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Video tags
Subtitles
Russian
00:00:02
For millennia,00:00:04
the tunnels allow us
to shorten distances00:00:07
and cross natural barriers
like the mountains.00:00:12
Today, in the heart of the Alps,00:00:14
hundreds of men and women,00:00:15
put their know-how
at the service of a titanic project.00:00:20
Build the biggest tunnel
railway in the world,00:00:22
the Lyon-Turin.00:00:24
- Digging this tunnel is more
complicated than the Channel Tunnel.00:00:28
Within a pharaonic construction site,00:00:30
these builders invent and test
all the techniques,00:00:33
to conquer the mountain00:00:35
and build the work of the century.00:00:37
- We are always in the process of
modify, adapt, repair, maintain.00:00:42
- The mountain will decide and we,
we will adapt to the mountains.00:00:45
In the depths, one of the machines
the most powerful in the world,00:00:48
a tunnel boring machine, digs through the
toughest terrain in the massif.00:00:53
- It is extremely rare to have
such powerful machines.00:00:57
Alongside this metal monster,00:00:58
engineers,
geologists and miners,00:01:01
accomplish
daily feats,00:01:03
thanks to an arsenal of unusual machines.00:01:09
In a dangerous environment,00:01:10
they must identify the nature
of the ground before each advance.00:01:14
Call on the best pyrotechnicians,00:01:16
to pierce the galleries
the most complex,00:01:19
while constantly evacuating,00:01:21
millions of tons of rock
thanks to a sprawling carpet.00:01:24
- If we don't evacuate,
we can't dig.00:01:26
- We are at a flow rate of approximately
1,200 tonnes of material,00:01:30
excavated per hour.00:01:31
During four years of construction,00:01:33
these extreme miners noted
all the challenges,00:01:36
technological and logistical,00:01:37
to fulfill a strategic mission,00:01:39
lay the first foundations
of a work,00:01:42
destined to endure through the ages.00:01:45
We take you into the bowels
of the most complex project00:01:48
and the most ambitious in Europe,00:01:50
the Lyon-Turin tunnel.00:01:58
Invisible but essential,00:02:00
the tunnels are among the works
the most complex00:02:03
and the most dangerous to build.00:02:06
In the center of the Alps,00:02:07
this valley is a crossroads
strategic road,00:02:10
one of the few crossing points
between France and Italy.00:02:14
Each year, more than 2.5 million
heavy goods vehicles pass through the region.00:02:21
To unclog these roads,00:02:22
a titanic project has been launched.00:02:25
Dig the biggest tunnel
never made in the world,00:02:27
the Lyon-Turin.00:02:32
Located in the heart of Europe, this tunnel
57 and a half kilometers,00:02:35
will be the longest gallery
railway in the world.00:02:40
It will be composed of two tubes
distinct 11 meters in diameter,00:02:43
connected every 300 meters
through interconnections.00:02:49
In total,
160 kilometers of underground,00:02:52
must be built
across the Alpine massif.00:02:56
This buried megastructure,00:02:58
will be the central work of the future
high speed line,00:03:00
between Lyon and Turin.00:03:04
The tunnel could ease traffic
of the Alps of more than a million,00:03:07
heavy goods vehicles with piggybacking.00:03:14
But here, the terrain is so
difficult and unstable,00:03:17
what building this tunnel represents
a real feat.00:03:21
- This tunnel is much more
complicated than the Channel Tunnel.00:03:25
The biggest difficulty of this project,
and that's what makes it different,00:03:28
of a classic tunnel site,00:03:31
this is the geology encountered
under the Alps.00:03:34
We have a very heterogeneous geology,
which evolves very often,00:03:37
sometimes around ten
from meter to meter,00:03:40
we have a totally different geology.00:03:42
The 1ʳᵉ stage of this project outside
common is to confront each other,00:03:45
to the most difficult area of the massif,00:03:48
by digging a reconnaissance gallery
of 11.5 kilometers.00:03:53
This 4-year strategic phase
will determine the feasibility00:03:56
and the future of the whole work.00:04:04
Over the 160 kilometers
planned galleries,00:04:06
geologists have identified an area
especially critical in the massif.00:04:11
For 11.5 kilometers, rocks
extremely hard are alternated,00:04:15
with much softer rocks.00:04:18
This is a section
extremely complex,00:04:20
that must be pierced by all means
before going further.00:04:24
For 4 years, each stage
of this crucial mission,00:04:27
was a real tour de force within
of one of the largest construction sites in Europe.00:04:32
A construction site to be organized
extraordinary logistics,00:04:35
on an unprecedented scale and whose
numbers make your head spin.00:04:40
For about fifteen kilometers,
on the mountainside00:04:43
and in the heart of his bowels,00:04:45
400 people take turns night and day,
seven days on seven.00:04:49
An incessant ballet of trucks
and super-powerful machines.00:04:53
By tens of thousands,00:04:54
gigantic prefabricated elements
are lined up like on parade,00:04:58
ready to reach the depths.00:05:02
A sprawling carpet crosses
the mountain and the valley,00:05:05
in order to transport hundreds
tons of rubble every hour.00:05:11
Concrete is poured by the hundreds
thousands of cubic meters00:05:15
