tunnel boring machine

The first successful tunnelling shield was developed by Sir Marc Isambard Brunel to excavate the Thames Tunnel in 1825. However, this was only the invention of the shield concept and did not involve the construction of a complete tunnel boring machine, the digging still having to be accomplished by the then standard excavation methods.{{sfn|Bagust|2006|p=65}}

The first boring machine reported to have been built was Henri Maus' Mountain Slicer.{{sfn|Drinker|1883|pp=[https://archive.org/details/atreatiseonexpl00dringoog/page/n207 191-194]}}{{sfn|West|1988}}{{page needed|date=April 2025}}{{sfn|Maidl et al.|2008}}{{sfn|Hemphill|2013}} Commissioned by the King of Sardinia in 1845 to dig the Fréjus Rail Tunnel between France and Italy through the Alps, Maus had it built in 1846 in an arms factory near Turin. It consisted of more than 100 percussion drills mounted in the front of a locomotive-sized machine, mechanically power-driven from the entrance of the tunnel. The Revolutions of 1848 affected the funding, and the tunnel was not completed until 10 years later, by using less innovative and less expensive methods such as pneumatic drills.[http://www.mindfully.org/Technology/2004/Underground-Boring-Machines1sep04.htm Hapgood, Fred, "The Underground Cutting Edge: The innovators who made digging tunnels high-tech",Invention & Technology Vol.20, #2, Fall 2004] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050315045158/http://www.mindfully.org/Technology/2004/Underground-Boring-Machines1sep04.htm |date=2005-03-15 }}

In the United States, the first boring machine to have been built was used in 1853 during the construction of the Hoosac Tunnel in northwest Massachusetts.{{sfn|Maidl et al.|2008|p=1}} Made of cast iron, it was known as Wilson's Patented Stone-Cutting Machine, after inventor Charles Wilson.{{cite web|last=Smith|first=Gary|title=FINDING AID FOR THE HOOSAC TUNNEL COLLECTION at the NORTH ADAMS PUBLIC LIBRARY|url=http://www.naplibrary.com/HTHistoricNotes.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040115130100/http://naplibrary.com/HTHistoricNotes.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=15 January 2004|work=Hooac Tunnel Historical Notes|publisher=North Adams Public Library|access-date=14 July 2011}} It drilled {{convert|10|ft|0|order=flip|sp=us}} into the rock before breaking down (the tunnel was eventually completed more than 20 years later, and as with the Fréjus Rail Tunnel, by using less ambitious methods).{{cite web|last=Howes|first=M|url=http://www.hoosactunnel.net/historytimeline.php|title=Hoosac Tunnel History - Abridged Timeline|access-date=14 July 2011|archive-date=21 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110521001435/http://hoosactunnel.net/historytimeline.php|url-status=dead}} Wilson's machine anticipated modern TBMs in the sense that it employed cutting discs, like those of a disc harrow, which were attached to the rotating head of the machine.Bancroft 1908, p. 65Wilson, Charles. "Dressing stone," {{US patent|5,012}} (issued: March 13, 1847).Wilson, Charles. "Machine for tunneling rocks, etc.," {{US patent|14,483}} (issued: March 18, 1856). In contrast to traditional chiseling or drilling and blasting, this innovative method of removing rock relied on simple metal wheels to apply a transient high pressure that fractured the rock.{{cn|date=April 2025}}

In 1853, the American Ebenezer Talbot also patented a TBM that employed Wilson's cutting discs, although they were mounted on rotating arms, which in turn were mounted on a rotating plate.Talbot, Ebenezer. "Machine for tunnelling or boring rock," {{US patent|9,774}} (issued: June 7, 1853). In the 1870s, John D. Brunton of England built a machine employing cutting discs that were mounted eccentrically on rotating plates, which in turn were mounted eccentrically on a rotating plate, so that the cutting discs would travel over almost all of the rock face that was to be removed.{{sfn|West|1988|pp=239-242}}Brunton, John D. "Improved machine for sinking shafts," {{US patent|80,056}} (issued: July 21, 1868).

