Contents:

Introduction Principle Description Characteristics Freezing Process Applications Advantages Case Histories

Introduction:

Water and mud flow downhill. This fact of nature can be an enormous problem in managing excavation and tunneling projects. One of the best ways to stop water is to freeze it. Freezing water in the ground is a growing application in construction emergencies, and is emerging as an engineering strategy in construction.

Freezing Principle:
The principle of ground freezing is to change the water in the soil into a solid wall of ice. This wall of ice is completely impermeable and used for; Groundwater cutoff For earth support For temporary underpinning For stabilization of earth for tunnel excavation To arrest landslides To stabilize abandoned mineshafts The principle of ground freezing is analogous to pumping groundwater from wells.

Principal of Ground Freezing

Freezing System Schematic Diagram

Description:
To freeze the ground, a row of freeze pipes are placed vertically in the soil and heat energy is removed through these pipes. Isotherms (an isotherm is a line connecting locations with equal temperature) move out from the freeze pipes with time similar to groundwater contours around a well. Once the earth temperature reaches 32 F (0 C), water in the soil pores turns to ice. Then further cooling proceeds. The groundwater in the pores readily freezes in granular soils, such as sands. For instance, saturated sand achieves excellent strength at only a few degrees below the freezing point.

Description:
Freezepipes

cont..

Formation of a Freezewall

Description:

cont..

Once freezewall achieved if temperature is lowered further, the strength increases marginally. In cohesive soils, like clays, the ground water is molecularly bonded, at least in part, to the soil particles. If soft clay is cooled down to freezing temperature, some portions of its pore water begin to freeze and it causes the clay to stiffen. With further reduction in temperature, more pore water freezes and consequently more strength gain is achieved. When designing for frozen earth structures in cohesive soils, it may be necessary to specify substantially lower temperatures to achieve the required strength, than in cohesionless soils.

Description:

cont..

A temperature of +20 F may be sufficient in sands, whereas temperatures as low as 20 F may be required in soft clays. The design of a frozen earth barrier is governed by the thermal properties of the underlying soils and related response to the freezing system. Formation of frozen earth barrier develops at different rates depending on the thermal and hydraulic properties of each stratum. Typically, rock and coarsegrained soils freeze faster than clays and silts.

Description:

cont..

Formation of Frozen Earth Barrier in Different Soils

Description:

cont..

The frozen earth first forms in the shape of a vertical cylinders surrounding the freeze pipes.

Description:

cont..

Pipes prior to freezing

Following initiation of freeze

Closure of frozen earth wall

Complete frozen earth wall

Description:

cont..

If the heat extraction is continued at a high rate, the thickness of the frozen wall will expand with time. Once the wall has achieved its design thickness, the freeze plant is operated at a reduced rate to remove the heat flowing towards the wall, to maintain the condition .

Freezing Characteristics:
The effectiveness of freezing depends on the presence of water to create ice, cementing the particles and increasing the strength of the ground to the equivalent of soft or medium rock. If the ground is saturated or nearly so, it will be rendered impermeable. If the moisture does not fill the pores, it may be necessary to add water.

The strength achieved depends on freeze temperature, moisture content and the nature of the soil.

Freezing Characteristics:

cont..

Freezing can be particularly effective in stabilizing silts, which are too fine for injection of any ordinary grouts. On freezing, water expands in volume by about 9% which does not itself impose any serious stresses and strains on the soil unless the water is confined within a restricted volume. With water content up to about 30% the direct soil expansion may be about 3%.

Freezing Process:
Freezing may be: Indirect, by circulation of a secondary coolant through tubes driven into the ground

Direct, by circulation of the primary refrigerant fluid through the ground tubes like nitrogen.

Freezing Process:
Indirect Cooling:
The most common freezing method is by circulating brine (a strong saline solution as of calcium chloride). Chilled brine is pumped down a drop tube to the bottom of the freeze pipe and flows up the pipe, drawing heat from the soil.

cont..

Freezing Process:
Portable Twin 60-ton Brine Refrigeration Unit

cont..

Freezing Process:
Direct Cooling:

cont..

In this system, the primary refrigerant is circulated through the system of tubes in the ground, extracting directly the latent heat, therefore having a higher efficiency than the indirect process.
Direct freezing time is similar to that for the indirect process.

The choice will depend on plant availability, estimates of cost and perhaps personal preference.

Freezing Process:
LN-2 System:
The liquid nitrogen (LN2) process has been applied successfully to ground freezing. The cost per unit of heat extracted is much higher than with circulated brine. Nevertheless for small, short term projects, particularly in emergencies, the method can occasionally be competitive.

cont..

