Wanjiazhai Yellow River Diversion–Hard Rock TBM Challenging Soil

Experience of Hard Rock TBM excavating soil in Wanjiazhai Yellow River Diversion Project tells us that selection of Hard Rock TBM to excavate soil in case that rock dominates overall length of tunnel, could be a compromise among tunneling speed, cost and quality. Risk of this operation could be greatly reduced with a detailed study of the geomechanical characteristics of the soil and, if the characteristics are suitable, money and time can be saved by using Hard Rock Double Shield TBM.