The first TBM that tunneled a substantial distance was invented in 1863 and improved in 1875 by British Army officer Major Frederick Edward Blackett Beaumont (1833–1895); Beaumont's machine was further improved in 1880 by British Army officer Major Thomas English (1843–1935).{{sfn|West|1988|pp=243-247}}David William Brunton and John Allen Davis, Modern Tunneling: With Special Reference to Mine and Water-supply Tunnels (New York, New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1914), [https://books.google.com/books?id=HZ9BAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA182 p. 182.]Frederick Edward Blackett Beaumont, U.K. Patent no. 1,904 (issued: July 30, 1864). (See: Patents for Inventions. Abridgments of Specifications relating to Mining, Quarrying, Tunnelling, and Well-sinking (London, England: Office of the Commissioners of Patents for Inventions, 1874), [https://books.google.com/books?id=jXNUAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA1-PA247 p. 247.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728205702/https://books.google.com/books?id=jXNUAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA1-PA247 |date=2023-07-28 }})F.E.B. Beaumont, U.K. Patent no. 4,166 (issued: Dec. 2, 1875). (See: Patents for Inventions. Abridgments of Specifications. Class 85, Mining, Quarrying, Tunnelling, and Well-sinking (London, England: Patent Office, 1904), [https://books.google.com/books?id=UdhOAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA1-PA169 p. 169.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728205627/https://books.google.com/books?id=UdhOAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA1-PA169 |date=2023-07-28 }})Thomas English, U.K. Patent no.s 4,347 (issued: October 25, 1880) and 5,317 (issued: December 5, 1881); "Tunneling-machine," {{US patent|307,278}} (filed: June 4, 1884 ; issued: October 28, 1884). In 1875, the French National Assembly approved the construction of a tunnel under the English Channel and the British Parliament supported a trial run using English's TBM. Its cutting head consisted of a conical drill bit behind which were a pair of opposing arms on which were mounted cutting discs. From June 1882 to March 1883, the machine tunneled, through chalk, a total of 1,840 m (6,036 ft).{{sfn|Hemphill|2013}} A French engineer, Alexandre Lavalley, who was also a Suez Canal contractor, used a similar machine to drill 1,669 m (5,476 ft) from Sangatte on the French side.{{cite book |last1=Wilson |first1=Jeremy |last2=Spick |first2=Jérôme |title=Eurotunnel: The Illustrated Journey |date=1994 |publisher=Harper Collins |location=New York, NY, USA |isbn=0-00-255539-5 |pages=14–21}} However, despite this success, the cross-Channel tunnel project was abandoned in 1883 after the British military raised fears that the tunnel might be used as an invasion route.{{sfn|Hemphill|2013}}Terry Gourvish, The Official History of Britain and the Channel Tunnel (Abington, England: Routledge, 2006), Chapter 1, § 2: The commercial possibilities: Lord Richard Grosvenor, Sir Edward Watkin and the 'Manchester to Paris Railroad'. Nevertheless, in 1883, this TBM was used to bore a railway ventilation tunnel — {{cvt|7|ft|m|order=flip|0}} in diameter and {{cvt|6750|ft|km|order=flip}} long — between Birkenhead and Liverpool, England, through sandstone under the Mersey River.{{sfn|West|1988|p=248}}

The Hudson River Tunnel was constructed from 1889 to 1904 using a Greathead shield TBM. The project used air compressed to {{cvt|35|psi|bar|order=flip}} to reduce cave-ins. However, there were many workers that died via cave-in or decompression sickness.{{Cite web |last=American Society of Civil Engineers |title=Hudson and Manhattan Railroad Tunnel |url=https://www.asce.org/about-civil-engineering/history-and-heritage/historic-landmarks/hudson-and-manhattan-railroad-tunnel |access-date=2023-10-17 |website=www.asce.org |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=ASCE Metropolitan Section - Hudson & Manhattan Tunnel |url=https://www.ascemetsection.org/committees/history-and-heritage/landmarks/hudson-manhattan-tunnel |access-date=2023-10-17 |website=www.ascemetsection.org}}{{Sfn|Potter|2023}}

