Analysis of Circular Reinforced Tunnels by Analytical Approach

This paper addresses the problem of quantifying the mechanical contribution of rockbolts installed systematically around tunnels (regularly spaced around the tunnel) excavated in rock masses. Assuming that the mechanical contribution of grouted rockbolts is that of increasing internal pressure within a broken rock mass, a new procedure for computation of ground response curves for a circular tunnel excavated in strain softening material and then reinforced with systematically active grouted rockbolts is presented. In this work, the equation of the ground response curve for a tunnel which has been reinforced with passive grouted rockbolts is also derived. The proposed model allows one to take into account the effect of the distance of the bolted section to the tunnel face, the effect of increasing rockbolts spacing, the influence of increasing pretension load in calculating of the ground response curve, and the effect of increasing the cross-section area of rockbolts. The results show that decreasing rockbolts spacing increases the support system stiffness rather than preloading of them.