Construction of 230 kV Underground Power Lines Between Lardprao and Vibhavadi Substations (Bangkok)

S.A. Farkhad Project Manager B.Sc(Hons) CEng. M.I.C.E. Mott MacDonald Group

ABSTRACT: This paper outlines the application of the state of the art large diameter pipe jacking techniques used in the construction of tunnels for power lines between Lard Phrao and Vibhavadi substations Bangkok for the Metropolitan Electricity Authority. Reference is made to the methodologies adopted for the construction of shafts and tunnels, with particular emphasis given to the techniques used to control pipe jacking forces and minimise developing friction forces using the application of Automatic Lubrication System .

INTRODUCTION

The Metropolitan Electricity Authority of Bangkok (MEA) is a state enterprise under the Ministry of the Interior with responsibility for the distribution of electrical power. As part of a programme of improvement, reliability and expansion, the MEA instigated a project to install 230kV underground transmission lines to transfer power from Lardprao terminal station to Vibhavadi sub-station.

Figure 1. Tunnel route 2 SCOPE OF WORKS

This project consists of the design and construction of 21 drive and reception shafts, approximately 8 km of 2.6m internal diameter tunnels, installation of two circuits of 230kv oil filled cables within cable troughs with cooling pipes, low voltage cables, lighting, communication cables, ventilation system, a

cooling plant building. There is also capacity for one circuit of 230kV cable and two circuits of 115kV cables to be installed in the future.

(Lighting) Control Cable 230 kV (Future) 230 kV 115 kV (Future) 115 kV (Future)

230 kV

220

2600 (ID) 3040 (OD)

220

Figure 2. Tunnel cross section. 3 THE CONTRACT

Figure 3. Tunnel HV cable installation.

The Consortium of Tokyo Electric Power Services Co., Ltd ( TEPSCO ) and Pro-En Consultants Co., Ltd. were appointed by MEA to prepare Tender and Contract documents, carry out tender assessment and check design document submissions. Prospective consortia of contractors were invited to bid for the design and construction ( a turnkey contract ) of the project in June 1997. The Contract was consequently awarded to the Consortium of : Sumitomo Corporation (responsible for financial and shipping arrangements), the Joint Venture of Italian Thai Development Pcl and Skanska Lundby (both responsible for the civil works design and construction), Sumitomo Electrical Industries ( responsible for electrical design, manufacturing, installation and commissioning ). The Contract became effective in March 1999 for completion by October 2002 with a Contract price of 4.2 Billion Baht (approximately). The Association of Consultants:- Electricite de France (electrical expert), Mott MacDonald ( Tunnelling expertise and project management), ATT Consultants (local civil and electrical expertise for site supervision) were appointed by MEA in January 2000 to carry out site supervisory services. At present the tunnelling works is 95% complete and installation of high voltage cables is in progress. 4 GEOLOGY, GROUND CONDITION AND SITE INVESTIGATION

Situated in a river basin the sub-strata in Bangkok consist of unconsolidated marine sediments. A soft and medium clay layer exists at the ground surface to a depth of approximately 14-17m the first stiff clay layer with, a thickness of approximately 10 to 15m. This first stiff clay layer having low sensitivity and high stiffness was found appropriate to be the bearing layer for the drive and reception shafts with the tunnelling media being in medium clay. Below these clay layers lies the first Bangkok sand deposit with a thickness of 5 to 15m. The ground water condition of soft and medium Bangkok clay is hydrostatic starting from 1m below ground level. Site investigation was carried out at 21 locations along the tunnel route mainly at shaft locations. Twenty-one boreholes were drilled to 26m depth to investigate soil layers and properties. Average

unconfined compression test values for soft and medium clay were, on average, 15 and 35kpa respectively. And that of stiff clay was 150kpa (obtained from standard penetration test results). Average natural moisture content for soft / medium / stiff clay were approximately 60 / 40 / 30% respectively. Based on the soil investigation results, the optimum tunnelling media was determined to be in medium clay.
S-10 S-11 S-12 S-13 S-14 S-15 S-16 S-17 S-18 S-19
2000 m.

