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Behaviour of cast-iron tunnel segmental joint from the 3D FE analyses and development of a new bolt-spring model

  • Zili Li
  • , Kenichi Soga
  • , Fei Wang
  • , Peter Wright
  • , Kiwamu Tsuno

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The behaviour of cast-iron tunnel segments used in London Underground tunnels was investigated using the 3-D finite element (FE) method. A numerical model of the structural details of cast-iron segmental joints such as bolts, panel and flanges was developed and its performance was validated against a set of full-scale tests. Using the verified model, the influence of structural features such as caulking groove and bolt pretension was examined for both rotational and shear loading conditions. Since such detailed modelling of bolts increases the computational time when a full scale segmental tunnel is analysed, it is proposed to replace the bolt model to a set of spring models. The parameters for the bolt-spring models, which consider the geometry and material properties of the bolt, are proposed. The performance of the combined bolt-spring and solid segmental models are evaluated against a more conventional shell-spring model.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)176-192
Number of pages17
JournalTunnelling and Underground Space Technology
Volume41
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2014
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Bolt model
  • Bolt-spring model
  • Cast iron segment
  • Segmental joint

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