It is commonly recognized that ground settlement is one of the major concern in pipe jacking operation. However, engineer should also pay attention to the problem of ground heaving during grouting work of pipe-jacking. For instance, if excessive slurry or grout pressure is applied so as to exceed the overburden pressure, ground heaving would result. Alternatively, if the ground contains loose soils with high porosity, the same phenomenon also occurs. Proper control on the applied pressure and viscosity of grout/slurry is necessary to prevent such occurrence.

This question is taken from book named – A Self Learning Manual – Mastering Different Fields of Civil Engineering Works (VC-Q-A-Method) by Vincent T. H. CHU.

It is reported by Lake (1992) that settlements are expected at the ground surface at a distance of 1-2 times of tunnel depth ahead of the tunnel face and 80% to 90% of settlement to be completed at a similar distance behind the face. However, in the paper “Monitoring of ground response associated with pipe jacking works – recent experience in Hong Kong”, the author pointed out that based on their experience, development of longitudinal settlement was observed at a distance of 3-4 times of tunnel depth behind the tunnel face and little settlements were reported immediately above the tunneling face.

This question is taken from book named – A Self Learning Manual – Mastering Different Fields of Civil Engineering Works (VC-Q-A-Method) by Vincent T. H. CHU.

When the pipejacking machine moves from a region of soil to very hard rock, it will be subject to damage of cutting disc. To break and loosen the rock, the pipejacking machine applies a large torque on cutting wheels.

However, with the change of soft region to hard region, the pipejacking machine is still under the same jacking load. As such, this results in insufficient or little space for the movement of the machine against the rock face, leading to damage and exhaustion of the pipejacking machine.

This question is taken from book named – A Self Learning Manual – Mastering Different Fields of Civil Engineering Works (VC-Q-A-Method) by Vincent T. H. CHU.

The rate of cutting through soils is faster than that of cutting through boulders for pipe-jacking machine. As such, when pipe-jacking machine enters a region of mixed ground with soils and boulders, the machine has the tendency to move towards the direction of soft soils because of the difference of rate of advancement of pipe-jacking machine for soils and boulders. Consequently, migration of soft soils occur which contributes to ground settlement. The degree of settlement is dependent of the depth of soil cover, soil property and the size of boulders.

This question is taken from book named – A Self Learning Manual – Mastering Different Fields of Civil Engineering Works (VC-Q-A-Method) by Vincent T. H. CHU.

When the process of pipe jacking stops, building up of resistance is very fast in some soil. For instance, increase in jacking force of 20%-40% is required for a stoppage of pipe jacking for just several hours. Hence, it is recommended that pipe jacking should be carried out in a continuous operation.

For a long pipeline, the frictional forces established between the jacking pipes and soil is high. Sometimes, such resisting forces may be so high that they can hardly be overcome by the jacks in jacking pits. Moreover, even if the jacks can overcome the high frictional forces induced during jacking, high loads are experienced in jacking pipes during driving. Jacking pipe’s material e.g. concrete may not have sufficient strength to resist these stresses and hence pipe strength is another factor that governs the need for consideration of using intermediate jacks.

This question is taken from book named – A Self Learning Manual – Mastering Different Fields of Civil Engineering Works (VC-Q-A-Method) by Vincent T. H. CHU.