During the late 19th and early 20th century, inventors continued to design, build, and test TBMs for tunnels for railroads, subways, sewers, water supplies, etc. TBMs employing rotating arrays of drills or hammers were patented.See:

• Bancroft 1908, pp. 66, 125, 127, 146.
• Thales Lindsey, "Improved machine for tunneling rock," {{US patent|55,514}} (issued: June 12, 1866).
• Pedro Unanue, "Tunneling machine," {{US patent|732,326}} (filed: December 23, 1901; issued: June 30, 1903).
• Russell B. Sigafoos, "Rotary tunneling machine," {{US patent|901,392}} (filed: May 18, 1907; issued: October 20, 1908).
• George A. Fowler, "Tunnel driving machine," {{US patent|891,473}} (filed: July 30, 1907 ; issued: June 23, 1908). TBMs that resembled giant hole saws were proposed.See:
• Bancroft 1908, pp. 66, 85, 106.
• Wilson, Charles. Machine for excavating tunnels," {{US patent|17,650}} (issued: June 23, 1857).
• Stanley, Reginald. U.K. Patent no. 1,449 (issued: February 1, 1886); "Tunneling-machine" (issued: August 7, 1894).
• Mitchell, Jonas L. "Tunneling-machine," {{US patent|537,899}} (filed: April 3, 1893 ; issued: April 23, 1895). Other TBMs consisted of a rotating drum with metal tines on its outer surface,See:
• William F. Cooke and George Hunter, U.K. patent no. 433 (issued: August 10, 1866). Available online at: [http://www.aditnow.co.uk/documents/personal-album-54/Tunnelerpatent2.pdf AditNow] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304195336/http://www.aditnow.co.uk/documents/personal-album-54/Tunnelerpatent2.pdf |date=2016-03-04 }}.
• Patents for Inventions. bridgments of Specifications relating to Mining, Quarrying, Tunnelling, and Well-sinking (London, England: Office of the Commissioners of Patents for Inventions, 1874), [https://books.google.com/books?id=jXNUAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA1-PA275 p. 275.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728205632/https://books.google.com/books?id=jXNUAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA1-PA275 |date=2023-07-28 }}
• {{harvnb|Maidl et al.|2008}} or a rotating circular plate covered with teeth,See:
• Bancroft 1908, pp. 146, 165.
• John P. Karns, "Tunneling-machine," {{US patent|848,107}} (filed: November 29, 1905; issued: March 26, 1907).
• Olin S. Proctor, "Tunneling-machine," {{US patent|900,951}} (filed: February 17, 1908; issued: October 13, 1908). or revolving belts covered with metal teeth.See:
• Bancroft 1908, p. 145.
• William A. Lathrop, "Machine for cutting headings," {{US patent|816,923}} (filed: August 31, 1903; issued: April 3, 1906). However, these TBMs proved expensive, cumbersome, and unable to excavate hard rock; interest in TBMs therefore declined. Nevertheless, TBM development continued in potash and coal mines, where the rock was softer.For example:
• In Germany, the Eisener Bergmann (iron miner) was developed in 1916 by Schmidt, Kranz & Co. for potash mines; its boring head consisted of a large rotating roller that was fitted with cutters See: {{harvnb|Maidl et al.|2008}}
• In the U.S., the McKinlay Entry Driver, a track-mounted TBM or "continuous miner", was invented in 1918 for use in coal mines. Its boring head consisted of metal tines on two, side-by-side rotating arms. See: Thomas W. Garges (November 13, 2003) William N. Poundstone lecture: "Underground Mining Technology Evolution", p. 8. Available online at: [http://www2.cemr.wvu.edu/~wwwmine/poundstonelec/GargesThomastxt.pdf Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources, West Virginia University] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161020162943/http://www2.cemr.wvu.edu/~wwwmine/poundstonelec/GargesThomastxt.pdf |date=2016-10-20 }}

A TBM with a bore diameter of {{convert|14.4|m|ftin|abbr=on}} was manufactured by The Robbins Company for Canada's Niagara Tunnel Project. The machine was used to bore a hydroelectric tunnel beneath Niagara Falls. The machine was named "Big Becky" in reference to the Sir Adam Beck hydroelectric dams to which it tunnelled to provide an additional hydroelectric tunnel.

