Railway Tunneling Introduction

Points Covered
1. Tunnels:
a) Necessity/advantage of a tunnel,
b) Classification of Tunnels Size and shape of a tunnel,
Alignment of a Tunnel,
c) Portals and Shafts
2. Methods of Tunneling in Hard Rock
3. Methods of Tunneling in Soft ground
4. Mucking, Lighting and Ventilation in tunnel, Dust control,
5. Drainage of tunnels and Safety in tunnel construction
Tunnel Engineering : Study divided in Part 1 to 5
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5
• Tunnels: • Tunneling in • Tunneling in • Lighting and • Drainage and
• Necessity/ Hard Rock Soft ground Ventilation Safety
advantage • Sequence of • Types of and Dust
of a operations soft ground control in • Drainage of
tunnel, for • Factors tunnel tunnels
• Classificati tunneling in affecting • Drainage
on of hard rock choice of • Ventilation system
Tunnels • Faces of method of Tunnel • Safety in
Size and attack • Methods of • Methods of tunnel
shape of a • Methods of tunneling in ventilation construction
tunnel, tunneling in soft ground • Dust control
Alignment hard rock • Method
of a require
Tunnel, timbering
• Portals • Other
and Shafts methods
• Mucking
Tunnels : Part I

A. Tunnels: Necessity/advantage of a tunnel,

Classification of Tunnels, Size and shape of a tunnel

B. Alignment of a Tunnel

C. Shafts and Portals

D. Mucking
Tunnels : Necessity/ Advantage and Classification
Tunnel:
It is an Engineering structure, artificial gallery, passage or
road way beneath the ground, under the bed of a stream, or
through a hill or mountain.
Open cut

Open cut:
Open to sky passage excavated though
huge soil mass
Necessity of tunnel
Economics of tunneling is a broad question
Comparison with open cut.
Depth of cut > 18 m tunneling is advisable Important point…kept in mind
Circumstances may be
1) Allow rapid and unobstructed transport facility
2) Avoid acquisition of valuable land
3) Avoid long circuitous routes around mountain
4) Avoid sliding of open cut
5) Connect two terminal station separated by mountain
6) Divert water for generation of power
7) Carry public utility services like Oil, Gas, water, etc.
8) To avoid steep gradients
9) Save maintenance cost compared to bridge
Advantage and disadvantage of Tunneling
1. More economical than open cut beyond 18 m depth
2. Avoid disturbing or interfacing with surface life and traffic
3. Carrying public utilities like water, gas, railway lines, road
across a stream ….tunnels are cheaper than bridge or open
cut.
4. To avoid dangerous open cut adjacent to structure
5. To avoid traffic congestion… rapid transportation
6. Carry water to generate power
7. Protect from bombing
8. Avoid land acquisition
9. Provide protection against weathering
Disadvantage of tunnel
1. Initial cost of tunnel construction is high
2. Construction require long time
3. Specialized equipment's and methods required
4. Need experts knowledge, skilled labour and technical
supervision.
Classification of tunnel
Based on type of Based on position
Based on purpose Shape of tunnel
material or alignment

Saddle and base

In Hard
Traffic tunnel tunnel- Through Circular
rock
valley
( Highway,
Railway,
pedestrian, Egg
In Soft rock Spiral tunnel
Navigation, shaped
Subway)
In Quick
Off-spur tunnel Horse shoe
sand
Conveyance
tunnels
Open cut
( Water supply, Slope tunnel Elliptical
sewer,
public utility,
Submarine
serving industry, Polycentric
tunnel/in river bad
hydro electric
 Tunnel shape Its suitability Advantage Disadvantage

Greater resistance to external Higher c/s area Require higher filling

Circular

pressure, Suitable for non Difficult concrete lining

Used for soft clay, sand cohesive soil
Best for sewer line Circular section Difficult concrete lining
Self cleaning velocity resist external and
Egg

internal pressure
shape

Subway, Sides are vertical Easy to construct Need thick lining

Segmental

Bottom –straight, roof

segment of circle

Soft rock Compromise Difficult for lining

Highway, Railway between arch and
Horse
shoe

circular
Ground softer than rock Used Better resistance to Not suitable for
Elliptical

for water and sewerage external pressure road/railway

conduits
Road way and railway Base is flat – suitable Need great skill in
for road and railway construction
entric

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oly
Shape of tunnel

Circular Egg shaped

Poly centric
Elliptical

Horse shoe
Segmental
Box type cross section
Shape of tunnel

Segmental Eliptical
Horse shoe

Egg shaped- suited for Sewer

Circular
Size of tunnel…..Fixation
Following aspect is
Dimension of tunnel considered in
depends upon determining the size of
tunnel
1. Purpose of tunnel 1. Type and volume of traffic
2. A layout to fit the 2. Size of clear opening
topography required ( +75 cm as a
3. Aesthetics clearance added in
locomotive dimension..
For Railway tunnel)
3. Thickness of lining
4. Drainage facility required
Typical cross section of tunnel

Typical Two lane Highway Tunnel Typical Single Track Railway Tunnel
Alignment of tunnel
• Ends of tunnel have been fixed
• Center line should be located exactly – find exact length
• Depends on topography
• On convenient point its entrance and exit
• Center line should be located exactly – find exact length
• Selection of route of tunnel IDEAL TUNNEL ALIGNMENT
1. Straight, safe, easy and
1. Alignment restraints economical
• Detail investigation 2. Lesser gradient, 0.2%
for drainage
2. Environmental consideration 3. Long tunnel…provide
Disposal of Exhaust gas, ground water, muck 2 gradient
4. Ventilation will be
more effective for 1
grade
Tunnel surveying
Tunnel surveying
operation
1. Locating the center
line on the ground
2. Transferring center
line to inside of
tunnel
Shafts

