Alpine Experience of Shaft Construction and Shaft Grouting

Peter Stakne
Marti
Shaft
Sinking
Seedorffeldstr. 21
3302 Moosseedorf
Switzerland

Martin Zmlnig
STU-STETTIN GmbH
Mnzenbergstrae 38
8700 Leoben
Austria

Andreas Heizmann
Marti Geotechnik GmbH.
Opelstrasse 1
68789 St. Leon-Rot
Germany

Helmut Wannenmacher
Marti Holding Ltd.
Seedorffeldstr. 21
3302 Moosseedorf
Switzerland

Introduction
Hydropower plants are of great relevance for European energy production. Vertical shafts in comparison to inclined
shafts may serve as a cost effective alternative in case of favourable project conditions. Vertical shafts have a higher
ground cover compared to surface parallel inclined shafts. The increased rock mass cover and therefore higher insitu stress magnitudes (e.g. decreasing risk for hydro-fracturing) may allow for a shaft solution instead of a cost
intensive steel lined inclined shaft solution (providing that water losses are economically acceptable).
The construction and lining concept of vertical shafts was made possible with the development of raise boring units,
which allow the construction of shafts with more than 1000 m long and shaft diameters up to 7,0 m. Vertical shafts
have higher frictional losses compared to steel lined inclined shafts and therefore vertical shafts require a larger
diameter to compensate for these loses in the system. The construction of vertical shaft diameters, greater than
7.0 m, to compensate for the frictional losses can be realized by shaft widening systems.
The Nant de Drance + pump storage station (PSS) in Switzerland utilizes the concept of a concrete lined vertical
shaft. The experiences gained from the construction of the shafts at the Nant de Drance PSS are subsequently
discussed in this paper.

1. The utilization of Vertical Shafts for Hydro Power Plants

The revival of hydro power construction industry in the middle of last century was enhanced due to the utilization of
modern construction techniques, such as the use of Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs). Hard Rock TBMs allowed
an economic and fast construction of tailrace /headrace tunnel construction, as well as inclined shafts. Utilizing hard
rock TBMs for inclined shafts allowed for a safe excavation, in terms of personal and equipment, since the
mechanical excavation disturbs the rock mass less and is accompanied by quick rock support installation.
The limited slope of the TBM drive to provide practical conditions for the inclined shaft excavation without the
necessity of additional measures for mucking resulted in a shallow placement of shafts with inclines between 3745. In many cases the shallow placement of the shaft was accompanied by unfavourable geological conditions,
which demanded for a steel lining from a geotechnical point of view to eliminate the risk of hydraulic induced slope
instabilities. Nevertheless the utilisation of TBMs especially for inclined shafts allowed for an economic and
modern design of todays hydropower plants. The steady development of hard rock TBM also led to a further
development of Raise Boring Technology, which was initially developed by Bade in 1949 to provide safe access
conditions for deep mines. Nevertheless the raise boring technique, although widely used in the mining industry,
was seldom considered in alpine hydro power construction.
Vertical shafts in alpine regions were only considered in case of unfavourable geological conditions instead of
inclined shaft drives e.g. Uttendorf II (1982), although the technique was already established in the Scandinavian
countries. The utilization of vertical shafts within the Scandinavian shield could even be realized without steel or
concrete lining of the shaft due the very favourable geological conditions. Nevertheless unlined vertical shafts for
pump storage schemes are exposed to cyclic loading, which may decrease the factor of safety of a blocky rock mass,
demanding for a lining to guarantee a long term stability of the shaft in regions with less favourable ground
conditions. Seeber (Seeber et. al 1989) considered a passive pre-stressed shaft lining for the hydropower plant
Uttendorf II to guarantee long term stability of the lining.
Schleiss introduced (Schleiss 1986) the idea of permeable reinforced lining types for shaft construction which
focused on a cracked lining opposite to the system of Seeber, to relieve high hydraulic groundwater heads on the
lining in case of rapid drawdown or planned downtimes of the hydropower systems. The idea of a reinforced
concrete lining for shafts was used for several hydro power plants.