and tested every day in the laboratory.00:05:17
The site even has its own
water treatment plant.00:05:25
And underground, under several
hundreds of meters of rocks,00:05:28
miners use machines
unusual and oversized,00:05:31
to dig the Alpine massif.00:05:37
The conductor of this
excessive logistical organization,00:05:41
It’s Florent Martin.00:05:45
- Since the start of our excavations,
we met,00:05:48
a multitude of events,00:05:51
more or less important,00:05:52
but who each time
necessary the establishment,00:05:55
special techniques
and know-how.00:05:59
To cope
in all situations,00:06:02
the teams apply
a rigorous process.00:06:04
Dig the mountain meter by meter,00:06:06
evacuate thousands in parallel
tons of rubble00:06:09
and produce in tight flow
the foundations of the future tunnel.00:06:16
These extreme miners use everything
an arsenal to tame the mountain,00:06:20
notably an unusual tool.00:06:24
- Here, we use a tunnel boring machine,00:06:25
which can be related
to a large drill.00:06:27
All our teams are
inside the wick00:06:30
and we move forward with our fuse
through the rocky material.00:06:34
This giant tunnel boring machine is in charge
of most of the digging.00:06:38
9 kilometers out of the 11.5 to be completed.00:06:42
To discover this mysterious drill,00:06:45
you have to rush into
the depths of the mountain,00:06:47
in an environment
totally out of the world.00:06:51
After 3 years of digging at one speed
average of 15 meters per day,00:06:55
the machine traveled 8 kilometers.00:07:01
Here is the tunnel boring machine called Federica.00:07:08
When we go inside
of this colossus of metal,00:07:11
it's hard to imagine its size,00:07:13
as the machine becomes one
with the mountain.00:07:19
Bigger than a football field
with its 138 meters long00:07:23
and as high as a 4-story building,00:07:25
with its 11 meters in diameter,00:07:27
this tunnel boring machine weighs 2,300 tonnes.00:07:31
At the front of the machine,00:07:33
the wheel that breaks the rock
accumulates 300 tonnes.00:07:37
Just behind, the steel cylinder
which protects the machinery,00:07:40
weighs 1000 tonnes, the equivalent
of more than 800 cars.00:07:47
This tunnel boring machine is also
the most powerful in the world.00:07:49
Federica is propelled
by 14 engines,00:07:52
350 kW each,00:07:54
that is to say the equivalent of 8
Formula 1 at full throttle.00:07:59
This power allows it to dig
15 to 20 meters per day,00:08:03
to evacuate the rock while assembling
the foundations of the tunnel.00:08:07
- It's a machine
which was oversized,00:08:10
since we evolve in a context
complicated geological, uncertain,00:08:13
linked to large covers.00:08:15
And so we oversized the machine,00:08:18
both from a thrust cylinder point of view
than in terms of motorization.00:08:21
It is extremely rare to have
such powerful machines.00:08:26
Locked under more
800 meters of mountain,00:08:29
or even 2,000 meters in places,00:08:31
the tunnel boring machine must always move forward,
no matter the cost.00:08:36
- There is no reversing
possible and moreover,00:08:39
the faster we advance, the more
we move forward steadily,00:08:42
the easier it is to excavate.00:08:45
Pierre-antoine Davanne is the engineer
in charge of Federica.00:08:48
He followed its design, its manufacturing,
his first meters00:08:52
and he manages the daily operation
of this underground monster.00:08:57
His adventure began 4 years ago
previously, at the beginning of 2016,00:09:01
when the tunnel boring machine
arrived at the construction site.00:09:10
The very first challenge of this mission
is logistical.00:09:13
How to get to the heart of the mountain
such disproportionate elements00:09:16
and heavy than the parts
of a tunnel boring machine?00:09:19
A journey as delicate as it is meticulous
for around a hundred trucks.00:09:30
But these are the last meters
which were the most difficult.00:09:34
The biggest convoys have descended
over 2.5 kilometers,00:09:37
in reverse, without visibility,00:09:40
while the big packages passed
a few centimeters away,00:09:43
walls of existing underground spaces.00:09:45
A dangerous maneuver
who takes it alone,00:09:47
a good two hours per element.00:09:51
The pieces were placed in
a cavity the dimensions of cathedrals,00:09:54
over 24 meters high
and 45 m long,00:09:57
for the next step, assembly.00:10:03
The machine head first
been assembled with the front wheel,00:10:06
who breaks the rock,
then its steel envelope00:10:11
and motorization,00:10:12
before setting up
the 7 essential trailers,00:10:16
in operation
of this buried factory.00:10:19
After eight months of assembly and testing,00:10:21
the tunnel boring machine is finally ready.00:10:24
Ready to dig.00:10:30
In spring 2019,
the Federica tunnel boring machine,00:10:33
begins the ninth kilometer
of its reconnaissance mission.00:10:39
To understand how this machine
pierces the mountain,00:10:42
you have to slip through a maze
stairs and walkways,00:10:45
to access the front, a few
centimeters from the rocky front.00:10:51
- We cross the shield and we arrive
at the level of the cutting wheel,00:10:55
this structure here and the terrain
is really just ahead.00:10:58
It’s a bit like the heart of the machine.
