Characteristics of sandstone unloading creep and modelling for safe tunnel construction under high perimeter pressure and high pore water pressure condition

Abstract

Research on the properties of sandstone in the tunnel environment has been conducted due to the building industry’s rapid development, which is gradually involving underground water. Sandstone used in tunnel construction is susceptible to high perimeter and water pressures as a result of the abundance of sand and gravel close to groundwater, which might result in mishaps resembling collapses. The modified Burgers Model for the Malm dataset is the foundation of this study, which aims to reduce the internal crack extension caused by sandstone’s unloading creep. First, the study increased the material’s Poisson’s ratio in accordance with the Mohr–Coulomb strength criterion and builds a triaxial loading model on its foundation. Next, it analyzed the extension of the fracture surface of sandstone while taking high peripheral pressure and high hydraulic pressure into account. Finally, it discretized the unloading creep of sandstone using the improved Burgers model. On the basis of the model put forward in the study, experimental validation was then done on the Malm dataset. The sandstone would reach the final rupture area without any protection measures in just 10 days, but the model suggested in the study can delay this time to 200 days, while the effects of the other three models would delay this time by 75, 60, and 41 days, respectively. The model’s breadth was indicated by the linear fit value of 0.9827 for 36 experiments. The experimental findings demonstrated that the model suggested in the study can successfully lower the rate of sandstone unloading creep and increase worker safety.

Keywords

• burgers model
• confining pressure
• mc strength criterion
• pore water pressure
• rupturesur face
• unloading creep