Beside aspects of the local hydrological system, the geological conditions significantly influence and contribute to
the bearing capacity of a permeable shaft lining. Areas with high horizontal stress conditions, massive rock mass
conditions with a low permeability reduce possible water losses from the waterway (Wannenmacher 2012).
Beside the aspects and influences of the geological conditions on operational aspects, the geological and
geotechnical conditions have to be analysed in detail for the special constructional aspects of the raise boring
operation. The main geological risks are related to gravitational block failure of fractured rock mass zones, with
unfavourable dilution potential during the reaming to widen the shaft. Ravelling rock mass conditions may plug the
shaft for further mucking or even jam the cutterhead, delaying further continuation of the excavation (Venkatesh
H.S. 2008). Fractured zones have to be grouted to reduce water losses during pilot hole drilling. In case of sufficient
rock mass coverage, vertical shafts can be reconstructed with a reinforced concrete lining compensating the
requirement of a steel lining, which allows for mayor cost savings for construction of hydropower plant.

2. The construction of two vertical shafts of Nant de Drance +

The Swiss Alpiq, SBB, IWB and FMV are currently constructing the pump storage scheme of Nant de Drance + in
the canton of Wallis at the border to France. The pump storage scheme utilizes the two already existing reservoirs
Emosson and Vieux-Emosson, which are situated in the Aiguilles Rouges Massive of Chamonix. The intended
output of the pump storage scheme is 900 MW.

Fig. 1. Simplified section of the Nant de Drance Pump Storage Station

The access of the pump storage scheme is enabled through a 5700 m long access tunnel, climbing with a 12 %
grade from the village of Le Chatelard. The excavation was performed with an open hard rock TBM with an
excavation diameter of 9,45 m. The main access tunnel directly leads towards the machine cavern with the overall
dimension of l = 194 m, w = 32 m and h = 56 m. The hydraulic scheme consists of two parallel aligned pressure
conduits. The relative short headrace tunnels ( 7,7 m) with a length of ~ 300 m lead towards the vertical shafts
(i 7,0 m) with a height of ~ 400 m (see Figure 1). The access of the shaft head caverns is enabled via a helical
access tunnel from the cavern structure with a slope of 12 % and an overall length of 4000 m. The tailrace tunnels
( 7,7 m) with a length of 1200 m connect the cavern structure with the reservoir Emosson (see Figure 2). The rock
types within the project area mainly comprise of granites, meta greywacke and ortho - gneisses of good to very
good quality. The horizontal stresses within the area show a ratio of K0 larger than 1 (Sonderegger 2009).
Construction works for the Nant de Drance + started in 2008 and completion is foreseen in 2018. The centrepiece of
the hydraulic scheme are the two vertical shafts. The construction of the first shaft started in the summer of 2012,
with a completion of the second shaft foreseen in winter 2014/2015. The shafts consist of a 23 m deep pilot shaft
(see Figure 5), with a volume of 4100 m. At the bottom of the shaft, where they are connected to the power cavern
the shafts are widened up to 9.0 m. The excavation diameter of the shaft is ~ 8,0 m with an inner diameter of 7,0 m.
The overall construction of the shaft is grouped in total five operational processes.
Installation and target drill hole
Reaming operation (mechanized operation)
Shaft widening operation (drill and blast excavation)
Shaft lining operation
Grouting operation

Fig. 2. Layout of the Nant de Drance Pump Storage Station

2.1 Installation and Target Drill Hole

The target drill hole from the shaft cavern down to the bottom of the shaft is the first operational step for a raise
boring operation. The accuracy of the pilot drill hole must be maintained within a tight tolerance to ensure the
success of the remaining steps of the shaft construction (deflection from the vertical and the horizontal offset of the
drilling). The necessary dimensions of the shaft head cavern to facilitate the raise drill and shaft widening operations
are w = 12,4 m by l = 42,2 m. The required height of the shaft head cavern is 17,9 m to facilitate the operation of the
shaft widening at a later stage (see Figure 3).
Raise Boring Machine
Steel structure
Operator room
Electrical power unit
Hydraulic power unit
Drill pipe magazine
Pump sump
Recirculation reservoir system
Crew container
PM and first aid container
Transformer

Fig. 3. Cross section and plane illustration of the pilot shaft with shaft sinking equipment

A raise boring unit, type RBR 600 VF of Herrenknecht (see Figure 4), was used for the pilot drilling and reaming
operation. The unit allows, in general for drilling depths of more than 1000 m and excavation diameter of up to
6,0 m depending on the length of the shaft and the geological conditions.