File:TBM S-210 Alptransit Faido East.jpg, Switzerland, the world's longest rail tunnel]]

The TBM known as Bertha, reportedly the largest earth pressure balance machine and second largest TBM in general (as of June 2023), has a bore diameter of {{convert|17.45|m|ft|sp=us}}, and was produced by Hitachi Zosen Corporation in 2013.{{Sfn|Cecere|2023}}{{Cite web |title=Shield Tunneling Machines |url=https://www.hitachizosen.co.jp/english/business/field/infrastructure/shield.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230123075040/https://www.hitachizosen.co.jp/english/business/field/infrastructure/shield.html |archive-date=2023-01-23 |access-date=2023-02-04 |website=Hitachi Zosen Corporation |language=en}}{{full|date=April 2025}}{{third party inline|date=April 2025}}{{better source|date=April 2025}} It was delivered to Seattle, Washington, for its Highway 99 tunnel project.{{cite web|url=http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/Viaduct/|title=Alaskan Way Viaduct - Home|website=www.wsdot.wa.gov|access-date=21 July 2017|archive-date=28 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728205631/https://wsdot.wa.gov/construction-planning/major-projects/alaskan-way-viaduct-replacement-program|url-status=live}}{{full|date=April 2025}}{{full|date=April 2025}} The machine began operating in July 2013, but stalled in December 2013 and required substantial repairs that halted the machine until January 2016.{{cite magazine|author = Weise, Karen |date = 2016-01-06 | title=Bertha the Giant Drill Is Ready to Rumble in Seattle| magazine=Bloomberg Businessweek (Bloomberg.com) |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-06/bertha-the-giant-drill-is-ready-to-rumble-in-seattle/ | access-date=21 July 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160309015129/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-06/bertha-the-giant-drill-is-ready-to-rumble-in-seattle | archive-date = 2016-03-09 | url-access = }} Bertha completed boring the tunnel on April 4, 2017.{{Cite web |date=2017-04-06 |title=Alaskan Way Viaduct - Recapping Bertha's breakthrough |url=https://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/Viaduct/library/advisories-and-updates/recapping-berthas-breakthrough |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170901063417/http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/Viaduct/library/advisories-and-updates/recapping-berthas-breakthrough |archive-date=2017-09-01 |website=Washington State Department of Transportation}}{{full|date=April 2025}}{{full|date=April 2025}}

Two TBMs supplied after the 2013 acquisition of Germany's Aker Wirth (Aker Solutions) TBM and shaft-boring technology by China Railway Tunnelling Equipment (CRTE), now CREG (China Railway Engineering Equipment Group)-Germany,{{cite web | author = IM Staff | date = 29 November 2013 | title = Aker Sells TBM and Shaft Sinking Businesses to China's CRTE | work = International Mining (IM, IM-Mining.com) | url = https://im-mining.com/2013/11/29/aker-seels-underground-development-business-to-chinas-crte/ | access-date = 22 April 2025 | location = Berkhamsted, England| publisher = IM Team Publishing}} Note, the acquisition was sans Wirth's newer Mobile Tunnel Miner technology developed with Codelco and Rio Tinto, see article.{{Cite web | author = CREG-Wirth Staff | date = 2017-09-09 | title = Earth Pressure Balance | work = CREG-Germany.com | format = manufacturer's commercial site | url = http://www.creg-germany.com/products_tunnel-boring-machines_epb-machine.php#tab-c-03 | access-date = 22 April 2025 | url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170909054126/http://www.creg-germany.com/products_tunnel-boring-machines_epb-machine.php#tab-c-03 |archive-date=2017-09-09 | at=Metro Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia > Project; and Metro Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia > Tech Specs | location = Erkelenz, Germany | publisher = CREG TBM Germany GmbH}}{{third party inline|date=April 2025}}{{better source|date=April 2025}} CREG-Wirth units with boring diameter of {{cvt|6.67|m|ft}}, were used to bore two tunnels for Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia's Metro system.{{better source|date=April 2025}} The medium excavated was water "saturated sandy mudstone, schistose mudstone, highly weathered mudstone as well as alluvium".{{better source|date=April 2025}} By the company's commercial description, its products achieved an advance rate of "more than 345 meters [1,130 feet] per month".{{better source|date=April 2025}}

