A generic study on static stability of lined rock cavern subject to an internal pressure of 10 MPa

Lined Rock Cavern (LRC) has shown significant advantages in Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) due to its location-flexibility, large gas storage capacity, low storage cost and excellent geological adaptability. This study introduces a cavern static stability analysis method based on the consideration of constitutive relations for different lining materials and properties of inter-layer contact surfaces. Targeting the prevalent pressure range of 8–10 MPa in underground gas storage facilities, this study analyzes the stress, displacement distribution, and plastic zone evolution within a 10 MPa LRC structure. This study reveals the influence of rock mass quality, cavern burial depth, and lateral stress coefficient on the static stability of the cavern. The results show that the proposed LRC static stability analysis method can objectively evaluate the static stability of the cavern and enhance its static stability through adjustments in reinforcement. The static stability of LRC appreciably improves with the enhancement of surrounding rock quality and deeper burial depths. The lateral pressure coefficient has great influence on the force and displacement distribution of cavern. Incorporating a slip layer markedly decreases displacement disparities between steel and concrete lining. The method-derived reinforcement ratios efficiently reduce costs while controlling concrete lining crack widths.