S-0

S-1

S-2

S-3

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S-6

S-7

0M. 5M. 10M. 15M. 20M. SAND 25M. DEPTH LARDPRAO SUBSTATION S = SHAFT VERY SOFT TO MEDIUM CLAY STIFF TO VERY STIFF CLAY/SANDY CLAY HARD CLAY STIFF CLAY SAND HARD CLAY SOFT CLAY SOFT CLAY SOFT CLAY

S-8

S-9

STIFF CLAY

HARD CLAY

SAND VIBHAVADI SUBSTATION MEDIUM DENSE TO VERY DENSE SAND

MOHCHIT SUBSTATION HARD CLAY VERY LOOSE SANDY CLAY TO LOOSE SAND/CLAYEY SAND
0 500

1000

1500

HORIZONTAL SCALE

Figure 4. Sub-soil profile 5 TUNNEL ROUTE

The tunnel route runs mainly beneath the drainage canal along Vibhavadi Rangsit road. It commences from Vibhavadi Sub-station and will terminate at Lard Phrao terminal Sub-station (Figure 1). The tunnel alignment was designed to by-pass several obstructions existing along the tunnel route the most significant of which were MRT subway tunnels, water transmission and waste water tunnels, and the drainage canal pumping houses. The minimum horizontal radius of 400m for a spiral curve was achieved (Figure 3).

SHAFT DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION

6.1 Design features For pipe jacking operations and installation of mechanical & electrical systems, each shaft was sized to provide, inter alia, sufficient space to suitably accommodate the tunnelling machine and jacking equipment and to provide a fine balance between providing the structural strength to withstand jacking forces with minimal shaft movements, whilst minimising the weight of the structure, to prevent sinking under its own weight. Nineteen rectangular and two circular shafts have been constructed. These are of two types:- the ventilation shafts and exhaust shafts. The inside plan dimensions of the rectangular shafts is 8.8m by 4.5m with wall thickness of 800mm. Inside diameter and wall thickness of the circulars shafts is 9m and 500mm respectively. The shafts are spaced at typically 500m centres along the route. 6.2 Construction 6.2.1 Utility Diversion

Major temporary and permanent utility diversion works were required to gain access to the shaft locations in the canal between the Vibhavadi Rangsit Road (East bank) and the footpath access to the adjacent buildings (West bank). It was therefore necessary to build a staging within the canal, which necessitated major water diversion works.

HANGING BEAM

ROW.

Vibhavadi Rungsit Rd. 4700

2100

TEMPORARY WALL

SHEET PILE

BACKFILL

ELEMENT E6 TEMPORARY SHEET PILE WALL

JET FAN

E5

E4

FIRST STAGE CONCRETE RAFT SAND FILL CONCRETE SUB SLAB

SAND FILL CONCRETE SUB SLAB

E2 E1

10400

Figure 5. Shaft sinking

6.2.2 Shaft sinking

Figure 6. Shaft elevation

Shafts were sunk to the required founding level using the Open Caisson System (open at the top and at the bottom). Single reinforced concrete elements (6 in total) were individually cast in-situ and sunk in sequence. This cycle of operation was repeated until the cutting edge had reached the required founding level. Continuity of reinforcement was provided at construction joints thereby making the elements an integral part of the shaft structure. During each sequence of the shaft sinking operation, excavation was kept to a limited depth leaving sufficient residual load at excavation base to provide basal stability. The rate of sinking was governed by a fixed cycle of operations. To reduce the magnitude of developed ground friction forces during sinking operations and to minimize sinking / excavation induced ground movements in the vicinity of the shafts, shaft walls were initially designed to set back for a distance of 75mm from the shoe. A total of 20 bentonite slurry injection ports were installed just above the cutting edge (or shoe level) to provide a membrane of slurry around the walls. In addition, similar injection ports were installed at 3rd and 5th elements. Successive injections were made as caisson elements were sunk to their final level. The shaft wall set back value was later reduced to 30mm after the Contractor had gained a better understanding of the actual soil behavior with respect to ground/structure interaction forces. Upon completion of shaft sinking operation the void (annulus) behind the shaft wall was cement grouted. The caisson sinking system used a hydraulic control system to lower each element using suspension links from piled staging. Bi-directional hydraulic cylinders were connected to high tensile stress bars which enabled the elements to be sunk either by being held and lowered when sinking in soft clay or jacked down when in stiff clay. Verticality and eccentricity of each shaft were checked at sinking intervals of 500mm and were controlled by means of operating hydraulic cylinders either independently or in combination when necessary. Actual shafts inclinations and eccentricities were maintained within the specified values of 1:100 and 200mm respectively with the exception of one shaft where its long wall inclination reached 1:52. After completion of sinking operations, a concrete plug was placed at shaft formation level to seal the shaft bottom. This was followed by placing a layer of hydraulically compacted sand and further followed by constructing the first stage concrete raft connected to the shaft wall by means of couplers.

