Analysis on ultimate water pressure and treatment measures of tunnels operating in water rich areas based on water hazard investigation

In recent years, the tunnels operating in water rich areas of China occasionally suffer from disasters, such as lining cracking, leakage, and track deformation. To develop reasonable and effective treatment measures for tunnel water hazards, this paper investigates the water hazards in tunnels operating in water rich areas of China, and identifies the causes of these water hazards. Considering the on-site situation of water hazards (e.g., track bulging and lining cracking), FLAC3D simulation was implemented to compute the actual water head on the tunnel during the water hazards, that is, the ultimate water pressure of the tunnel. Based on ultimate water pressure and water hazard investigation, the authors put forward treatment measures for tunnel water hazards, and evaluated whether the treated tunnel can withstand the attack of high-water pressure in future. The research provides theoretical and data references for treating water hazards in tunnels operating in water rich areas.