because in fact,00:11:01
all equipment
available to the machine,00:11:03
in the end, it still serves to make
turn the cutting wheel,00:11:07
exert pressure on the ground,00:11:10
shatter the rock
and route it outside the tunnel.00:11:15
In a terrible commotion
and an incessant trembling,00:11:18
each digging phase lasts
about thirty minutes.00:11:22
30 minutes to grind precisely
a 1.50 m of rocks,00:11:25
under the suit
of two phenomenal forces,00:11:28
the horizontal thrust of the machine00:11:30
and the rotation of its front part.00:11:36
Of these 11.26 m in diameter,00:11:39
the cutting wheel of the Federica tunnel boring machine,00:11:41
is equipped with 76 dials,00:11:42
50 cm ultra-resistant,00:11:45
galvanized steel
and tungsten carbide.00:11:50
Oriented at a specific angle,00:11:52
these discs act like blades
which fracture the terrain,00:11:55
pressing and turning on the rock.00:12:00
As progress progresses,00:12:01
the debris is collected by
openings and buckets,00:12:04
located on the sides of the wheel
in order to be directed,00:12:07
on a mechanical belt and evacuated
at the rear of the tunnel boring machine,00:12:10
then towards the surface.00:12:14
In technical terms,
we're talking about pickling.00:12:18
This evacuation of the rock
is one of the hotspots,00:12:21
of the Lyon-Turin tunnel.00:12:23
The challenge is immense.00:12:25
Over the 11.5 kilometers,00:12:26
approximately 1.3 million
cubic meters of rock,00:12:29
came out of the mountain.00:12:31
If this mission succeeds, it is approximately
19 million cubic meters of stone,00:12:35
which will have to be evacuated,00:12:37
the equivalent of a mound
270 meters wide00:12:40
and 1,000 meters high.00:12:42
- We are at a flow rate of approximately
1,200 tonnes,00:12:44
of material excavated per hour.00:12:47
So 1200 tonnes of materials,00:12:50
it is the equivalent
120 trucks per hour,00:12:52
that must be managed and treated.00:12:57
From the tunnel boring machine, several
kilometers from the surface,00:13:00
a large rubber band
unfolds gradually,00:13:03
as the machine moves forward.00:13:07
This belt transports the debris to the
speed of 1,200 tonnes per hour,00:13:11
up to a buffer zone
where they are stored,00:13:13
in large tanks,
the hoppers,00:13:16
before being directed
towards another carpet,00:13:18
who evacuates them at speed
800 tonnes per hour,00:13:21
to the surface,00:13:22
then finally to the sorting site,00:13:25
three kilometers further.00:13:29
In total, the conveyor belt,00:13:31
is a sprawling infrastructure
which extends for nearly 15 kilometers.00:13:36
With such a distance, the risks
of breakdowns are multiplied.00:13:40
- It's huge, we see
construction sites in Greater Paris,00:13:43
Greater Paris, Tunneling,
the belt, the conveyor,00:13:46
at worst, he will do
2, 3 or 4 kilometers...00:13:49
And not under these conditions,00:13:52
on the climbs, the descents,
the turns...00:13:56
This is really technical.00:13:59
David Demiere,
the person responsible for the conveying,00:14:02
spends his days settling
new urgent problems.00:14:10
Today a hole was
spotted on the carpet.00:14:13
Vulcanization must be carried out,00:14:15
that is to say a kind of welding
between two pieces of rubber.00:14:20
Nothing very difficult,
but time is running out,00:14:22
because the digging must
resume as quickly as possible.00:14:26
- If we don't evacuate,
we can't dig.00:14:30
It's clear,
since otherwise we will bury ourselves,00:14:32
we're going to be a mole!00:14:36
Just outside the tunnel,
all debris removed,00:14:39
pass through a sorting zone before
to be separated further down the valley.00:14:43
This is the domain of the geologist,
Anaïs Barel.00:14:48
- The materials are analyzed
by these two devices.00:14:51
Then these two devices decide,00:14:53
of the final destination of the materials.00:14:57
These two devices are
optical devices,00:14:59
able to precisely identify
the nature of the rock.00:15:04
A first camera first analyzes
the dominant color of the spoil.00:15:08
A second camera scans
then the stones00:15:11
and determines their size in real time.00:15:15
The results of these analyzes are
transmitted 3 kilometers further,00:15:18
at the very end of the conveyor belt
which crosses the valley.00:15:23
On the deposit site,00:15:25
these gigantic articulated bridges,
called locusts,00:15:28
orient the stones according to
of their qualities.00:15:33
Dark and thin materials
of carbonaceous origin,00:15:35
are separated from larger materials
and lighter, like sandstone,00:15:38
which will be reused or recovered,
as they say in the jargon.00:15:46
- Classified materials
in the non-recoverable part,00:15:49
are organic, carbonaceous.00:15:51
They evolve over time and we
will not be able to reuse them.00:15:54
However,
recoverable materials,00:15:56
have good characteristics
chemical and mechanical.00:15:59
We will have materials
stronger00:16:02
and with better resistance.00:16:05
Rock debris too fragile
are stored as inert waste.00:16:09
But the strongest materials,00:16:11
will be reused on the construction site,00:16:13
especially for making concrete
and to build the enormous embankments,00:16:17
on which the rails will pass
of the future Lyon-Turin train line.00:16:22
The goal is to excavate materials,
to reuse them,00:16:25
to make a loop.00:16:26
Its very important
because it will allow us,00:16:29
to reuse our own materials,
economically or ecologically,00:16:33
this is a very important issue.00:16:36
Organize this gigantic
evacuation circuit,00:16:39
is a challenge for
these rock specialists.00:16:47
But inside the mountain,
another challenge awaits them.00:16:50
Determine in advance the nature
rock to drill.00:17:01
Every 2 days, the tunnel boring machine
stops digging for a few hours,00:17:05
in order to carry out
a strategic operation,00:17:07
a recognition survey.00:17:14
At the front of the machine,00:17:16
sturdy metal rods are
deployed across the shield,00:17:19
to pierce the rocky front.00:17:23
Under the effect of ultra-rapid rotation
and violent percussion,00:17:26
the serrated end of the rod
comes to crush the rock.00:17:31
The metal bar is extended
gradually,00:17:34
to sink up to 50 meters
in front of the tunnel boring machine.00:17:42
