Stability Analysis of Surrounding Rock in Multi-Discontinuous Hydraulic Tunnel Based on Microseismic Monitoring

Abstract

The diversion tunnel of a hydropower station is characterized by low quality surrounding rock and weak structural planes. During excavation, rock mass spalling and cracking frequently occur. To evaluate the stability of a rock mass during tunnel excavation, high-precision microseismic monitoring technology was introduced to carry out real-time monitoring. Based on the temporal and spatial distribution characteristics of microseismic events, the main damage areas and their influencing factors of tunnel rock mass were studied. By analyzing the source characteristic parameters of the concentration area of microseismic activities, the rock fracture mechanism of the concentration area was revealed. The 3D numerical model of diversion tunnel was established, and the deformation characteristics of the rock mass under the control of different combination types of weak structural planes were obtained. The results showed that the microseismic event was active between 29 October 2020 and 6 November 2020, and the energy release increased sharply. The main damage areas of the rock mass were located at Stakes K0 + 500–K0 + 600 m. Microseismic source parameters revealed that shear failure or fault-slip failure induced by geological structures had an important influence on the stability of the surrounding rock. The numerical simulation results were consistent with the microseismic monitoring results and indicated that among the three kinds of structural plane combination types, including “upright triangle”, “inverted triangle” and “nearly parallel”, the “upright triangle” structure had the most significant influence on the stability of the surrounding rock. In addition, the maximum displacement of the surrounding rock had a trend of lateral migration to the larger dip angle in the three combined structural plane types. The research results will provide significant references for the safety evaluation and construction design of similar tunnels.