File:Tunnelier mp3h8086.jpg.{{cn|date=April 2025}}]]

Reportedly the largest hard rock machine and fourth largest TBM overall (as of June 2023), a machine known as Martina, was built by Herrenknecht AG.{{Sfn|Cecere|2023}} Its excavation diameter is {{convert|15.62|m|ft|abbr=on}}, and total length {{convert|130|m|ft|abbr=on}}; excavation area of {{convert|192|sqm|sqft|abbr=on}}, and thrust value 39,485 t,{{what|date=April 2025}} total weight 4,500 tons, and total installed capacity 18 MW.{{Sfn|Cecere|2023}} Its yearly energy consumption was about 62 GWh.{{Sfn|Cecere|2023}} Martina was used by the Italian Toto Group construction company (Toto S.p.A Costruczioni General) to bore a 2.4 km tunnel of the Variante di Valico project near Florence, Italy, in 2013. This project created the Sparvo gallery of the Italian Motorway Pass A1 ("Variante di Valico A1"), near Florence.{{cn|date=April 2025}} As of this date,{{when|date=April 2025}} Martina was still owned and operated by the Toto Group.{{cn|date=April 2025}}

Herrenknecht also built the world's largest-diameter slurry TBM and as of June 2023, per Guinness World Records, also the largest TBM overall; called the "Qin Liangyu" or Mixshield S-880, it has an excavation diameter of {{convert|17.63|m|ft|sp=us}}.{{Sfn|Cecere|2023}} Owned and operated by a subsidiary of the French construction company Bouygues (Dragages Hong Kong), it was used to bore the Chek Lap Kok to Tuen Mun road tunnel, undersea, to Hong Kong, China, clearing the first section of the tunnel at the large diameter, then being converted to 14 m, and working alongside 3 other TBMs (including another Herrenknect borer) to complete the tunnels, 30 m undersea, in 2019.{{Sfn|Cecere|2023}}

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File:Tunnel Boring Machine (Yucca Mt).jpg]]TBMs typically consist of a rotating cutting wheel in front, called a cutter head, followed by a main bearing, a thrust system, a system to remove excavated material (muck), and support mechanisms. Machines vary with site geology, amount of ground water present, and other factors.

Rock boring machines differ from earth boring machines in the way they cut the tunnel, the way they provide traction to support the boring activity, and in the way they support the newly formed tunnels walls.

File:Hydraulic jacks holding a TBM in place.jpg

Shielded TBMs are typically used to excavate tunnels in soil. They erect concrete segments behind the TBM to support the tunnel walls.{{sfn|Stack|1995}}{{page needed|date=April 2025}}

The machine stabilizes itself in the tunnel with hydraulic cylinders that press against the shield, allowing the TBM to apply pressure at the tunnel face.

Main Beam machines do not install concrete segments behind the cutter head. Instead, the rock is held up using ground support methods such as ring beams, rock bolts, shotcrete, steel straps, ring steel and wire mesh.{{sfn|Stack|1995}}{{page needed|date=April 2025}}

Depending on the stability of the local geology, the newly formed walls of the tunnel often need to be supported immediately after being dug to avoid collapse, before any permanent support or lining has been constructed. Many TBMs are equipped with one or more cylindrical shields following behind the cutter head to support the walls until permanent tunnel support is constructed further along the machine. The stability of the walls also influences the method by which the TBM anchors itself in place so that it can apply force to the cutting head. This in turn determines whether the machine can bore and advance simultaneously, or whether these are done in alternating modes.

Gripper TBMs are used in rock tunnels. They forgo the use of a shield and instead push directly against the unreinforced sides of the tunnel.{{Sfn|Potter|2023}}

Machines such as a Wirth machine can be moved only while ungripped. Other machines can move continuously. At the end of a Wirth boring cycle, legs drop to the ground, the grippers are retracted, and the machine advances. The grippers then reengage and the rear legs lift for the next cycle.

