ResearchAdvanced Concepts
in Underground ConstructionThe most exciting geothermal-energy-related project under way at Earthworm Tunneling is the HydroboreTM. The Hydrobore is a revolutionary concept in tunnel drilling, based on existing technology, designed to be much more advanced than current mechanisms on the market. The Hydrobore is explored in a fictional context in our Maxlore Series However, it is a technological concept that has valid potential in today?s world and the world of the future. One of the biggest limitations in tunnel drilling today is lack of efficiency. A machine can only progress in a forward direction as fast as it is able to bore into the material that blocks its path. Even under optimal conditions, building in a single-medium, current tunnel building machines (TBMs) can build only 20 miles of tunnel per year. Hydrobore technology combats this TBM deficiency in several ways.
At the forefront of the Hydrobore concept is the innovative use of water.There are numerous obstacles to consider when building at extreme depths. First is maintaining the structural integrity of the tunnel walls. Second, is keeping the tunnel from filling up with water seepage, which often occurs at extreme depths.
Current tunneling techniques ? using Tunnel Building Machines (TBMs) ? require ?sleeves? that support the sides of the tunnel. This process is time-consuming and expensive. At the same time, under certain conditions TBMs must be supplemented by pumps to remove water seeping into the tunnel.
Unlike other types of drilling machines, Hydrobore does not attempt to remove water from the tunnel under construction. Instead, it uses that very same water to its own ends. Instead of expelling the water, it uses it to fill the entire tunnel, which in turn ensures the tunnel?s structural integrity at extreme depths, much the same was as a natural aquifer. Instead of avoiding the water, Hydrobore uses it as a tool to cut the stone and remove it from the tunnel.
Below is an artistic rendering of a cross section of the Hydrobore as it moves from left to right. Though it is not drawn to scale, this drawing demonstrates several important facts:
- All of the mechanisms for drilling the tunnel, building its walls and housing the crew are located on the Hydrobore.
- As the Hydrobore moves through the rock, it cuts away a tunnel that is 52 feet in diameter. By the time the Hydrobore has moved through the space it occupies, the crew has built a tunnel wall that is 1 foot thick. The wall is built in several stages so that the material has appropriate time to dry and harden.
- The Hydrobore is propelled through the rock by a system of treads which move in opposing directions to keep the Hydrobore upright. If the treads all faced the same way, the Hydrobore would turn over like a screw, making it impossible for a crew to work.
 Tunnels have myriad applications, from water and energy transportation to geothermal power.Tunnels have been used in many projects ranging from underground and underwater tunnels for transportation ? The Chunnel and Boston?s Big Dig ? to water supply tunnels ? the 90-mile two-way tunnel supplying water to the Boston metropolis. Historically, it has been too expensive and too dangerous to drill many miles. However, with the advent of the Hydrobore, tunneling would become safe, efficient and cost-effective.
The Hydrobore combines many existing ideas into a tunneling machine that has the capacity to build deeper tunnels at a significantly faster rate. A tunnel built with the Hydrobore would provide safe access to geothermal energy from the earth?s core, and could harness the energy necessary for a large-scale geothermal power plant. Accessing and processing geothermal energy is already considered to be the wave of the future in energy consumption. It provides access to vast quantities of clean water, solutions to energy and waste management problems, and it is all made possible through the development of the Hydrobore tunneling technology.
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