_St. Clair River Tunnel._--The submarine double-track railway tunnel
under the St. Clair River for the Grand Trunk Ry. is 8500 ft. long, and
was driven through clay by means of a shield, as described in the
succeeding chapter on the shield system of tunneling. The mechanical
plant installed for prosecuting the work was very complete. To furnish
steam to the air compressors, pumps, electric-light engines,
hoisting-engines, etc., a steam-plant was provided on each side of the
river, consisting of three 70 H. P. and four 80 H. P. Scotch portable
boilers. The air-compressor plant at each end consisted of two 20 × 24
in. Ingersoll air compressors. To furnish light to the workings, two 100
candle-power Edison dynamos were installed on the American side, and two
Ball dynamos of the same size were installed on the Canadian side. The
dynamos on both sides were driven by Armington & Sims engines. These
dynamos furnished light to the tunnel workings and to the machine-shops
and power-plant at each end. Root blowers of 10,000 cu. ft. per minute
capacity provided ventilation. The pumping plant consisted of one set of
pumps installed for permanent drainage, and another set installed for
drainage during construction, and also to remain in place as a part of
the permanent plant. The latter set consisted of two 500 gallon
Worthington duplex pumps set first outside of each air lock, closing the
ends of the river portion of the tunnel. For permanent drainage, a
drainage shaft was sunk on the Canadian side of the river, and connected
with a pump at the bottom of the open-cut approach. In this shaft were
placed a vertical, direct-acting, compound-condensing pumping engine
with two 19¹⁄₂ in. high-pressure and two 33³⁄₈ in. low-pressure
cylinders of 24 in. stroke, connected to double-acting pumps with a
capacity of 3000 gallons per minute, and also two duplex pumps of 500
gallons capacity per minute. For permanent drainage on the American
side, four Worthington pumps of 3000 gallons’ capacity were installed in
a pump-house set back into the slope of the open-cut approach. For the
permanent drainage of the tunnel proper two 400 gallon pumps were placed
at the lowest point of the tunnel grade. Spoil coming from the tunnel
proper was hoisted to the top of the open cut by derricks operated by
two 50 H. P. Lidgerwood hoisting-engines. The pressure pumping plant
for supplying water to the hydraulic shield-jacks at each end of the
tunnel consisted of duplex direct-acting engines with 12 in. steam
cylinders and 1 in. water cylinders, supplying water at a pressure of
2000 lbs. per sq. in.
CHAPTER X.
TUNNELS THROUGH HARD ROCK (Continued).
EXCAVATION BY DRIFTS: THE SIMPLON AND MURRAY HILL TUNNELS.
[Illustration: FIG. 55.--Diagram Showing Sequence of Excavations in
Drift Method of Tunneling Rock.]
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