Skip to main content

ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Earth Sci.
Sec. Geohazards and Georisks
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/feart.2024.1501301

Transient dynamic analysis of cutter-head loads: effects of different cutter spacings during excavation

Provisionally accepted
Minglei Kang Minglei Kang 1Haining Liu Haining Liu 2Wenjia Ma Wenjia Ma 2*Luqi Wang Luqi Wang 3Jianjun Zhou Jianjun Zhou 3Miao Li Miao Li 2
  • 1 Yubei Water Conservancy Project Management Bureau of Henan Province, Jiyuan, China
  • 2 College of Geosciences and Engineering, North China University of Water Conservancy and Electric Power, Zhengzhou, Henan Province, China
  • 3 State Key Laboratory of Shield Machine and Boring Technology, Zhengzhou, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    As a critical component in achieving the rock-breaking function during the operation of Tunnel Boring Machines (TBM), the cutterhead inevitably generates significant vibrations during the rockbreaking process. These vibrations can lead to localized damage to the cutterhead and cause the abnormal failure of key components, which, in turn, may compromise the overall tunneling efficiency of the machine. This study investigates the load and vibration characteristics of the cutterhead during the rock-breaking process, employing large-scale physical model experiments conducted at varying cutter spacings. Real-time acceleration data from the cutterhead can be obtained through the monitoring system integrated into the TBM (Tunnel Boring Machine) experimental platform. The whole time-domain curves are stepped and periodic, as demonstrated by the test results.During excavation, the monitoring curves vibrate suddenly if the cutter-head becomes stuck or if rocks begin to fracture. The cutter-head primarily exhibits vibrations in the 0~3 Hz range, characteristic of low-frequency oscillations. To obtain the real-time mechanical properties of the cutter-head, transient dynamic analysis was employed, utilizing the collected data as driving parameters. According to numerical simulation results, the vibration pattern during excavation is the superposition of random vibrations generated by rock breaking and the unloading of the tunnel face.Moreover, it is important to monitor the wear of the edge cutters throughout the boring operation in real-world construction scenarios. To prevent and control cutterhead vibration, it is recommended that the cutter spacing be as small as possible during the tunneling process. The conclusions presented offer valuable insights for the study of the mechanical properties and stability design of TBM cutterheads.

    Keywords: Cutter spacing, TBM, mechanical characteristics of cutter-head, the transient dynamic analysis, rock-breaking process

    Received: 24 Sep 2024; Accepted: 31 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Kang, Liu, Ma, Wang, Zhou and Li. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Wenjia Ma, College of Geosciences and Engineering, North China University of Water Conservancy and Electric Power, Zhengzhou, Henan Province, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.