| dc.description.abstract | Water jet cutting has proven to be an effective technology for machining various
materials, and providing a distinctive advantage over other cutting methods. Its
application in the engineering industry is evolving and improving annually, and is one of
the fastest growing machining processes. This thesis addresses the idea of applying water
jet cutting technology as a new method for boring through rock in the construction of
infrastructural tunnels. So far water jets have only be applied as a supplement to enhance
traditional tunneling methods, but with the development of water cutting technology, new
applications are increasingly becoming more relevant.
In order to grasp the potential of Water Jet Tunneling, research has be made to further
understand how tunnels are constructed, what tunneling methods are currently being used,
how they work, and how water jet cutting works.
The most common tunneling method used in Norway today is drilling and blasting
(D&B), with an average advance rate about 8 to 10 hour per 5-meter advancement
section. An alternative method is via a tunnel-boring machine (TBM), however, despite
its fairly low operating cost per kilometer (compared to D&B), the initial cost of
installing such a machine is too high relative to the length of the most tunnels constructed
in Norway. Making D&B the most relevant competitive method for Norwegian tunneling
projects.
The findings of the research suggest that further development need to be devoted to find a
new water jet cutting method to increase the cutting depth on harder rock, like granite and
meta-sandstone, beyond the conventional limit of approximately 30 cm, in order to at all
be competitive for tunneling purposes. | nb_NO |
