• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.24 no.11
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• pp.121-131
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• 2008

In constructing a slurry trench cutoff wall, bentonite-water slurry is used to secure the stability of sidewalls during excavation before the wall is completed by backfilling. Unexpectedly, a thin but relatively impermeable layer called filter cake can be formed on the excavation surface, which significantly influences the result of slug test analysis in the cutoff wall if not considered. This study is to examine the effect of filter cake on evaluating hydraulic conductivity of the vertical cutoff wall through slug test analysis with the aid of the verified numerical program Slug_3D. The no-flux boundary conditions were adopted in Slug_3D to simulate the filter cake on the interface between the wall and the natural soil. A new set of type curves were built for applying the type curve method. New modification factors were obtained for using the modified line-fitting method. With consideration of filter cake, the type curve method and the modified line-fitting method were adopted to reanalyze the case study taken from EMCON (1995). The previous results achieved by Choi and Daniel (2006) without consideration of filter cake were compared with the present results obtained in this paper. The comparison emphasizes the necessity of considering filter cake when analyzing slug test results in vertical cutoff walls.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.387-401
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• 2023

The Earth Pressure Balanced (EPB) Shield Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) is widely employed for constructing urban underground spaces due to its minimal vibration and low noise levels. The injection of additives offers several advantages, including maintaining shield chamber pressure, reducing shear strength, minimizing cutter wear, and decreasing the permeability of the excavated soil. This technique is known as soil conditioning and involves the application of additives such as foam, polymer, and bentonite slurry. In this study, weathered granite soil commonly encountered at domestic tunnel sites was used as a soil specimen. Foam and polymer were applied as additives to assess the rheological properties of conditioned soils. The workability was evaluated through slump tests, while the rheological properties were assessed through laboratory pressurized vane shear tests conducted under the same conditions. Specially, the polymer was applied under specific conditions with low workability with high slump values, with the aim of evaluating the impact of polymer application. The test results revealed that with an increase in the Foam Injection Ratio (FIR), the slump value also increased, while the torque, peak strength, yield stress, apparent viscosity, and thixotropic area decreased. Conversely, an increase in the Polymer Injection Ratio (PIR) led to results opposite to those of FIR. Additionally, a correlation between the slump value and yield stress was proposed. When comparing conditions with only foam applied to those with both foam and polymer applied, even with similar slump values, the yield stress was found to be lower in the latter conditions.