9780

E3

11220 25490

4600

CONCRETE PIPE MANUFACTURE

A total of 3200 steel collar banded reinforced concrete pipes were produced by the local pipe manufacturer, Nippon Hume Des Joint Venture, using the pipe-spinning process as was specified in the Contract documents. Pipe joints were sealed using a composite rubber gasket with hydrophilic seal at the centre. The physical features are: Pipe length and thickness Internal and external diameters Rubber gasket (hydrophilic at centre) Steel collar (tar epoxy coated) 28-Day cylinder compressive strength Design load for bending strength test (cracking) Design load for bending strength test (breaking) Axial capacity (uniformly distributed) Rubber seal water tightness test Internal hydrostatic test 2430mm, 220mm 2600mm, 3040mm 60mm wide & 23.5mm deep 300mm wide & 9mm thick 500 kg/cm2 8.28 t/m 19.92 t/m 2200 tf 98kpa 0.14mpa

Physical bending strength tests for both cracking and breaking load tests were successfully carried out by the manufacturer at a frequency of once every 500 pipes produced. The actual bending strength tests for both crack and breaking load tests were, on average, 27% and 34% above the anticipated design values respectively. The water tightness test on the water seal, when two pipes were joined and tested at a maximum angular deflection of 0.5 degrees, and internal hydrostatic test applied on a single pipe, were satisfactorily conducted. The test pressures for the seal and the pipe were 98kpa and 0.14mpa(140kpa) respectively. 8 TUNNEL BORING MACHINE (TBM)

Two 3.050m diameter Earth Pressure Balanced articulated shields with muck pump shields were designed and manufactured by Herrenknecht. The design of these machines and associated equipment were refined for the conditions found in Bangkok. The TBM assembly consisted of two sections:- The cutting shield in the front section and the muck pump shield in the rear. The overall length was 10.4m. The muck pump shield was 4.35m long and the length of cutting shield was 6.026 metres. The cutting shield housed the power pack and steering system. Typical details were: Overall dimensions Steering cylinders Earth pressure sensor Soil conditioning 3.050m O/D x 6.026m long articulated shield 8No. Located in the baulk head 4 No. mixing arms with injection points on bulk head, 4No. injection points, 5No. grout nozzles.

The Cutting Wheel drive had six arms with circumferential rim (bi-directional rotation) and was equipped with replaceable 100mm carbide tipped cutting tool. Attached to its rear face were 3 mixing arms for soil conditioning. The over cut at the cutting tool was 20mm (3080mm dia.) and at the circumferential rim 10mm tapering down to 5mm at the shield. The over cut at the muck shield was 0mm (3040mm dia.) thereby minimising radial ground losses due to over excavation. The Screw Conveyor was attached to the articulated joint in the invert area of shield pressure bulkhead. It was equipped with 6 injection ports for soil conditioning, 1 earth pressure sensor, discharge gate of 300mm aperture, pressure differential screw/hopper warning lights with auto shut down system.

The Screw was 500mm in diameter, with bi-directional rotation, 400mm pitch and variable rotation speed of up to 29 rpm with variable discharge capacity of up to 95m3/hr. 9 AUTOMATIC LUBRICATION SYSTEM