Debris is evacuated thanks to
with water under pressure.00:17:48
Like gold prospectors
with their sieve,00:17:50
geologists spring into action.00:17:54
They analyze the rock debris in order to
to know what types of terrain,00:17:58
present themselves in front of the tunnel boring machine00:18:00
and anticipate possible
delicate passages.00:18:09
To know the mountain
even more precisely,00:18:12
several large samples
span are practiced,00:18:15
as progress is made.00:18:20
These extractions are called,00:18:22
exploratory core drilling.00:18:30
- We put a hollow diamond crown.00:18:32
We are going to put a first stem,00:18:35
it's going to turn around quickly, it's like
a circular saw,00:18:38
as we push
and it turns,00:18:41
the carrot will come in
in a hollow tube.00:18:44
And once we're 1.50 m,00:18:47
we're going to extract this carrot
and get it back,00:18:49
so that we
we can analyze it.00:18:53
On these samples, geologists
observe the structure of the stone,00:18:57
its fractures, in order to determine
the nature of the rocks encountered,00:19:01
throughout the mission
of recognition.00:19:07
In forming the Alps, there are
hundreds of millions of years,00:19:10
the movement of the plates formed a
immense millefeuille of rock layers,00:19:13
very different.00:19:17
We dig 800 meters underground,00:19:19
in a geology which is both
complex and a little uncertain.00:19:23
So, we have to adapt, probe,
recognize the terrain00:19:27
and adapt in the way
to dig.00:19:30
- We ran into terrain
which is the Carboniferous terrain.00:19:34
Its particularity is to be
a very changing terrain,00:19:38
with smutty pasts00:19:41
and clayey,
flexible and convergent,00:19:44
that is to say a piece of land
who move00:19:47
and which closes gradually
and as we open it.00:19:50
This mixed geological composition
hard and soft rocks,00:19:54
as well as rock covers
more than 800 meters,00:19:56
create important phenomena
of convergence.00:20:00
The dug hole immediately
tendency to close,00:20:03
under the pressure of the mountain.00:20:06
This is mainly the case in
a critical zone of 2.5 kilometers,00:20:09
at the very beginning of the tunnel
of recognition.00:20:14
- The tunnel boring machine does not pass at this
place, if we put one,00:20:17
the ground would close in on him
and the tunnel boring machine would be stuck.00:20:25
While Federica continues her journey,00:20:27
these very complex 2.5 kilometers
are dug in parallel,00:20:31
thanks to a completely different know-how.00:20:37
In this gallery,
it takes all the courage00:20:39
and the ingenuity of miners
who advance with explosives00:20:42
and unusual devices.00:20:48
- Here, we are in the base tunnel,
of the Lyon-Turin tunnel.00:20:52
Here, we are heading towards Lyon,00:20:54
This is where we started digging.00:20:56
And then we go towards Turin,00:20:59
where we're going to join the game
of the tunnel boring machine which is in front of us.00:21:02
The part with the tunnel boring machine,
we almost never see the rock,00:21:05
she is in front of the shield,
while we here,00:21:08
it’s the terrain, it’s the mountain.00:21:10
We dig directly into the rock,
we are in constant contact,00:21:13
with the rocky massif.00:21:18
We are now on the platform
exterior of the construction site,00:21:21
in a somewhat remote area,00:21:24
under guard, in the powder magazine.00:21:29
Rémi Fortanété, the engineer in charge
from the traditional site area,00:21:33
and Hicham Ouarraq,
a professional artificer,00:21:36
prepare for the next blast.00:21:40
The next volley as they say.00:21:43
- For the cap, we will put
two kilos for 1 m 20.00:21:46
Slaughter, 1.5 kilo.00:21:48
2.5 kilos, lifting00:21:50
and 300 grams in cutting.00:21:53
They come to select
the right detonators,00:21:56
for each zone of the shooting plan.00:21:58
The concentration is maximum,00:22:00
the slightest mistake could be fatal.00:22:08
Every explosive digging
follows the same process.00:22:11
First of all, a Jumbo,00:22:13
a huge tractor with
three articulated arms,00:22:15
comes to drill 190 holes
1.20 m deep,00:22:18
in the rocky front.00:22:27
These holes are then filled
by 2 chemical emulsions,00:22:29
contained in these tanks
and whose mixture,00:22:32
becomes explosive at the end
of a few seconds.00:22:39
The detonators are finally positioned,00:22:41
then connected to the instrument
firing,00:22:44
located at a good distance,
more than 50 meters away.00:22:50
Once recharged with power
electric manually,00:22:53
it's the firing.00:23:00
- In an explosion, it is energy
that the material will transmit00:23:05
to the rock that will come
fracture the rock.00:23:08
And that's how the rock
will be able to break.00:23:12
On the rocky front,
the 190 charges explode00:23:15
and release their energy
in a specific order.00:23:18
First in the central part
in order to create a zone of fragility.00:23:22
Then snail all around,00:23:24
to widen the hole.00:23:26
And finally on the ends
to cut00:23:28
the precise outline of the gallery.00:23:32
To get the maximum damage,00:23:34
the firing of the charges follows
careful sequencing,00:23:37
with a delay of 25 milliseconds
per target area.00:23:45
To explode a meter of rock
eleven meters high,00:23:49
it takes 8 hours of preparation00:23:51
and 300 to 400 kilos of explosives.00:23:55
But if the ground is too soft,00:23:57
this mining method
is not effective.00:24:00
Then enters the scene
a supercharged machine.00:24:09
This machine is a BRH,
a hydraulic rock breaker.00:24:13
A 35-ton track equipped with
with a nine-ton arm,00:24:16
powered by pressurized water,00:24:18
a great jackhammer.00:24:22
At 2 BRH, it will take approximately
8 hours of work,00:24:25
to excavate a meter of rock,00:24:27
starting the attack with
the bottom of the rocky front,00:24:30
before gradually rising again.00:24:35
Once the mountain is pierced,00:24:36
this is the start of a new
work cycle,00:24:38
absolutely crucial for
worker safety00:24:41
and the progress of the tunnel.00:24:46
We must strengthen and support
as quickly as possible the walls,00:24:48
before they collapse under the
pressure from mountain movements.00:24:55
After digging a meter,00:24:57
the priority is to confine
