Abstract A reasonable excavation procedure and contour blasting method is one of the key techniques for construction of deep underground powerhouse. Firstly,the excavation procedures and contour blasting methods adopted for the underground powerhouses of large-scale hydropower stations under building or completed are summarized and analyzed. Secondly,based on the analysis of the propagation of cracks driven by explosion gases during contour blasting,and taking into account the combined effects of initial in-situ stress of surrounding rock mass and the adjacent blast holes,the possibility of stable propagation of pre-split cracks under confinement of high lateral in-situ stress is demonstrated. The results show that the in-situ stress of surrounding rock mass is a main factor to control the crack propagation for pre-split blasting. When the lateral in-situ stress vertical to the axis of underground powerhouse is larger than 10–12 MPa,it is not feasible to employ an excavation procedure of pre-split first followed by the main rock excavation. Alternatively,an excavation procedure of middle cut blasting carried out first,followed by pre-split or smooth blasting is recommended.
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Received: 23 December 2010
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