The use of Automatic Lubrication System , for the first time in Thailand, was the most significant application of state of the art pipe jacking techniques on this project. Application of this technique was a major technological achievement. The contractor was able to increase the tunnelling advance rate and to reduce the developed friction forces from the anticipated friction value of 0.25 t/m2 down to 0.1 t/m2 resulting in significant reduction of the magnitude of main jacking forces from 900 down to 400-450 tonnes in tunnel drives with approximate tunnel span length of 500 meters. The followings is a brief introduction to this innovative technique: During TBM advance a small over cut is created by the head of the machine, and bentonite slurry is injected into this annulus through injection points in the tail skin and at bentonite pipe stations. Careful use of lubrication enables jacking loads to be controlled. The automatic bentonite injection system is a fully programmable unit, which allows the operator to inject a pre-determined amount of bentonite at all, or specific areas of the tunnel without tunnel entry. The system is controlled by a Programmable Logic Control (PLC) unit connected to the operators main control panel and a number of bentonite injection stations connected to the bentonite supply line in the tunnel at 15m intervals (every 6 tunnel pipes). Each bentonite station consists of a control box and a triple spool electro-pneumatically operated valve block assembly. These injection stations are numbered and assigned a unique address code, which means that each station must be installed in the pipeline in the correct sequence. The bentonite supply line is connected to the inlet port of the injection station. Three bentonite lines are connected from the injection station to three bentonite ports at the pipe. On the control panel each station is represented graphically as a box on a computer screen and is illuminated when selected by the operator. The operator can select or deselect any station in any order or sequence. The amount of bentonite injected through each port is controlled on a time sequence and is preset from 10 20 seconds for each bentonite port as necessary. In addition, three bentonite stations are installed along and within the TBMs cutting shield. Each station is equipped with 4 valves. Each valve is connected to an injection port making a total of 12 injection ports on the shield skin. One significant application of this system is that, during long stoppage times, the TBM operator is able to operate each cycle of lubrication at 2 hour intervals to prevent build up of friction forces and hence to minimise the need for a additional jacking force to restart driving the tunnel forward. 10 TUNNEL CONSTRUCTION 10.1 Construction Method In brief, the following steps were taken to successfully complete a tunnel drive: The base lines and levels for each tunnel drive were established at the jacking shafts followed by installing laser brackets, jacking guide rails, thrust plates, 1200 Tons capacity telescopic jacks (push rams), double eye seals, pump and discharge pipes. Control cabin and services for remote control operations were set up at top of the shaft providing the operator with a full view of all activities being carried out at shaft bottom. First section of tunnelling machine (cutting shield) was lowered down the shaft and launched through soft eye [the ground behind the soft eye was jet grouted to provide face stability]. Once sufficient advance was made into the ground, the cutting shield was pinned down and jacks were retracted. This was followed by lowering second part of the machine (muck pump shield).

Further advances were made [It was necessary to hold the machine and the first few pipes in the ground between strokes of the jacks because of the face pressure tending to push the machine and the pipe back into the shaft]. First concrete pipe was lowered down the shaft and was jacked forward to the required length of advance followed by lowering down the second pipe and jacking it forward, etc. Pre-assembled intermediate jacking stations were installed at pre-determined locations [the main jacking system was augmented on longer drives by introducing one or more 2000 Ton capacity intermediate jacking stations into the pipe line]. As the machine approached the reception shaft, the rate of jacking and speed of excavation was so controlled to prevent development of undue stresses placed on the reception shaft. The machine was then cut through the soft eye and was recovered [When the head of the machine was entered into the reception shaft, it was broken down into two sections (cutting shield and muck pump shield)]. The interjacks were dismantled and the pipeline was pushed to its final position and the tunnel eyes at each shaft were grouted and the entrance seal was removed. After cleaning out both drive and reception shafts, the protruded pipe ends were disc cut and trimmed forming rocker pipes at both tunnel ends, and pipe annulus around soft eyes were concreted flush with the shaft wall. Tail void grouting to the tunnel annulus was carried out. The jacking equipment was then either turned in the jacking shaft to carry out a second drive in the opposite direction, or was relocated to the next shaft to carry out another drive. During each shift, gas tests were carried out in the shaft and the pipeline before work commenced and before anyone was permitted into these areas.