• Shafts are vertical wells or

passage reaching from ground
surface to down to the tunnel,
along a center line of tunnel
• Each Shaft provide two
additional face of working
Shafts
ADVANTAGE / IMPORTANCE OF
SIZE OF SHAFT FACTORS
SHAFT
CONSIDERED
1. Provide two additional face to
1. Amount of muck to be
work
hoisted
2. Facilitate removal of muck
2. Size of muck car
3. Facilitate removal of water
3. Hoisting system adopted
4. Facilitate delivery of material
4. Number of workman
5. Provide passage to workman,
5. Space required to carry
tool, machinary
pipe and wiring
6. Provide ventilation
6. Type of construction
7. Useful for exhaust smoke and
equipment used
gases
Classification of shaft
1. Inclined shaft
2. Vertical shaft
3. Temporary shaft
4. Permanent shaft
5. Circular shaft
Construction of shaft in Rock
Construction of shaft in rock involves following STEPS
1. Drilling and blasting
2. Mucking…. Removing of excavated material
3. Timbering…if required
4. Pumping….dewatering
Portals
The main entrance of tunnels are known as portals. Actual
doorways of tunnel

Important Points for design and construction

of portal
1. Made massive in appearance
2. Good aesthetic
3. For railway tunnel …provide fans to drive
fresh air
4. Face should be with wing wall as per
slope
5. Design as per geological strata
6. Provide suitable side drain
Portals
Important Points for design and construction of portal
a) Made massive in appearance
b) Good aesthetic
c) For railway tunnel …provide fans to drive fresh air
d) Face should be with wing wall as per slope
e) Design as per geological strata
f) Provide suitable side drain
Mucking
Mucking and Hauling refers to the operation of loading and
removing excavated material and dumping it to predetermined
sites. Removal of muck is started as soon as it is safe for both men
and machines. The time taken in mucking represents as much as
one third of total cycle time, so work should be planned to make
the operation as fast and continuous as possible.
Mucking
The operation of loading the rock earth or any other excavated
material for removal for the tunnel is referred as Mucking.
Mucking
The various methods for Mucking are
Hand Mucking
This type of mucking is replaced by the machines except in small
tunnels. On certain jobs hand mucking is unavoidable such as
• To make enough room for a machine to work.
• The final clearing of bottom of a tunnel before placing invert.
• In belt conveyer system hand mucking may be used to advantage.
• In soft soils hand mucking is easy and economical.
• In small tunnels which are not enough to justify or permit the use
of mechanical muckers.
Mucking
Mucking by Machines
These machines are operated by electric power or by compressed air.
Some standards type machines are described below:
Loading machines:
• Shovels: All bucket type tunnel shovels operate by lifting the loaded
bucket which is attached to an arm, directly over the machine to
discharge either directly into a car or on to a conveyer. The shovel will
give reliable and economic service.
• Fully revolving Shafts: These are capable of revolving and can move on
narrower tracks. They are mostly air operated and can work in a tunnel
as small as 2mx 2m in cross section.
Mucking
• Crawler Shovels : These type of shovels need no track and are used on
large tunnels. They require greater working area about 7m width of
tunnel is required. They are usually electric or disel powered.
• Conway digger: Conway muckers are electrically driven machines. The
digging action is similar to hat of the smaller machines but the transfer
of muck is accompalished by simply raising the bucket tilting it
backwards allowing the muck to slide down a chute into a conveyor
positioned at the rear of the machine.
• Mine Car loader:  Mine car loader are used in small tunnels. The whole
machine moves with muck at high speeds. These machines are air
operated and their advantage lies in fast movements and less
requirement of working space.
Mucking
• Duck Bill loaders: It relies on the sliding action developed by a rapidly
accelerated plate moving into the muck to load. The advantage claimed
for duck bill loader is that it permits face operations such as cleaning up
drilling settling of roof arches etc to proceed with safety while muck is
being loaded out.
• Slusher: Other interesting devices for transporting of tunnel muck which
eliminate the problem of car  passing in the heading are slusher trains
and conveyor bottom cars or trains. The use of these machines usually is
limited to tunnels of small cross section.
Mucking
• Car Changers: The subsystem of car switching behind the mucking
machine is of great importance to the efficiency and speed of the
tunnel-driving operation. Popular car-passing devices which have been
in use for several decades include the "Cherry picker," which lifts the
empty muck car above the track so the train of full cars can be switched
beneath it; the now almost forgotten "Grasshopper," which winches a
string of empty cars up a ramp to a storage bridge above the train which
is being loaded; the lateral passer, which slides an empty car from the
main track into a clearance position alongside while the train switches
by it; and the "California Switch," a portable siding behind the heading
which is dragged forward as the tunnel progresses.
Problems in Tunneling
Unfavorable conditions This problems lead to
1) Higher temperature inside tunnel 1. Low productivity
2) Absence of proper ventilation 2. Higher cost
3) Rock fall 3. Bad safety records
4) Fumes which are un breathable
5) Unbearable noise
6) Absence of sunlight
7) Poor visibility
8) Dripping of water from roof
9) Use of explosive may cause accident
10) Collection of water due to poor drainage