The available torque of the unit is 600 kNm with a drag force of 10 MN. Upon completion of general installation,
the target drill hole was drilled from the shaft head cavern towards the bottom of the shaft. The average drill speed
was found in the range of 1 m/hour, with an overall accuracy achieved below < 25 cm (0,56). The weight of the
drill rod assembly summed up to a total 200 tons and consisted of 280 individual rods ( = 13 1/8), 5 stabilizers
( = 15), the vertical drilling system RVDS as well as the pilot drill head with a drive speed of 30-60 rpm and a
maximum force of 30 tons.
To avoid non-symmetric stresses and strains the drill rods were stabilized by roller reamers, which generally reduce
the torque on the drill string. The removal of the cuttings was be done by water, which was pumped down through
the hollow drill string. The water flushes the cuttings towards the small gap in between the drill rod and the rock.

Fig. 4. Raise Bore Unit

2.2 The Reaming Operation

Upon completion of the pilot drill, the vertical drilling system and the pilot drill head were replaced by the
cutterhead of the raise boring unit (see Figure 4). The excavation diameter of the raise boring unit is 2,44 m, to
prevent clogging in case of adverse geological conditions encountered. Since the diameter of drill string is about 1
to 2 smaller in diameter than the drill bit, the drill rod system had not to be changed for the reaming process. The
crown of tunnel was kept horizontal to guarantee a smooth start of the operation.
The spoil at the bottom of the shaft was removed by loaders. To minimize peak torque during the reaming operation
the distance in between the reaming head and the first stabilizer was kept below 3,0 m in distance. The maximum
rotational speed was kept in between 8 to 10 rpm to avoid extensive wear due to the hardness of the rock mass.
Mainly cutters with 4 and 5 rows of chisel shaped inserts were used for the reaming process with varying
orientations of the cutters to increase the lifetime of the chisel. A lowering of the cutterhead for cutter change was
not required. The average advance rate for the reaming of the two shafts was in the range of 0,85 m/h.
2.3 The Shaft Widening Operation
Upon completion of the pilot shaft, the excavation works for the widening of the shaft were started. The area of the
excavation spans the full width of the cavern, which demands for the installation of cantilevers to discharge the
loads in the floor of the cavern and side walls.

Crane runaways were mounted on the cantilevers for the installation of a portal crane. Upon completion of the initial
excavation works the shaft sinking unit was installed, consisting of 4 winches (material handling, suspended
platform, control cable and emergency). All works were performed on a suspended platform with 3 individual
platforms for installation, storage and operation (see Figure 5). Transport was limited to maximal of eleven tons
net load and a speed of about 130 m/min.
The suspended platform can be lifted and lowered individually with a maximum speed of 3 m/min. The design of
the platform and shaft sinking unit follows the rules and guidelines of the German Mining Authority (TAS and
BVOS). The drilling of the bore holes for the blasting operation were conducted with specially designed drill rigs,
consisting of three carriages with pneumatic rotary hammer drills (see Figure 5).

Fig. 5. Pilot shaft with shaft sinking equipment

The rock mass conditions allowed for round lengths of 2 2,5 m and over 90 % of the shafts were supported by
minimum rock support, consisting of 10 cm of shotcrete and 1 layer of wire mesh. A wet mix design was used for
the shotcrete to minimize dust in the shaft. The shotcrete was pumped via a downpipe to the platform. A curing of
the shotcrete was necessary prior to installation. The average advance rate for the shaft widening was in the range of
4 m/day.

Fig. 6. Drill Rig with pneumatic rotary hammer drills.

