Crossings with undersea tunnels or bridges will

frequently mean longer structures with consequently higher costs and this
may offset the higher cost per meter for an alternative SFT. An SFT crossing
may have a very gentle gradient or being nearly horizontal giving
considerable savings in energy used by traffic.

Access to underground service-parking space at ends As the SFT may

continue in tunnels having crossed the waterway, it is possible to arrange
parking places or service areas under ground and provide access to the
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 surface by lifts directly into cities or recreational areas as shown in Fig. 3.2.
These possibilities may be one of big advantages in future, in fact for all
types of tunnels.

May surface just above shoreline As an SFT may be positioned at any depth
below the surface arrangements may be made that the SFT surfaces at or
very near the shoreline. This may be an advantage for connections to new
or existing road systems and gives the planners freedom to locate
connections in a very flexible way.

Constructed away from densely populated areas Construction of

infrastructure is a major everyday problem in many cities, traffic is piling
up, new one way streets daily and generally great frustrations by millions of
people. One very interesting feature with SFT is that the actual construction
may be done away from the densely or highly populated areas, a feature
also for immersed tunnel construction. After the sections of the tunnel are
finished they may be towed to the actual site and there joined together and
installed at the desired depth. In some instances the whole length of the
SFT may be assembled at the construction site and the complete structure
towed to the actual site and installed. This would ensure minimum
disturbances to the local area and perhaps the whole operation may only
take months instead of years.

Easy removal at end of life All structures will have to be removed or

replaced sooner or later and as the amount of structures increase it is
important to prepare for these operations already at the planning and
design stage. Removal, recycling or reuse of materials or parts of the
structures will become increasingly necessary in the future, for both
economic and environmental reasons. SFT is in most cases a floating
structure as a whole and may therefore be towed away to some place
where parts of the SFT may be reused. One may imagine such an operation
by for instance placing bulkheads in the original elements and then
separating the SFT in suitable lengths to be perhaps towed to different
locations for reuse or destruction

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 CONCLUSION

The submerged floating tunnel will set up new trends in transportation

engineering and which shows with the advances in technology that will

reduce the time required for travelling. And make the transportation more

effective by hiding the traffic under water by which the beauty of landscape

is maintained and valuable land is available for other purposes. Benefits can

be obtained with respect to less energy consumption, air pollution and

reduced noise emission. For wide and deep crossings the submerged

floating tunnel may be the only feasible fix link, replacing present day

ferries and providing local communities with new opportunities for

improved communication and regional development.

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 Further Works

SFT is an innovative structure that has never been existed. It is much more
complex than bridge and tunnel due to its unique structure form and
complicated working environment. Although SFT has a lot of advantages
and great development potential, there are still some problems and
challenges need further research.

1) Structure analysis method Fluid-structure interaction is the key issue in

structure analysis of SFT. However, at present, many analyses for SFT are
based on Morison equation, which simplifies the fluid action as hydraulic
resistance and added mass force. So it is necessary to study the mechanism
and influence of fluid-structure interaction. Some scholars propose flow-
solid-soil interaction analysis method that can better deal with the
relationship among structure, loads and constraint.

2) New material application To meet the requirements of marine

environment, the materials of SFT must have the property of high strength,
anti-impact toughness, crack and fatigue resistance, waterproofness and
corrosion resistance. High performance concrete and steel-concrete
composite structure have high strength, impermeability and great long-
term performance.They have good application prospect in SFT. On this
aspect, there are still a lot of works to do, such as corresponding design
methods, construction technologies and maintenance measures.

3) Construction method Up till now, there is still no systematic research on

construction method of SFT. The deep water foundation construction, large
volume concrete casting, tube segments connection and anchor installation
have great risks and difficulties, which should be carefully studied and
treated.

4) Structural safety Reasonable measure should be proposed to keep the

safety of SFT when shipwrecks, vehicles collision, explosion, fire and the
fracture of anchor cables happen.
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 5) Monitoring Like bridge and tunnels, it is essential to monitor mechanics
behaviors in SFT’s key sections. The data obtained can be guidance for
design, maintenance methods, and management decisions. Taking Qiandao
Lake SFT as an example, the author, etc. had studied the indexes and
method for health monitor of SFT .

6) Specifications of design, construction and maintenance As a new marine

structure, SFT is obviously different from other traffic structures. However,
at present, China doesn’t have any specifications for design, construction
and maintenance for SFT. So compiling a complete set of specifications
based on theoretical researches is significant for the application of SFT

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 REFERENCE :-
 Google
 IS:5878 (1970) IS CODE FOR PRACTICE OF CONSTRUCTION OF
TUNNELS
 ASST. ENGG. OF CIVIL IN NHPC ( KULLU) MR. NAVEEN CHANDRA
UNIYAL

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