Figure 7. Earth pressure balanced TBMs

Figure 8. Pipe jacking operation

10.2 First Tunnel Drive Some 1600 concrete pipes were produced before commencement of tunnelling works. Main jacking forces were taken up to 850tons for the first tunnel drive. [The maximum allowable jacking force in the drive shaft was 900 tons and the designed axial capacity of the pipe, when uniformly distributed around the circumference of the pipe, was 2200tf]. During tunnelling operation some infiltration of water through the walls of some concrete pipes, appearing as damp or wet patches, and formation of some fine hairline cracks, some 0.1mm wide, were observed. During tunnelling operations for the 2nd tunnel drive, bentonite grout pressures were rechecked and additional controls were introduced to ensure that the acceleration and deceleration of main jacking or

retracting forces was slow. Some improvement was observed but, similar damp / wet patches and fine longitudinal hair line cracks occurred, albeit to a much lesser extent. A detailed investigation was therefore, carried out to establish the cause and to identify all possible contributory factors by devising a physical testing programme to investigate jacking pipe performance. Several radial and axial cores from concrete pipes in the stock yard and in the tunnel were taken for both visual examination and compression tests followed by conducting further physical bending tests on selected pipes. The values of all these physical tests were found to exceed the specified design strength of the pipes. Visual examination of all cores taken from the pipes showed presence of two dominant bands of cementitious sand (10 to 20 mm thick) on every core indicating segregation of concrete due to the inherent feature associated with spun concrete pipes. [It is a general phenomenon that concrete is separated into formations while it is formed by centrifugal force, due to different specific gravity of materials]. The primary causes for the formation of damp/wet patches and fine hairline cracks were concluded by the contractor to be as follows. Concrete pipes were typically up to 6 month old prior to inclusion in the tunnel. These were taken out of the storage yard having been exposed to the hot sun for up to six month and then immediately subjected to an external hydrostatic pressure of up to 2 bars through the application of the bentonite grout. That these concrete pipes possessed a high suction and imbibed water from the ground when they were exposed. Site investigation and monitoring showed that damp/wet patches and damp fine hairline cracks had undergone autogenous healing within less than two month. [The process whereby fine cracks in concrete heal completely under moist condition due to the hydration of previously unhydrated cement]. Those few damp hairline cracks which persisted to remain damp beyond three month where however treated using polyurethane based resin.

10.2.1 Preventative measures taken 10.2.1.1Concrete pipe curing Automatic water sprinkler system was used at the factorys stockyard to saturate concrete pipes for two weeks prior to transportation to the drive shaft. These pipes were then covered with wet hessian at the shaft site before being incorporated into the tunnel. This proved to be a successful measure in that formation of damp / wet patches were significantly reduced. 10.2.1.2Main jacking forces The main maximum allowable jacking force of 900 tons was revised and reduced to 400 tons to suit the system set up and the equipment used for tunnelling operation. The steel spacer pipe ( open at the invert ) was replaced with a sacrificial concrete pipe ensuring that axial jacking forces from the 4 main jacking rams were evenly distributed around the circumference of the leading pipe. In addition, bentonite lubrication material was replaced with polymer when jacking forces had reached 350-400 tons. The friction cut lubricating properties was therefore enhanced resulting in the magnitude of developing friction forces at the ground / pipe interface being reduced to 0.1t/m2.[The anticipated friction value was 0.25t/m2]. 10.3 Tunnelling progress and rate Some 7km of these tunnels have been constructed to date (18 tunnel spans). Tunnel span lengths vary from 85m to 490m with the majority of them being 450m long approximately. Average tunnelling advance rate of 26m per day (two shifts) has been achieved. And the maximum and minimum average jacking advance rates were 25 and 17 min/pipe. 10.4 Tunnel Leakage A maximum allowable tunnel leakage rate of 80 litre/100m/day was specified. All constructed tunnels