2.4 Installation of Lining with a Sliding Form Work

The lining, with a thickness of 40 cm was installed by sliding form work. The decision of a sliding form work in
favour of a climbing formwork was mainly based on the high performance rates and the avoidance of lifting and
manipulation of the form work elements, which would require an additional crane operation during the concrete
works.
The reinforcement was steadily installed in the course of the lining operation. Within the section of the manifold two
layers of reinforcement were installed, where else in the remaining part of the shaft only a single layer of
reinforcement (radial = 16, a = 15; vertical = 16, a = 20) was required (see Figure 7). The overall duration of
concrete works took 58 days per shaft, without any cold joints in the lining encountered. The advance rate of the
sliding form work was in the range of 15 - 30 cm/h.

Fig. 7. Sliding form work with reinforcement installation

2.5 Grouting Works

To compensate losses of temperature and shrinkage contact grouting was foreseen throughout the shaft, while
consolidation grouting was only carried out within fractured rock mass sections. The contact and consolidation
grouting was carried out via radial boreholes . The grouting scheme consisted of sections with a regular spacing of
3 m in the vertical distance and each section contained 8 boreholes. The borehole length for the contact grouting was
1,0 m and the length for consolidation grouting was 4,0 m. The requirements for the cement grout mix were defined
as follows:
Penetration of very fines joints and fissures within the rock mass
Penetration of a very thin gap in between the rock mass and the shotcrete
High strength after 28 days
Stable mix design with a sedimentation rate below 3 %
A cement mix considering CEM III 52,5 R with plasticiser was used to meet the requirements (see Table 1 for
specifications)
Table 1. Specification of grout mix

Cement type
Blaine value
d95
Plasticiser
Water/ cement ratio:
Sedimentation rate 2 h /8 h
28 day strength

Variodur 50 / CEMIII 52,5

> 6700 cm2/g
25m
MSH liquid
0,7 0,8
2%/3%
fc = 36-43 MPa.

The suspension was prepared directly on the suspended platform, since a feeding with a downpipe, similar to the
concrete would have demanded an additional treatment on the platform, with unknown influences on the
performance of the suspension.

The average grout take for the contact grouting (target pressure 3 bars) was in the range of ~ 13 litres per borehole,
with a maximum 950 litres at a singular borehole. Nevertheless 406 boreholes out of 1072 boreholes showed a grout
take of less than 2 litres per borehole, indicating a general minor loss due to the shrinkage of the concrete lining.
The average grout take for the consolidation grouting (target pressure 10 bars) was in the range of ~19 litres per
borehole (3.3 litres/ m borehole). Local grout takes exceeded volumes of 1200 litres.

Fig. 8. Grouting pumps on the suspended platform

The minimum grout takes of the contact grouting indirectly proved the excellent initial bedding conditions achieved
through the continuous pouring and vibration of the concrete during installation. The tight rock mass conditions as
well as the minor gap in between the shotcrete and the inner lining prevented in some cases natural de- airing of the
borehole. To investigate the status of semi filled boreholes, grouting tests with PU pipes on the flow regime
(Wannenmacher and Weh 2014) of the contact grouting showed a steadily and progressive filling of the pipe, with
an initial compression of entrapped air at the bottom of the borehole. The gravitational sedimentation of the grout
and separation of the entrapped air starts after the specified pressure maintenance phase. The entrapped air is locked
in the borehole in case of low permeable rock mass conditions.

Fig. 9. Semi filled bore hole with entrapped air during grouting (left side) and section after settling of grout(right side)

For further avoidance of semi filled boreholes on site, packers were only closed halfway to allow a de-airing during
the borehole filling process and closed as soon as grouting outflow was observed. The standard grouting process was
continued after the closure of the packer.
To overcome problems of the grouting, especially in dense rock mass conditions it is recommended to use a
tube a manchette grouting system as used for passive pre- stressed tunnel lining systems for concrete lined pressure
tunnels (Wannenmacher 2013). The usage of such systems would further minimize the overall drilling works in the
shaft, since the tube a manchette grouting system would be installed prior to concrete placement.

3. Summary
The concept of vertical shafts provides a reliable solution for hydro power plants and may serve under favourable
ground conditions as a cost effective alternative for steel lined inclined shafts. Actual materials allow for the
economic construction of the penstock, guarantying long term stability of the waterway. The effort of construction
remains complex and should not be underestimated in terms of quality implementation to guarantee the long term
stability of the lining compared to a steel lining for an inclined shaft. The Nant de Drance pump storage scheme is
an excellent example, where the local conditions were utilized in an economic way to erect a modern pump storage
station meeting the requirements of the 21st century.
References
1.