A single-shield TBM has a single cylindrical shield after the cutting head. A permanent concrete lining is constructed immediately after the shield, and the TBM pushes off the lining to apply force to the cutter head. Because this pushing cannot be done while a next ring of lining is being constructed, the single-shield TBM operates in alternating cutting and lining modes.

Double Shield (or telescopic shield) TBMs have a leading shield that advances with the cutting head and a trailing shield that acts as a gripper. The two shields can move axially relative to each other (i.e., telescopically) over a limited distance. The gripper shield anchors the TBM so that pressure can be applied to the cutter head while simultaneously the concrete lining is being constructed.

In hard rock with minimal ground water, the area around the cutter head of a TBM can be unpressurized, as the exposed rock face can support itself. In weaker soil, or when there is significant ground water, pressure must be applied to the face of the tunnel to prevent collapse and/or the infiltration of ground water into the machine.

File:Zürich - Oerlikon - Tunnelbohrmaschine IMG 0002.JPG]]

File:2014-06-30_7356x4904_chicago_tbm.jpg]]

File:Yucca Mountain TBM at South Portal.jpg in Nevada.]]

Earth pressure balance (EPB) machines are used in soft ground with less than {{cvt|7|bar|psi}} of pressure. It uses muck to maintain pressure at the tunnel face. The muck (or spoil) is admitted into the TBM via a screw conveyor. By adjusting the rate of extraction of muck and the advance rate of the TBM, the pressure at the face of the TBM can be controlled without the use of slurry. Additives such as bentonite, polymers and foam can be injected ahead of the face to stabilize the ground. Such additives can separately be injected in the cutter head and extraction screw to ensure that the muck is sufficiently cohesive to maintain pressure and restrict water flow.

Like some other TBM types, EPB's use thrust cylinders to advance by pushing against concrete segments. The cutter head uses a combination of tungsten carbide cutting bits, carbide disc cutters, drag picks and/or hard rock disc cutters.

EPB has allowed soft, wet, or unstable ground to be tunneled with a speed and safety not previously possible. The Channel Tunnel, the Thames Water Ring Main, sections of the London Underground, and most new metro tunnels completed in the last 20 years worldwide were excavated using this method. EPB has historically competed with the slurry shield method (see below), where the slurry is used to stabilize the tunnel face and transport spoil to the surface. EPB TBMs are mostly used in finer ground (such as clay) while slurry TBMs are mostly used for coarser ground (such as gravel).{{cite web|first1=Si|last1=Shen|access-date=2023-10-29|title=TBM selection - EPB and SlurrySi Shen|url=https://www.si-eng.org/post/tbm-selection|date=25 October 2021|website=The Si-Eng}}

Slurry shield machines can be used in soft ground with high water pressure or where granular ground conditions (sands and gravels) do not allow a plug to form in the screw. The cutter head is filled with pressurised slurry, typically made of bentonite clay that applies hydrostatic pressure to the face. The slurry mixes with the muck before it is pumped to a slurry separation plant, usually outside the tunnel.

Slurry separation plants use multi-stage filtration systems that separate spoil from slurry to allow reuse. The degree to which slurry can be 'cleaned' depends on the relative particle sizes of the muck. Slurry TBMs are not suitable for silts and clays as the particle sizes of the spoil are less than that of the bentonite. In this case, water is removed from the slurry leaving a clay cake, which may be polluted.

A caisson system is sometimes placed at the cutting head to allow workers to operate the machine,{{cite web |author=Walters, D |title=Sydney Airport Link Rail Tunnel Project, Des Walters: Under Pressure Underground |url=http://www.descend.com.au/commercial/projects/2003413191.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030924093233/http://www.descend.com.au/commercial/projects/2003413191.htm |archive-date=2003-09-24 |access-date=2008-10-08 |publisher=Descend Underwater Training Centre.}}{{cite journal |author1=Bennett, MH |author2=Lehm, J |author3=Barr, P |title=Medical support for the Sydney Airport Link Tunnel project |url=http://archive.rubicon-foundation.org/7673 |url-status=usurped |journal=South Pacific Underwater Medicine Society |volume=32 |issue=2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081211090605/http://archive.rubicon-foundation.org/7673 |archive-date=December 11, 2008 |access-date=2008-10-08}} although air pressure may reach elevated levels in the caisson, requiring workers to be medically cleared as "fit to dive" and able to operate pressure locks.