have shown no signs of any leakage and have so far been completely dry. 11 LASER GUIDANCE SYSTEM One of the interesting features on this project was the application of Laser Guidance System ( SLSRV, StuerLeit System Im RohrVortrieb) for long curved piped jacked tunnels. The ELS(Electronic Laser System ) guidance system was augmented with by an advanced SLS-RV guidance system, which was employed on the TBM. This system constantly checked the progress of the tunnel drive, compared the information to the specified drive line, and provided information on the corrections required to rejoin the correct line at the most appropriate position. Overall, the system consists of an ELS active target mounted on TBM with a survey prism, a servo-motorised total station and laser mounted, a number of survey prisms, and a length measuring system or length decoder. The EPB machine was fitted with ELS guidance system which used a laser beam projected from the jacking shaft (or from within the tunnel when alignment was on the curve) for reference. The ELS system was operated by means of an active electronic target (two built in inclinometers) mounted in the machine which detected the laser beam and sent signals to the computer in the operators control panel at the surface. The active target also measured the inclination and roll of the machine axis. The yaw angle was calculated from information received from special sensors built into the ELS unit. Using the software for this system the computer translated the signals from the target onto a visual display which enabled the operator to steer the machine by making adjustments to the small hydraulic steering rams which articulate the head. By this method, the tunnelling machine was kept on line and level. The horizontal and vertical locations were given every 20cm. The Contractor also conducted manual survey checks for every tunnel span and at every 100m of tunnel advance in order to establish the exact location and coordinates of the TBM. These values were then fed into the computer in order to adjust the alignment. The actual pitch of the TBM, during tunnelling operation, varied between 0.6% (6mm/m of advance). The actual roll of the TBM was kept between 2 degrees using the cutting wheels birotational facility. And the maximum yaw of the TBM was 6-7mm/m. 12 GROUND MOVEMENT AND MONITORING 12.1 Drive Shafts Pipe jacking related shaft movements were assessed by carrying out numerical simulations using the finite element program PLAXIS to determine anticipated shaft deformation at working loads and approximate deformations at failure. Staged construction features were used in order to simulate the step-by-step excavation during shaft construction as well as stress strain variations in the surrounding soil during construction and pipe jacking operations. Updated Langarian analysis (Updated mesh) was used to account for mesh deformations during the calculation process. The maximum predicted displacement at the active side of the shaft was predicted to be 110mm in the immediate vicinity of shaft wall when a maximum main pipe jacking load of 900 tons was used. Where possible, surface settlement points were installed to monitor ground movements. Actual ground settlements of up to 9mm in the vicinity of the shafts were experienced. Shaft movements at each drive shaft were regularly monitored when these shafts were subjected to maximum jacking forces. Maximum permanent movement of the drive shafts when subjected to the maximum jacking force of 900 tons was at 7mm. And for those shafts where the maximum jacking force was 500 tons, the maximum permanent movement was 5mm.

12.2 Tunnel drives Assessment and prediction of anticipated ground movements were carried out adopting the empirical equation of OReilly and New (1982) in making the prediction based upon the error function of the surface settlement trough proposed by Peck (1969). [Dominating ground movements in very soft clay layers are attributable to the consolidation of cohesive soil layers following pore pressure changes from tunnel lining :- stress rearrangements, excess or deficiency of face pressure, pressure of void grouting]. Assessments of time dependent ground movements were made based upon unavoidable ground losses, like movements due to changes of stresses in the soil, face losses, a percentage of the maximum possible tail void closure, curvature losses, and losses due to lining deflections taking into consideration the strength and nature of the ground, the method of tunnelling, and the quality of the equipment used and quality of the workmanship. Conservative volume loss assumption and depths to give maximum settlement predictions were considered. The assessed maximum settlements between 14mm (3% volume loss, deep position) and 33mm (5% volume loss, shallow position) were predicted. Due to the prevailing constraints and site conditions along the tunnel route only surface settlement monitoring points, 1m below ground level, were installed. However, monitoring instruments such as inclinometer and extensometer are planned to be installed for the next tunnel drive at accessible locations. A systematic monitoring of the settlement of the ground surface was carried out and the monitoring data obtained over a period of 12 month of shield passage revealed that the maximum surface settlement above tunnel centre line was in the order of 12mm. The short-term settlements were measured to be in the order of 5mm at one month after excavation. The initial ground heave increment, at some locations, was measured and interpreted to be negligible (in the order of 1-2mm) which could have been attributed to the application of high face pressures.

13 CONCLUSION The successful completion of the shafts and tunnels has been due, in large measure, to decisive project management by the Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA), the contractors and consultants, the management of the works by the team and the extensive co-ordination and planning efforts necessary to bring the largest cable tunnel project in Bangkok to this stage. Fundamental to the success has been the amicable working relationships which have developed. The engineering precision used for shaft sinking operations using the Open Caisson System, the manufacture of high performance tunnel boring machines with refined design to suit sub-soil conditions found in Bangkok, the application of Automatic Lubrication System, the precise and defined procedures for the sequence and control of pipe jacking operations, the accuracy and quality of workmanship, and the commitment to deliver a high quality project have all culminated in success.

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