Development of a New Empirical Method to Tunnel Squeezing Classification (TSC)

Abstract

Characterization of squeezing phenomena as a geological hazard is of great importance since it has a critical role in the selection of the tunnel route, type, and characteristics of the excavation device. Also, it is known as the basis for the designation and construction of tunneling related structures. This study presents a new tunnel squeezing classification (TSC) tool to predict tunnel squeezing based on two parameters; Q, tunneling quality index, and H, depth of the tunnel. The database collected from the literature, including 225 case histories obtained from different countries such as Andorra, Iran, India, Nepal, Japan, Spain, Venezuela, and Turkey, used to train the TSC model. Validation of the model indicated that TSC is more accurate than speculative and analytical methods currently in use. The proposed model helps tunneling experts to classify the media from a squeezing hazard point of view