Open face soft ground TBMs rely on the excavated ground to briefly stand without support. They are suitable for use in ground with a strength of up to about {{cvt|10|MPa|psi}} with low water inflows. They can bore tunnels with cross-section in excess of {{cvt|10|m|ft|sigfig=1}}. A backactor arm or cutter head bore to within {{cvt|150|mm|in|sigfig=1}} of the edge of the shield. After a boring cycle, the shield is jacked forward to begin a new cycle. Ground support is provided by precast concrete, or occasionally spheroidal graphite iron (SGI) segments that are bolted or supported until a support ring has been added. The final segment, called the key, is wedge-shaped, and expands the ring until it is tight against the ground.

TBMs range diameter from {{convert|1|to|17|m|ft|sp=us|0}}. Micro tunnel shield TBMs are used to construct small tunnels, and is a smaller equivalent to a general tunnelling shield and generally bore tunnels of {{convert|1|to|1.5|m|ft|sp=us}}, too small for operators to walk in.

{{unreferenced section|date=April 2025}}

Behind all types of tunnel boring machines, in the finished part of the tunnel, are trailing support decks known as the backup system, whose mechanisms can include conveyors or other systems for muck removal; slurry pipelines (if applicable); control rooms; electrical, dust-removal and ventilation systems; and mechanisms for transport of pre-cast segments.

{{unreferenced section|date=April 2025}}

Urban tunnelling has the special requirement that the surface remain undisturbed, and that ground subsidence be avoided. The normal method of doing this in soft ground is to maintain soil pressures during and after construction.

TBMs with positive face control, such as earth pressure balance (EPB) and slurry shield (SS), are used in such situations. Both types (EPB and SS) are capable of reducing the risk of surface subsidence and voids if ground conditions are well documented. When tunnelling in urban environments, other tunnels, existing utility lines and deep foundations must be considered, and the project must accommodate measures to mitigate any detrimental effects to other infrastructure.{{citation needed|date=December 2018}}

• {{annotated link|Channel Tunnel#Engineering|Channel Tunnel}}
• {{annotated link|New Austrian tunneling method}}
• {{annotated link|Roadheader}}
• {{annotated link|Subterrene}}
• {{annotated link|Trenchless technology}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book |author=Bagust, Harold | year=2006 | title=The Greater Genius?: A Biography of Marc Isambard Brunel | location = Shepperton, England | publisher=Ian Allan Publishing | isbn=0711031754 | url = https://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0711031754 | access-date = 22 April 2025}}
• {{cite journal |author=Bancroft, George J. | date= July 23, 1908 | title=A History of the Tunnel Boring Machine: A Series of Articles on the Various Forms and Patents under which the Tunnel Boring Machine has Appeared Since 1856 | journal = Mining Science | volume = 58 | issue = 4 | pages = 65–68 | location = Denver, CO | publisher=The Mining Science Publishing Co. | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=m-RAAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA65 | access-date = 22 April 2025 }}

: * {{cite journal |author=Bancroft, George J. | date= July 30, 1908 | title=A History of the Tunnel Boring Machine: The Second of a Series of Articles on the Various Forms and Patents under which the Tunnel Boring Machine has Appeared Since 1856 | journal = Mining Science | volume = 58 | issue = 5 | pages = 85–88 | location = Denver, CO | publisher=The Mining Science Publishing Co. | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=m-RAAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA85 | access-date = 22 April 2025 }}

: * {{cite journal |author=Bancroft, George J. | date= August 6, 1908 | title=A History of the Tunnel Boring Machine: The Second [sic.] of a Series of Articles on the Various Forms and Patents... | journal = Mining Science | volume = 58 | issue = 6 | pages = 106ff | location = Denver, CO | publisher=The Mining Science Publishing Co. | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=m-RAAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA106 | access-date = 22 April 2025}}

