Geotechnical investigations and remediation design for failure of tunnel portal section： a case study in northern Turkey

Mass movements are very common problems in the eastern Black Sea region of Turkey due to its climate conditions, geological, and geomorphological characteristics. High slope angle, weathering, dense rainfalls, and anthropogenic impacts are generally reported as the most important triggering factors in the region. Following the portal slope excavations in the entrance section of Cankurtaran tunnel, located in the region, where the highly weathered andesitic tuff crops out, a circular toe failure occurred. The main target of the present study is to investigate the causes and occurrence mechanism of this failure and to determine the feasible remedial measures against it using finite element method(FEM) in four stages. These stages are slope stability analyses for pre-and postexcavation cases, and remediation design assessments for slope and tunnel. The results of the FEM-SSR analyses indicated that the insufficient initial support design and weathering of the andesitic tuffs are the main factors that caused the portal failure. After installing a rock retaining wall with jet grout columns and reinforced slope benching applications, the factor of safety increased from 0.83 to 2.80. In addition toslope stability evaluation, the Rock Mass Rating(RMR), Rock Mass Quality(Q) and New Austrian Tunneling Method(NATM) systems were also utilized as empirical methods to characterize the tunnel ground and to determine the tunnel support design. The performance of the suggested empirical support design, induced stress distributions and deformations were analyzed by means of numerical modelling. Finally, it was concluded that the recommended stabilization technique was essential for the dynamic long-term stability and prevents the effects of failure. Additionally, the FEM method gives useful and reasonably reliable results in evaluating the stability of cut slopes and tunnels excavated both in continuous and discontinuous rock masses.

Brake wear-derived particles:Single-particle mass spectral signatures and real-world emissions

Brake wear is an important but unregulated vehicle-related source of atmospheric particulate matter(PM).The single-particle spectral fingerprints of brake wear particles(BWPs)provide essential information for understanding their formation mechanism and atmospheric contributions.Herein,we obtained the single-particle mass spectra of BWPs by combining a brake dynamometer with an online single particle aerosol mass spectrometer and quantified real-world BWP emissions through a tunnel observation in Tianjin,China.The pure BWPs mainly include three distinct types of particles,namely,Bacontaining particles,mineral particles,and carbon-containing particles,accounting for 44.2%,43.4%,and 10.3%of the total BWP number concentration,respectively.The diversified mass spectra indicate complex BWP formation pathways,such as mechanical,phase transition,and chemical processes.Notably,the mass spectra of Ba-containing particles are unique,which allows them to serve as an excellent indicator for estimating ambient BWP concentrations.By evaluating this indicator,we find that approximately 4.0%of the PM in the tunnel could be attributable to brake wear;the real-world fleet-average emission factor of 0.28 mg km
1 veh
1 is consistent with the estimation obtained using the receptor model.The results presented herein can be used to inform assessments of the environmental and health impacts of BWPs to formulate effective emissions control policies.