Construction has begun of a 2.7km long U-shaped tunnel for the China General Nuclear Power Group’s (CGN) Lufeng Power Plant. The tunnel is being built into the sea to divert seawater to cool nuclear reactors.
MineARC Systems’ East Asia Business Development Manager, Davy Li, made a two-day trip to the coastal town of Lufeng in Guangdong Province, China, in August to commission a MineARC TunnelSAFE Refuge Chamber for undersea tunnel construction.
Safety Features of a Refuge for Underwater Tunnel Construction
The 30-person TunnelSAFE Gantry Design (GD) Refuge Chamber is situated on a 7.76m diameter Herrenknecht mixed shield TBM; providing a fixed safety solution at the rear of the cutting head infrastructure for the life of the project.
A TunnelSAFE GD Refuge Chamber was constructed with 5mm steel with additional structural strengthening and bracing. It was equipped with a 96-hour, Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) system, bi-lingual operational stickers and manuals, and all critical life support systems to create a safe, ongoing environment for occupants.
Additional systems include:
- Oxygen supplies,
- Air conditioning and dehumidifying,
- Positive pressure maintenance in the form of MineARC’s Positive Pressure Maintenance System (PPMS),
- Gas detection, and
- MineARC’s Extra-Low-Voltage (ELV) Chemical CO and CO2 Scrubbing System ‘scrub’ builds up the harmful gases from the air inside the refuge chamber.
While on-site, Davy provided operator training to the Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) team from the GCN and Sinohydro Bureau 14 Company Limited. The team understands the importance of safety on site, and prioritise the health and safety of workers. MineARC is pleased to contribute to the safety, through the supply and commissioning of a refuge chamber for the undersea tunnel construction project.