: * {{cite journal |author=Bancroft, George J. | date= August 13, 1908 | title=A History of the Tunnel Boring Machine: The Fourth of a Series of Articles on the Various Forms and Patents... | journal = Mining Science | volume = 58 | issue = 7 | pages = 125ff | location = Denver, CO | publisher=The Mining Science Publishing Co. | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=m-RAAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA125 | access-date = 22 April 2025}}

: * {{cite journal |author=Bancroft, George J. | date= August 20, 1908 | title=A History of the Tunnel Boring Machine: The Fifth of a Series of Articles on the Various Forms and Patents... | journal = Mining Science | volume = 58 | issue = 8 | pages = 145f | location = Denver, CO | publisher=The Mining Science Publishing Co. | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=m-RAAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA145 | access-date = 22 April 2025}}

: * {{cite journal |author=Bancroft, George J. | date= August 27, 1908 | title=A History of the Tunnel Boring Machine: The Sixth of a Series of Articles on the Various Forms and Patents... | journal = Mining Science | volume = 58 | issue = 9 | pages = 165f | location = Denver, CO | publisher=The Mining Science Publishing Co. | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=m-RAAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA165 | access-date = 22 April 2025}}

• {{cite web | author=Cecere, Cathy | date=June 13, 2023 | title=5 Biggest Tunnel Boring Machines in the World | website= ASME.org | location = New York, NY | publisher = American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) | url=https://www.asme.org/topics-resources/content/5-biggest-tunnel-boring-machines-in-the-world | access-date=April 5, 2024 | quote = }}
• {{wikicite |ref={{sfnref|Drinker|1883}} |reference=Drinker, Henry Sturgis. Treatise on Explosive Compounds, Machine Rock Drills and Blasting (New York, New York: J. Wiley & Sons, 1883), [https://archive.org/details/atreatiseonexpl00dringoog/page/n207 pp. 191-194.]}}
• {{wikicite |ref={{sfnref|Hemphill|2013}} |reference=Hemphill, Gary B. Practical Tunnel Construction (Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, 2013), Chapter 7: Tunnel-boring machines: History of tunnel-boring machine.}}
• {{cite book|title=Hardrock Tunnel Boring Machines|year=2008|publisher=Ernst & Sohn|first1=Bernhard|last1=Maidl |first2=Leonhard|last2=Schmid |first3=Willy|last3=Ritz |first4=Martin|last4=Herrenknecht |isbn=978-3-433-01676-3|ref={{harvid|Maidl et al.|2008}}}}
• {{Cite web |author=Potter, Brian | date=6 October 2023 | title=The Evolution of Tunnel Boring Machines | work = Construction-Physics.com | url=https://www.construction-physics.com/p/the-evolution-of-tunnel-boring-machines |access-date=2023-10-08 |language=en}}
• {{wikicite |ref={{sfnref|Stack|1995}} |reference=Stack, Barbara (1995) Encyclopaedia of Tunnelling, Mining, and Drilling Equipmen.}}{{full|date=April 2025}}
• {{wikicite |ref={{sfnref|West|1988}} |reference=West, Graham (1988) "Ch. 11: Hard Rock Tunnelling Machines", in Innovation and the Rise of the Tunnelling Industry, Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, pages 239-248.}}

• {{cite book|first1=Nick|last1=Barton|title=TBM tunnelling in jointed and faulted rock|publisher=Balkema|location=Rotterdam|year=2000|ref=none}}
• {{cite news|first1=Burkhard|last1=Bilger|title=The Long Dig: Getting through the Swiss Alps the hard way|newspaper=The New Yorker|date=September 15, 2008|ref=none}}
• {{cite magazine|first1=Amanda|last1=Foley|title=Life on the Cutting Edge: Dick Robbins|magazine=Tunnels & Tunnelling International|date=May 2009|ref=none}}

{{Commons and category|Tunnel boring machine|Tunnel boring machines}}

• {{Cite web |last=Robbins |title=Tunneling World Records |url=https://www.robbinstbm.com/news-and-media/world-records/ |access-date=2023-10-18 |website=Robbins |language=en-US}}

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Category:British inventions

Category:19th-century inventions