MatDEM-based study of disc cutter force model in open TBM tunnels: Incorporating installation radius and synergistic effects

Abstract

The prediction of rock cutting force is critical for tunnel boring machine performance and cutterhead design. This paper presents a novel model for rock cutting force prediction based on the Colorado School of Mines (CSM) model, which incorporates the installation position of disc cutters by introducing installation radius and synergistic effect factors. Linear cutting tests in the laboratory and large-scale rotary cutting simulations in MatDEM software were conducted to examine the impact of these factors. Results indicate that the normal and rolling forces increase and stabilize as the installation radius increases. The synergistic effect produces three force modes in a cutting circle, with mode α having the largest cutting force, mode β having a smaller force, and mode γ having the smallest force. The impact of installation radius and synergistic effect varies with rock-cutter parameters. Multiple regression analysis was used to determine the introduced factors. The proposed model was validated with rock strength and operation data from the Irtysh River conveyance project. The results demonstrate that the proposed model outperforms the CSM model in predicting cutting force in field conditions.

Keywords

Tunnel boring machine / Rock cutting force / Disc cutter / Synergistic effect / Discrete element method

Declaration of competing interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Acknowledgement

This work was supported by the National Natural-Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 52078377), National Key R&D Program of China (Grant No. 2021YFB2600800), and Key Technology R&D Plan of Yunnan Provincial Department of Science and Technology (Grant No. 202303AA080003).

Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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