Development of a methodology for studying tunnel climate in long railway tunnels and for optimizing the design process of cross-passage cooling systems

Daniel Fruhwirt*, Peter-Johann Sturm, Helmut Steiner, Romano Borchiellini

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

When it comes into operation in 2026, the Koralmtunnel in Austria will be the world́s seventh longest railway tunnel. The installation of the power supply, telecommunications and electro-mechanical services is currently ongoing. Parts of these systems have to be protected from temperature and humidity variations and from the high dust loads which are characteristic of the tunnel atmosphere. In particular, cooling systems are required to counteract the significant amounts of heat released by some installations. Information on a large number of parameters (e.g. tunnel air temperatures) is required in the design process. However, such information is only partly available in the design stage. Hence, a prediction of tunnel air temperatures has to be made. Additionally, since hardly any information about the tunnel climate in long railway tunnels is available and in-situ measurements are not possible, as thermal conditions differ significantly between the construction/equipping phase and the operation phase, a novel methodology for the prediction of the tunnel climate had to be developed. This article presents a description of a new method comprising four main investigative steps and of its application to the Koralmtunnel as a selected case study. While steps 1 and 2 provide information about the actual cooling requirement and tunnel air temperatures for a period of 50 years, steps three and four of the investigation aim at the technical and economic optimization of cooling systems.
Original languageEnglish
Article number105194
JournalTunnelling and Underground Space Technology
Volume138
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Aug 2023

Keywords

  • Tunnel climate
  • Life cycle cost analysis
  • Cooling requirements
  • Cooling concepts
  • Numerical simulations
  • Railway tunne

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Geotechnical Engineering and Engineering Geology
  • Building and Construction

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