Schleiss, A. 1985. Bemessung von Druckstollen, Teil I, Literatur, Grundlagen, Felshydraulik insbesondere
Sickerstrmungen durch Auskleidung und Fels. ETHZ, VAW, Mitteilung 78
2. Schleiss, A. (1986): Bemessung von Druckstollen, Teil II, Einfluss der Sickerstrmung in Betonauskleidung und Fels,
mechanisch-hydraulische Wechselwirkung, Bemessungskriterien. ETHZ, VAW, Mitteilung 86
3. Seeber G., Schmitter M,, Friedrich R. (1989): Planung, Bemessung und Ausfhrung des Kraftabstieges fr das
Kraftwerk Uttendorf II der sterreichischen Bundesbahnen, 38. Salzburger Kolloquium fr Geomechanik 1989.
4. Seingre, G., Ihly, T. and Frei, H. R. (2011), The Nant De Drance pumped storage station a large underground power
station in the Valais Alps / Pumpspeicherwerk Nant De Drance ein groes unterirdisches Wasserkraftwerk in den Walliser
Alpen. Geomechanik Tunnelbau, 4: 627642. doi: 10.1002/geot.201100048.
5. Sonderegger M. (2009): Evaluation von Lsungsanstzen zur Abschtzung der Gebirgsspannung im Gebiet des geplanten
Pumpspeicherwerks von Emosson (Wallis, Schweiz), ETHZ Zrich, 2009.
6. Venkatesh H.S., Balachander R., Gupta R.N., Handling the blockades while excavating the surge shaft at Tala
Hydroelectric Project, Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology, Volume 23, Issue 2, March 2008, Pages 145-150,
ISSN 0886-7798, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tust.2007.03.005.
7. Wannenmacher H., Bauert M., and Amann F. (2012): Design aspects for concrete lined vertical shafts for hydropower
constructions, Eurock 2012, Stockholm, Sweden.
8. Wannenmacher H. and Weh M. (2014) Report Grouting Test. internal document 2014
9. Wannenmacher H. et al. (2013). Improved Pressure Tunnel Lining Methods, World Tunnel Congress 2013 Geneva,
Underground the way to the future!, G. Anagnostou & H. Ehrbar (eds)
10. Weh M. (2010): Hauptzugangsstollen Nant de Drance; Anpassung des TBM-Designs an die spezifischen
Projektbedingungenund erste Vortriebserfahrungen. ETH Zrich - D-BAUG - IGT- Untertagbau - Kolloquium Maschineller Tunnelvortrieb im Fels (2010)

The Authors
Peter Stakne is head of the shaft sinking unit of Marti Holding Ltd. in Switzerland. He has completed various hydropower
projects worldwide and worked on major projects as Uttendorf in Austria and actually on Nant de Drance hydropower project in
Switzerland, where he is the project manager for the shaft construction.
Martin Zmlnig is a project manager of stu-Stettin GmbH in Austria. He is specialized in shaft construction and shaft
widening for large hydropower plants. Since the graduation from the HTL-Villach majoring in civil engineering, he has been
working in the construction of for infrastructure projects mainly in Europe. He is currently the deputy project manager for the
shaft construction of the NdD Hydropower scheme
Andreas Heizmann is the executive manager of Marti Geotechnik GmbH in Germany specialized in grouting works. Major
current projects are the the pumping storage schemes of Linth-Limmern and Nant de Drance, as well as the hydropower plant
Brenwerk. Since graduating as civil engineer from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in 1988, he has been working
worldwide as project manager and technical manager for foundation engineering.
Helmut Wannenmacher is working for Marti Holding Ltd. in Switzerland as a project manager. His current works include the
pump storage scheme in Linth Limmern and Nant de Drance in Switzerland. Since his graduation from the Technical University
of Graz, he has been working worldwide in the design and construction of several hydropower plants and pressure tunnels in
Africa, Asia, Middle East, South-America, North America and Europe, among those the Niagara Tunnel Facility Project in
Canada and the Kopswerk II in Austria.