the rocky front00:24:59
with a first layer of concrete,00:25:01
then reinforce the contours
from the gallery.00:25:05
On the vault, twelve bolts
of 8 m are inserted and sealed,00:25:08
in order to maintain the rock
superior in compression.00:25:13
About forty new
8 m bolts are drilled,00:25:16
all around the circumference,00:25:18
in order to hang the metal plates
which will block the rock.00:25:26
These bolts are installed by
a huge jumbo type tractor,00:25:29
equipped with three articulated arms.00:25:34
- First, the hole
is stuffed with a jumbo,00:25:36
with a drill bar.00:25:38
Then we thread this bolt
inside.00:25:41
We connect a pump here00:25:43
and then we inject
water inside00:25:46
and the bolt will expand00:25:48
and take the entire diameter of the hole.00:25:53
Once the bolts are installed
and the metal plates fixed,00:25:56
the support operation
is far from complete.00:26:01
The Jumbo is back.00:26:04
This time he's wearing a huge
metal frame,00:26:06
that he will slowly deploy
in the gallery.00:26:10
- We're coming to put up a hanger.00:26:13
He is closest to the field,00:26:15
to accompany almost instantly
ground movements.00:26:19
Once the bolts are arranged in
halo all around the cavity,00:26:22
a large frame
circular metal,00:26:24
a hanger is positioned
along the walls.00:26:29
To absorb movements
of the mountain without breaking,00:26:32
the hanger slides
in 8 different locations.00:26:36
This support makes it possible to avoid
collapses,00:26:38
while adapting
to ground movements.00:26:45
The operation ends with the face
of shotcrete.00:26:50
With the remote-controlled spear,
a fairly viscous concrete,00:26:53
to hang well the wall is sprayed
over the entire cavity.00:27:00
2 large top trucks
are necessary,00:27:02
to build the latter
coating layer.00:27:07
With this type of support,
we let the ground decompress,00:27:10
we let him work
as he wants.00:27:12
It’s support.00:27:13
And then the land, once it has
took the place he wanted to take,00:27:17
we accompany him
and ultimately, we block it.00:27:22
After installing the support,00:27:23
topographers monitor every day
possible deformations of the tunnel,00:27:27
by pointing their laser at targets
installed all along the wall.00:27:31
These ultra-precise measurements allow
to detect ground movements,00:27:35
too important.00:27:37
- There is an alert threshold.00:27:39
We have an alert threshold
5 centimeters over 24 hours.00:27:42
On the other hand, if we arrive
at 5 centimeters over 24 hours, there,00:27:44
you have to start worrying.00:27:46
No matter the nature of the rock,
the terrain is always in motion.00:27:50
It is necessary to monitor and
particularly in this area,00:27:52
which is very bad.00:27:55
The ground is so unstable
that the topographers have measured,00:27:58
unprecedented deformations
in several places,00:28:01
especially in an area
where the underground closed,00:28:04
70 centimeters in a few days.00:28:08
But the foundations of metal and
concrete stopped these movements,00:28:11
without breaking thanks to their flexibility.00:28:15
When these reinforcements
are not sufficient,00:28:17
to absorb ground movements,00:28:19
miners superimpose new
concrete rings,00:28:21
80 cm thick and ultra-rigid.00:28:25
- We encountered a geological fault,00:28:28
we had a landslide with
convergences which accelerated rapidly.00:28:31
We had a landslide
of approximately 700 cubic meters.00:28:34
Here it is impossible
to treat the land,00:28:37
without blocking due to
of this geological fault.00:28:40
Here we really came
make two rings,00:28:44
so the first ring
where here inside,00:28:46
we came to make the formwork,00:28:48
with a concrete pour behind00:28:50
and then inside we came
make a second ring,00:28:54
in the same way,00:28:55
with formwork inside
and concrete.00:28:59
In this very complex part
2.5 kilometers,00:29:02
engineers and companions
adapt their techniques,00:29:05
depending on the terrain.00:29:08
It is a titanic job which
allows you to move forward at speed,00:29:11
one meter per day.00:29:19
A few kilometers further east,00:29:20
the tunnel boring machine digs 15 meters
per day towards Turin.00:29:24
Less than three years after his departure,00:29:26
he swallowed 8.5 kilometers,00:29:28
out of the 9 of his mission
of recognition.00:29:33
During this journey, you must
also protect men00:29:36
and equipment
against landslides.00:29:39
The entire front part of the machine
is reinforced by a robust shell00:29:43
7 cm of steel.00:29:45
It's the shield.00:29:48
- It is a metal structure,00:29:50
which weighs more than 1000 tonnes00:29:52
and so that's the part
the heaviest of the machine,00:29:55
because this is where transit
the greatest efforts,00:29:58
to move the machine forward.00:30:00
And this is where also transit
significant efforts,00:30:02
of the ground in the event of convergence,00:30:05
or if a block was placed
to fall on the shield.00:30:09
But just behind this shield,00:30:11
the ground could close00:30:12
and you have to put it down very quickly
solid foundations.00:30:16
- So we meet
difficult terrain,00:30:20
very uneven and pushing.00:30:23
So we had the need,00:30:25
to dig and immediately put
after digging,00:30:28
a covering.00:30:30
This covering is this immense
concrete frame,00:30:33
composed of thousands
of successive rings.00:30:38
A ring is made up of 9 elements
which fit together00:30:41
and which we call voussoirs.00:30:46
Only two elements
have a different shape,00:30:48
the keystone that closes the ring00:30:50
and the raft which forms
the tunnel floor.00:30:55
Each ring measures
1.52 m wide on one side00:30:58
and 1.48 m from the other.00:31:02
This slightly beveled structure
allows you to correct the trajectory00:31:05
and take turns.00:31:10
The difficulty was to say,00:31:12
are we able to put
put these rings in place,00:31:14
before the ground is
closed on the machine?00:31:17
And how were we going to make sure
that these rings would resist00:31:21
and resist efforts,00:31:23
which will last 100 years?00:31:28
The first challenge is to supply
the construction site continues,00:31:31
with a colossal number of rings.00:31:34
Over the 9 kilometers
recognition of the tunnel boring machine,00:31:37
