A study on predicting the wear of TBM disc cutters using Cerchar testing

Estimating the disc cutter wear life or change time is a critical part of performance prediction for the application of hard rock TBMs. This paper examines the disc cutter wear rate and the number of required discs during the excavation of the Kanisib (or Zab) tunnel based on the transpositioning concept. The study covers the disc changes due to the normal wear process, leaving out those replaced due to mechanical/bearing failures. This study also analyzes TBM field performance and actual cutter consumption using a method, specific mass loss per volume (SMLV) excavated. SMLV considers the wear mass of a disc cutter relative to the disc cutters replacement for a given volume of excavated rock. Generally speaking, the disc SMLV incorporates critical parameters, and a formula is introduced to calculate it from the rock properties. The new model can be utilized for estimating disc life for any disc cutter size, diameter, and tip width. The predictive model developed in this study allows for estimating cutter life based on the location of disc cutters on the cutterhead. The proposed model uses rock mass parameter, namely the rock quality designation (RQD), and rock material parameters measured in a laboratory, including rock abrasion and strength. Rock abrasion is estimated by Cerchar abrasivity index (CAI) or modified Cerchar abrasivity index (MCAI). Furthermore, a new approach to Cerchar indices has been used, which is based on the pin mass loss instead of pin tip flat size, and as a result, new indices called CAIML and MCAIML are introduced. The correlation between predicted and observed values shows that the proposed model for specific mass loss per volume can predict the normal wear of disc cutters. Furthermore, the Cerchar indices calculated using the pin mass loss offered better correlations with field data than those specified based on the diameter of the pin tip flat. Overall, MCAIML exhibited the best correlation with the field observations compared to the other Cerchar indices.