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The scheme design for the earth pressure balance shield cutterhead structure

  • Article
  • Engineering Mechanics
  • Published:
Chinese Science Bulletin

Abstract

The earth pressure balance (EPB) shield cutterhead structure, which features an opening ratio and opening distribution as a core, seriously affects tunneling stability and tunneling efficiency. This paper presents a new model for the soil using visco-plastic fluid theory, and then introduces the model into the computational-fluid-dynamics model to comprehensively analyze the cutterhead structure, which consists of the soil, the cutterhead, the working chamber, and the screw conveyor. Based on this model, the stability situation and tunneling performance of multiple schemes of the cutting head structure are analyzed by changing the opening ratio and the opening distribution on the cutterhead. In this study, a new method for design and analysis of the EPB-shield cutterhead structure is proposed that fits changes in geologic conditions. The results will be helpful for engineers and manufacturers of more efficient machines and for carrying out tunneling projects with more stable EPB-shield cutterheads, and it will reduce the influences of changing geologic conditions during all stages of tunnel construction.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51275339, 2013CB035402).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Mechanism Theory and Equipment Design of Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China

    Wei Guo & Jing Hu

  2. School of Mechanical Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China

    Jianqin Liu

Authors
  1. Wei Guo
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  2. Jing Hu
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  3. Jianqin Liu
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Correspondence to Jianqin Liu.

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Guo, W., Hu, J. & Liu, J. The scheme design for the earth pressure balance shield cutterhead structure. Chin. Sci. Bull. 59, 4589–4599 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-014-0492-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-014-0492-2

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