LAUSR

Purpose The behavior of joints has a significant effect on the stability of water conveyance tunnel. The purpose of this paper is to study the contact and friction at the joint of the tunneling segment lining and establish its contact friction model. At the same time, the stress and deformation characteristics at the joint of the segment under hydrostatic load are analyzed. Design/methodology/approach In this study, the contact and friction in a bolted joint are examined using shear testing. The feasibility of the proposed model is verified by a numerical simulation of tests and a theoretical analysis. Accordingly, the effect of joints on the lining is explored under internal hydrostatic loading. Findings The results show that the openings of tunnel segments in joints gradually expand from the positions of the inner and outer edges to the location of the bolt. Moreover, the stress concentration zone is formed at the bolt. Under hydraulic loading, the opening displacement at the joint increases as the water pressure increases; nevertheless, it does not exceed engineering requirements. When the water pressure of the tunnel lining joint reaches 0.5 MPa, the opening of the joint slowly increases. When the water pressure exceeds 0.7 MPa, the opening of the joint rapidly and significantly increases. Originality/value Contact and friction in a bolted joint were examined using shear testing. A cohesive zone model of bolted joints was proposed based on test results. The influence of joint behavior on the stability of water conveyance tunnel was studied.