Freezing Applications:
The freezing method is remarkably versatile, and with ingenuity it can be adapted to a great many project conditions. The penetration of a freeze does not vary greatly with permeability, so it is much more effective as a cutoff than grout. In stratified soils, cutoff by freezing encounters fewer problems than drainage by dewatering. Freezing can perform the dual function of water cutoff and earth support, eliminating sheeting and bracing.

Freezing Applications:
Shaft Sinking:

cont..

The freezing method in vertical shaft drilling has become a mature technique. When it is applied to inclined shaft construction, the inclined shaft freezing drilling method can be adopted, as shown on next slide:

Freezing Applications:
Inclined Shaft Freezing

cont..

Freezing Applications:
Tunnels and Subways:

cont..

The freezing method in the construction of tunnel and tube is mainly applied in dealing with the side channel and the shield entrance. There are 2 construction plans as shown ahead: 1. 2. One is the top-down vertical layout Other is the horizontal layout

The former is for the construction of tunnel and tube with the conditions that overlaying soil is not too thick and the quantity of freezing is not large. The latter requires horizontal drilling which is commonly used in thick overlaying soil (e.g., mountain tunnel or submarine tunnel). When the freezing pipe cannot be installed vertically from the surface without the main roads and other structures, the second type of layout can be adopted.

Freezing Applications:
Tunnels and Subways

cont..

Layout Of The Freezing Pipe

Freezing Applications:
Tunnels and Subways
Horizontal Freezing

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Freezing Applications:

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Circular Excavation Supported by a Freezewall

Freezing Applications:

cont..

Excavation supported by gravity retaining wall of frozen earth with vertical and inclined freeze pipes

Freezing Applications:

cont..

It eliminates the need for structural shoring systems and dewatering & also creates a very hard, durable surface for construction equipment, even in soft soils. Ground freezing provides a strong, stable support for existing or new foundations near excavations.

There are many environmental applications for soil freezing as well.

Freezing Applications:

cont..

It can provide an in-situ barrier for containment of contaminated groundwater and a bottom barrier at landfills or other contaminated sites, and provides temporary shoring for construction of permeable barriers or excavation of contamination. It creates a dry, safe environment for construction and excavation. It also bonds soil and waste together to prevent dangerous mixing during removal. Helps with safe retrieval of unexploded ordnance.

Freezing Applications:

cont..

Frozen soil shoring wall around a 10ft deep basement excavation for a condominium in Madison Park.

Advantages:
It offers many advantages over conventional methods, including:
Complete ground water cutoff Ability to go around buried utilities Virtually no ground vibrations Installation in all soil types (sand, cobbles, peat, clay, bedrock).

The method is not limited by soil types and can form nearly all shapes of frozen wall at any depth under any complex geologic and hydrological conditions.

Advantages:

cont..

The strength of the freezing soil can be controlled but frozen ground is nearly twice as strong as concrete and is essentially impermeable.
All the equipment required for ground freezing, piping and brines can be recycled and reused Small effect on ground surface and adjacent buildings; there is almost no frost heaving and freezing-thawing settlements, especially for the gravel soil. For finegrained soil such as clay, the frost-heaving and thawing-settlements can be predicted by theory so that countermeasures can be adopted to inhibit the frost heaving and decrease the freezing-thawing settlements.

Advantages:

cont..

Cost of ground freezing being newer technology is competitive with conventional shoring methods such as sheet pile or soldier pile walls. It can be used in congested areas.
The method is relatively fast.

COPENHAGEN METRO PROJECT

Copenhagen Metro Project

FAHRLACH TUNNEL, MANNHEIM GERMANY

Fahrlach Tunnel, Mannheim Germany

Constructed in 1988

489 m long tunnel

Two tubes with two lanes each Combined width of the two tubes approx. 23 m

Vertical clearance of about 7 m

Excavation of the tunnel floor will be to a maximum depth of 17 m below ground surface. Crosses 11 tracks of high speed railway line. Cross-section of the tunnel is in the form of two open jaws placed side-by -side and touching in the middle.

Fahrlach Tunnel, Mannheim Germany

Cross Section Of The Tunnelling Section

Fahrlach Tunnel, Mannheim Germany

Installation Of Freezing Hoses

Freezing Pipes At The Tunnel Portal

Inside Of The Auxiliary Gallery Producing The Frozen Bulkhead

Fahrlach Tunnel, Mannheim Germany

The excavation work was carried out in conventional fashion with an excavator and a roadheader.