Skip to main content

Simex machine helps deliver new tunnel lining

In Italy an MP1000 cutting system from Simex has been used to help resurface the walls of a highway tunnel. The SS51 State Road crosses through the Dolomites in the north-eastern Alpine Region of Italy. The SS51 starts in San Vendemiano in the province of Treviso and ends in Dobbiaco in the province of Bolzano and is a key road because it connects Cadore and the main towns in the area of Cortina d'Ampezzo. This 134.4 km road has expansion work and upgrades to improve safety and boost capacity. One the mo
December 1, 2014 Read time: 4 mins
The Simex cutting attachment proved effective fitted to the modified excavator
In Italy an MP1000 cutting system from 1141 Simex has been used to help resurface the walls of a highway tunnel. The SS51 State Road crosses through the Dolomites in the north-eastern Alpine Region of Italy. The SS51 starts in San Vendemiano in the province of Treviso and ends in Dobbiaco in the province of Bolzano and is a key road because it connects Cadore and the main towns in the area of Cortina d'Ampezzo. This 134.4 km road has expansion work and upgrades to improve safety and boost capacity.

One the most important sections is the 1.34km Caralte tunnel near Pieve di Cadore, which has a road surface 7.2m wide and includes 1.3m wide pedestrian walkways. Along with the ponte Cadore, this single-tube tunnel is part of an important bypass that avoids motorists from having to pass through the town of Perarolo di Cadore and the section of road known as la Cavallera with its many hairpin turns. But, completed in 1985, the concrete lining of the tunnel had started to deteriorate.

The ANAS road infrastructure authority of the Venice district decided to restore the tunnel walls by means of waterproofing and ceiling reinforcement. The project consisted of injecting polyurethane resins to close the cracks and prevent water from reaching the lining, removing 30mm of the degraded layer by scarification and then applying a special fibre-reinforced grout. The tunnel ceiling was also fittted with four L-shaped elements at spaced intervals to prevent detachment of the concrete over time. The rehabilitation works of the Cadore Tunnel were assigned to a temporary consortium made up of Cadore Asfalti Srl of Perarolo di Cadore and Esposito Mario of Trento.

A critical aspect of the job came from the time restraints of closures for the restoration works. Even partial closure would lead to detours along the long and winding roads. High productivity as well as precise profiling were crucial and in all, the project required a total of 24,300m2 of scarified surface.

Contractor Grotti carried out the scarification using a GTF 200 RC and a special Simex MP 1000 planer. The GTF 200 RC is a machine constructed by Grotti based on a tracked excavator but with features such as a telescopic boom that can follow the profile of the tunnel from the ceiling along the side walls; a hydraulic circuit designed to power the Simex attachments; and a remote control allowing the operator to work at a distance. Grotti was subcontracted by Cadore Asfalti. The extension of the boom right up to the 6.6m high tunnel ceiling and the fact that the boom could be retracted to follow the profile along the side walls allowed the work to be carried out. The Simex MP 1000 planer featured a drum equipped with 134 teeth, providing a surface ready for the application of the fibre-reinforced grout.

Injected resins were used to close the cracks and seal the joints. This entailed the use of single-component hydroreactive and expanding polyurethane resin from the MasterBuilder line produced by 2645 BASF. The MasterRoc MP 355 1K DW material is free of solvents and can react with water by forming a porous foam with expansion capacity 20-25 times its own volume.

This was injected in proximity to the cracks by boring 10-15mm diameter holes. Injection was carried out using polyamide truncated cone-shaped packers, and in some more critical areas, in steel as well. Both models were certified to withstand an injection pressure of 250bar and to ensure a seal. In some areas the procedure involved filling actual cavities formed behind the lining. In total, over 30,000 boreholes and injections were carried out, sealing the tunnel effectively.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Asphalt reinforcement extends road life
    July 12, 2012
    Special reinforcements can extend the life of an old or new road, and also offer environmental benefits. Patrick Smith reports. Asphalt reinforcement can extend the service life of a resurfaced road by a factor of 3-4, says Huesker, developers of the HaTelit range of asphalt reinforcement. Aimed at preventing the propagation of reflective cracking from an old asphalt layer through a new surface course, Huesker claims the formation of reflective cracking is considerably delayed or even completely prevented u
  • Indeco hammers carry out key excavation work in Italian tunnel project
    December 2, 2014
    Indeco breakers have been instrumental in excavating the Serra Rotonda Tunnel along the new Salerno-Reggio Calabria highway in southern Italy - Lucio Garofalo reports The A3 Salerno-Reggio-Calabria highway runs for some 443km, linking the A1 Milano-Napoli with the southernmost part of the country. A tunnel is a major link on this highway and was originally built between 1966 and 1974 in an area where road construction can be a challenge due to orography, geology and seismicity. Since 2001, the A3 has bee
  • Major Pisa link gets upgrade
    February 29, 2012
    Recycling with foamed bitumen is being used for lane reconstruction on the SP11 road in Italy, where contractor F.lli Lepri is carrying out work on a 14km section. The SP11 is an important link forming part of the Colline per Legoli Highway connecting the SS67 Tosco-Romagnola Highway near Pontedera with the southeast region of Pisa Province up to the borders of Florence Province.
  • Innovations in formwork aid project completion
    February 14, 2012
    Innovative formwork solutions are helping to get projects completed on or before time, meaning savings in time and money as Patrick smith reports. The use of flexible, modular formwork to create innovative structures out of concrete is helping to increase productivity and thus drive down completion time and costs.