Damaged shield
tail seals often cause safety and progress problems. As a result, the failure
modes of shield tail seals are outlined by summarizing shield tail seal usage
and replacement cases in various shield tunnel projects. Thereafter, the causes
for shield tail seal failure are analyzed, including design defects, poor manufacturing
and installation quality, poor grease filling quality, loose control of the
construction process, and insufficient emergency plan preparation. Thus, a
shield tail seal management method based on the concept of entire process
management is proposed, and the key points and countermeasures of entire
process management of shield tail seals are systematically studied from the
aspects of the design of shield tail seal, manufacturing and installation of
shield tail brush, initial filling of grease, construction management, and
emergency management. Furthermore, this method was successfully applied in the
Yangtze rivercrossing shield tunnel of the SinoRussia
eastern natural gas pipeline project, which ensures the safety of the shield
tail seal in shield tunneling and provides new ideas and measures for
scientific management of shield tail seals.