nearly 6,000 rings,
i.e. 56,000 segments,00:31:40
are necessary.00:31:45
These are more than 400,000 tonnes of
concrete and steel that must be manufactured00:31:49
and install in three years.00:31:53
- There we are in storage
temporary of our segments,00:31:56
which will feed,00:31:58
the tunnel boring machine.00:32:00
They were made
a few kilometers from here,00:32:02
in a specific factory00:32:04
and are delivered by truck
every day.00:32:09
We are 2 kilometers from the construction site
main, in the voussoir factory.00:32:13
A specially rehabilitated place
to produce in tight flow,00:32:17
the foundations of the Lyon-Turin tunnel.00:32:20
The manufacturing process is
organized to keep pace,00:32:23
ten complete rings per day,00:32:25
i.e. 90 pieces weighing
up to eight tons.00:32:29
Here is the welding workshop where
assembled the metal frames,00:32:33
future voussoirs.00:32:36
Each of them contains
120 kilos of steel.00:32:38
This is more than double that
which is used normally,00:32:41
to construct buildings.00:32:44
- A building that holds
by its own weight,00:32:46
it must hold up to the wind,
to the snow, to the rain,00:32:49
these are constraints
relatively light,00:32:51
compared to what we can have,00:32:53
support of the ground on the complete ring,
on the segment, therefore on the concrete.00:32:57
The segment will hold the ground behind
the tunnel boring machine, it will be compressed,00:33:01
but in the compression efforts,
there is also bending,00:33:04
that's why there are steels
inside to be able,00:33:06
keep up this effort.00:33:09
These metal carcasses join
then the other part of the factory,00:33:13
where 45 molds rotate
in a great continuous merry-go-round.00:33:17
Each of these molds
is scrupulously checked.00:33:20
Accuracy is crucial
for the strength of the tunnel.00:33:24
- We put all these pieces together,00:33:27
to have the eight elements.00:33:28
It has to fit perfectly
one in the other,00:33:32
otherwise it wouldn't work.00:33:33
There should be no deformation
because we would have joints, games00:33:37
and at one point, bolting
and the hanging of the rings,00:33:39
or segments together
would no longer work.00:33:44
Once the steel reinforcement has been removed
in its mold, comes the filling.00:33:49
For the first 6,000
tunnel rings,00:33:52
it takes about 165,000 meters
concrete cubes.00:33:55
Enough to build the equivalent
of 1,500 houses00:33:58
of 150 square meters.00:34:04
Once filled and after
a few strokes with a trowel,00:34:07
the mussels then pass
in huge ovens,00:34:09
for cooking for 7 hours,00:34:11
in order to accelerate the setting of the concrete.00:34:16
When coming out of the oven, the segments
have not yet reached,00:34:19
their optimal strength.00:34:22
They are stored for 28 days,00:34:24
in order to dry and increase resistance.00:34:29
- Every day, we do
test tubes to check,00:34:32
that the concrete we use
is of good quality00:34:34
and this resistance at 28 days.00:34:39
These samples are tested in a
small laboratory integrated into the site.00:34:45
Here, the concrete is put to the test.00:34:48
It is compressed, split,00:34:51
exploded, in order to ensure
that it is quite solid,00:34:55
for the work.00:34:56
In the tunnel, only one weak link,00:34:59
could endanger
the whole structure.00:35:03
Once the segments
reached maturity,00:35:05
they are transported by truck
at the entrance to the tunnel,00:35:08
where they wait
a strange new machine.00:35:11
A huge lifting bridge comes
place the concrete blocks,00:35:14
on TSPs,00:35:17
trains on tires.00:35:19
About thirty meters long,00:35:20
this 120-ton convoy rushes
then in the mountain.00:35:25
On the way to the tunnel boring machine,00:35:26
after three years of digging,00:35:28
he has nothing left
only 500 meters to go,00:35:31
to validate the following
of the Lyon-Turin project.00:35:34
The TSP has been specially designed to
sneaking inside Federica.00:35:39
This megamachine is not only
able to pierce the mountain,00:35:44
it installs at the same time
the first 6,000 rings of the tunnel.00:35:49
When a 30 minute cycle
digging ends,00:35:51
a new phase begins.00:35:53
The different elements of the ring
are sent in a specific order,00:35:57
to the front of the machine
under the shield.00:36:01
From there,
a gigantic articulated arm,00:36:03
equipped with a powerful suction cup
take over.00:36:08
Its name, the voussoir erector.00:36:13
The erector arm
grab a piece,00:36:15
then turns and unfolds,00:36:17
in order to position
every part in the right place.00:36:21
Once in their place, the segments
keep their position,00:36:24
thanks to powerful cylinders
until the ring,00:36:27
is closed with its key.00:36:29
The raft is then installed.00:36:34
The installation of a complete ring lasts
about twenty minutes.00:36:38
It's a delicate operation,00:36:40
because these immense blocks must
be positioned to the millimeter,00:36:43
to fit perfectly.00:36:50
Once the segments are embedded,00:36:52
the ring is installed and the tunnel boring machine,00:36:54
can start a new
digging phase.00:36:57
- This concrete ring allows us
security.00:37:01
Then our tunnel boring machine comes to take
support on this concrete ring,00:37:04
to seek support
and be able to push,00:37:07
against the rock.00:37:08
A tunnel boring machine is like when
we ski to be able to turn,00:37:12
to be able to move forward,
to be able to turn,00:37:15
you must be able to take
support on something.00:37:18
When we have no support,
we cannot lead00:37:21
and we can't move forward.00:37:24
To propel yourself forward,00:37:25
the machine activates its 44 cylinders
of thrust which take directly,00:37:29
their support against the last
concrete ring installed.00:37:33
The advancement of the tunnel boring machine allows
then to eject this ring,00:37:36
outside the shield.00:37:41
There is one last operation left
to complete the installation of the ring.00:37:46
- The cutting wheel
who digs the ground,00:37:48
has a diameter of 11.25 m.00:37:50
The concrete ring that we place,00:37:52
has an external diameter of 10.80 m.00:37:55
So that means
that there is 45 cm of empty space,00:37:57
between the ground and the concrete ring.00:38:01
To fill this empty space,00:38:03
