LAUSR

Abstract In mechanized excavation projects, the major part of feasibility studies includes predicting the lifetime of cutting tools. Estimating the required numbers of tools for excavating a certain length of a section, under defined geologic conditions, and assessing the cost and downtimes needed for tools replacement are the other important issues in the preliminary studies of these projects. Presently, there are several experimental models used to study the abrasive capacity of soil materials in mechanized tunneling applications. In this paper, the effect of plastic behavior of clay particles on the abrasivity of soil materials was studied using the results of LCPC abrasivity tests. The results showed that the rheological behavior of abrasive samples changes considerably with the change of the clay particles mineralogy and the dominant water content. These changes have a significant effect on recorded wear amounts. Based on the obtained results, the plastic limit and the liquid limit of the clay part can be used to predict the appeared abrasive trends in LCPC tests. Moreover, during performing the LCPC tests, the consumed power of the electromotor of the testing device was recorded. The obtained power graphs confirmed the effect of the mineralogy and the water content of the clay part on the rheological and abrasive behavior of the testing samples.