engineers use
a very innovative mixture.00:38:09
Two fluid components are injected
in parallel through the ring,00:38:13
cement grout on one side
and a setting accelerator on the other.00:38:18
When the 2 products meet,00:38:20
the mixture turns into a paste
as strong as concrete,00:38:23
in just eight seconds.00:38:28
The work is now a body
with the mountain.00:38:32
These sturdy foundations
block landslides00:38:34
and absorb pressure
phenomenal views of the massif.00:38:39
Like a gigantic
mechanical earthworm,00:38:41
the machine alternates tirelessly
the digging phases of 1.50 m00:38:46
and break cycles
to pierce the rock,00:38:48
while building the foundations
of the Lyon-Turin tunnel,00:38:51
at a speed of 15 meters per day.00:38:58
Protected by its work, the tunnel boring machine
advance sheltered from landslides.00:39:02
But these extreme miners
must never relax.00:39:07
On this disproportionate construction site,00:39:08
every little detail counts.00:39:10
Especially in the bowels
of the mountain,00:39:12
where the teams work
in a hostile environment.00:39:15
- There is a lot of humidity,
there is heat.00:39:18
The work is physical.00:39:21
It's hard to stay 8 or 9 hours,00:39:23
in this place,
we get tired very quickly.00:39:28
- You must never relax. We have not
no slowdown phases,00:39:32
where we can be,00:39:35
less attentive or less demanding.00:39:37
As soon as we relax,00:39:39
it always translates to
either technical problems,00:39:42
either security problems,
or both at the same time.00:39:46
In these galleries buried by several
kilometers from the surface,00:39:49
the air is unbreathable
and the unbearable heat.00:39:52
It's almost 40 degrees.00:39:55
The work would be impossible
without this immense yellow sheath,00:39:58
which overlooks the gallery.00:40:00
It brings 50,000 liters
of fresh air per second.00:40:08
At the same time, the mountain rejects
enormous underground water reserves.00:40:12
To protect yourself from flooding,00:40:14
an oversized infrastructure
allows you to pump00:40:17
and process between 150
and 1,000 liters per second.00:40:22
But underground,
the biggest fear is fire.00:40:27
The tunnel is full of sensors
nicknamed breathers,00:40:31
allowing the detection of fumes
flammable gases.00:40:35
In case of fire,00:40:36
these confined galleries fill up
a few minutes of asphyxiating fumes00:40:40
and you have to quickly join
one of the survival chambers,00:40:43
installed every 1,000 meters.00:40:48
These hermetic boxes are equipped,00:40:50
to stay confined
in complete autonomy,00:40:53
to around twenty people
for 24 hours.00:40:57
Digging the Lyon-Turin tunnel
in this extreme environment,00:41:00
is a daily challenge.00:41:02
Few are those who can
endure these conditions,00:41:04
and even rarer
are those who can,00:41:06
pilot these underground colossi.00:41:10
After 3 years of digging, there remains
only a few hundred meters,00:41:13
to drill for the tunnel boring machine.00:41:18
The operation is controlled from the cabin
control at the front of the machine,00:41:22
a few meters
just behind the wheel.00:41:26
At the helm today,
it's Pierre Gaspard.00:41:30
This young pilot is capable
to maneuver with skill,00:41:32
this machine too
monumental and powerful.00:41:37
But how to go about it when we
is as short-sighted as a mole?00:41:46
The teams are on deck.00:41:47
The conveyor belt is engaged,
ready to evacuate the crushed rock.00:41:51
The digging phase
can now begin.00:42:00
Minute by minute
and millimeter by millimeter,00:42:02
Pierre will play on the push
and the rotation speed,00:42:05
to constantly adapt
to the rock.00:42:09
- Currently, we are progressing at 40 mm/min,00:42:11
depending on the terrain, we adapt.00:42:13
If the ground is really very hard,00:42:15
to avoid too much
force on the machine,00:42:18
we are going to reduce the speed.00:42:20
If the marination is too great,
if we don't have too much land,00:42:24
we will reduce the speed to avoid
to have problems behind on the mat.00:42:31
To refine his driving, the driver
monitors several parameters,00:42:34
like the necessary power
to break the rock,00:42:37
or the rate of evacuation of debris.00:42:40
The pilot is the first to see
machine parameters.00:42:44
He's the first to adapt
to the geology encountered00:42:47
and at the cadences
that we must respect.00:42:51
Excluding incidents, the tunnel boring machine is moving forward
12 to 15 meters per day.00:42:56
He sometimes has spikes
speed at 20 meters per day,00:43:00
which is considerable
in such complex terrain.00:43:04
But in addition to keeping up the pace,00:43:06
the pilot must also keep
the correct trajectory.00:43:12
- We have a laser sight
which starts from a point,00:43:15
that the topos, in the morning,
put in place,00:43:18
with laser sight
who reaches the shield,00:43:21
to give us guidance
in real time,00:43:23
which is calculated approximately
every 30 seconds.00:43:26
Following this, it gives us a trend
vertical of the machine,00:43:30
horizontal also from the inclination00:43:32
and our destination on all
the length of the route.00:43:40
Over a distance of five kilometers,00:43:42
the tunnel must not deviate
its trajectory of more than 25 cm.00:43:46
At each 1.50 m digging,00:43:48
the margin of error
is less than 50 mm.00:43:51
This precision is all the more
more important than in the long term,00:43:54
it will be necessary that the two tubes
of 57.50 kilometers,00:43:57
are perfectly aligned.00:44:02
- It's still very fine,
the way of driving,00:44:05
we can't give a turn
abrupt, it's impossible.00:44:07
We have trains
who will pass later.00:44:10
When we start to feel
that the machine starts to leave,00:44:13
we give trends
and guidance00:44:15
to the machine to bring it back
in the right direction,00:44:18
over a given distance,
in order to avoid any angle,00:44:21
any major departure from the machine,00:44:24
who could also
put her in difficulty.00:44:28
Refine your thrust, control
evacuation of rocks,00:44:31
lay the foundations
and stay the course.00:44:34
Piloting this colossus
underground00:44:37
is a real
daily feat.00:44:46
This tunnel boring machine is specially designed to
cross the hardest rocks.00:44:50
On the front side
of the machine,00:44:52
the wheels that fracture the stone
are made of tungsten carbide,00:44:55
one of the materials
the most resistant in the world.00:44:59
But the rock is so hard that it
you have to sneak inside00:45:02
structure every day,00:45:04
to check their level of wear.00:45:10
- It is a phenomenon of abrasion.00:45:12
We come to slam the rock,
we force it00:45:15
and we create abrasion
on the dials.00:45:20
These strategic pieces
are regularly replaced.00:45:22
A routine operation
far from being trivial,00:45:25
when each of them
weighs almost 200 kilos.00:45:30
But if we can repair
the bit of this drill,00:45:33
we cannot change it when
the terrain is radically transformed00:45:37
and becomes notably very tender.00:45:41
- We have a tunnel boring machine. Once
that we started to dig,00:45:44
it will have to adapt to all
the geologies encountered.00:45:47
- For exemple,
when using a drill,00:45:50
when you put a wood wick, it
works very well in wood,00:45:53
but very badly in concrete.00:45:55
A concrete drill bit that works
very good in concrete,00:45:58
but very badly in the woods.00:45:59
We have a real fuse problem,00:46:02
she must drill and in the wood
and in concrete.00:46:06
From the start of the construction site,00:46:08
the rock of the Alps posed problems
to the Lyon-Turin tunnel teams.00:46:13
At the beginning of 2017, after a few
weeks of digging,00:46:16
the tunnel boring machine was stopped dead in its tracks.00:46:22
He just entered a rift
very friable geological.00:46:26
- At 200 meters, we encountered
a major flaw where our machine,00:46:29
was confronted with conditions
extreme geological conditions.00:46:33
A completely unstructured area.00:46:35
We had an accident
which went far beyond,00:46:37
of what we had imagined,00:46:39
the ground had no hold,00:46:42
we found ourselves in the situation
where the land came from00:46:46
and the machine was no longer moving forward.00:46:50
In this geological fault,
the tunnel boring machine is slipping00:46:52
and his wheel fills
with a blackish mud,00:46:55
impossible to evacuate.00:46:59
The machine is stuck in
a ground that collapses on top of it.00:47:05
- We got stuck in this loophole
and we excavated without moving forward.00:47:09
We tended to empty the mountain.00:47:10
If we were in an urban environment,
it would have been a real disaster.00:47:14
The cutting wheel was immobilized,
to treat the ground,00:47:17
it was necessary to empty each arm
from the wheel to the hand.00:47:19
And I remember
very good teams,00:47:21
with shovel and bucket
to drain the cutting wheel.00:47:27
This blockage is a challenge
for engineers,00:47:29
but their mission is to confront
to all the difficulties00:47:33
and invent new solutions.00:47:40
Firstly, the wheel located at
the front is moved back a few meters,00:47:44
to arrange spaces
intervention for technicians,00:47:47
which start with butcher
side openings,00:47:49
in order to limit the quantity
of material to be evacuated.00:47:55
In a second time,
geological survey tools,00:47:58
are used to sink into the
rock over several tens of meters00:48:01
and inject grout into it
cement and resin,00:48:05
which makes it possible to consolidate
the area above00:48:07
and in front of the tunnel boring machine.00:48:11
- We reconstructed
a homogeneous whole,00:48:14
who allowed us
to tear up materials00:48:17
while maintaining a certain
peripheral stability.00:48:22
It took a total of 4 months to
adapt the machine to the terrain,00:48:25
then adapt the terrain to the machine.00:48:32
This experience will be good
useful to the eight tunnel boring machines,00:48:34
who will perceive the two galleries
57.5 kilometers,00:48:38
of the future Lyon-Turin tunnel.00:48:43
During 4 years of work,00:48:45
permanent adaptation
techniques were necessary,00:48:48
to dig without being blocked,00:48:49
but also at each
stage of this construction site,00:48:52
of exceptional scale.00:48:59
In the cockpit
in September 2019,00:49:02
tension and excitement
are palpable.00:49:06
These men and women arrive at
end of their reconnaissance mission.00:49:11
Only a few centimeters left.00:49:14
- Breakthrough is a very
important since our job,00:49:17
it's a profession of passion,
of commitment.00:49:19
We finish the match,
it's the final whistle.00:49:22
Suddenly, there is an explosion of joy.00:49:26
On the other side,
the wheel breaks the rock00:49:28
and appears with a bang.00:49:34
Mission accomplished for the teams who,
as tradition dictates,00:49:37
slide through the structure,00:49:39
to get out into the open air, one by one.00:49:44
- We completed these 9 kilometers
in three years,00:49:46
in difficult terrain,
with risks,00:49:49
which were objectively
very important.00:49:53
So it's a success
down the line.00:49:56
- We encountered difficulties,
we crossed them,00:49:59
what makes merit
even more important.00:50:01
I am proud of the teams
who designed the machine,00:50:04
she fulfilled her mission.00:50:06
And I am extremely
proud of the teams formed00:50:09
and who succeeded
a tremendous feat.00:50:13
After four years of work,00:50:15
these women and men tested
all technologies00:50:18
allowing you to defeat one of the massifs
the most complex on the planet.00:50:23
Their success paves the way for one
the most ambitious projects,00:50:26
of the next few years.00:50:29
By 2030,
7 tunnel boring machines like Federica,00:50:33
should come into action.00:50:35
Nearly 2,000 miners could
dig and solidify,00:50:37
the galleries relentlessly
to build a megastructure,00:50:40
as colossal as it is strategic,00:50:43
the Lyon-Turin tunnel will be
the longest in the world.Description:
Durante milenios, los túneles nos han permitido acortar distancias y salvar obstáculos considerados infranqueables. Hoy, en el corazón de los Alpes, cientos de hombres y mujeres ponen sus conocimientos al servicio de un proyecto titánico: construir el túnel ferroviario más grande del mundo: el Lyon-Turín. Dentro de una colosal obra de construcción, estos constructores inventan y utilizan todas las técnicas para superar la montaña y construir la obra del siglo. Director: Quentin Domart y Hugo Hernández
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