A deep dive into tunnel blasting studies between 2000 and 2023—A systematic review

Abstract

Tunnel blasting is a common practice used to excavate rock formations. Many academic research articles have emerged and burgeoned in the field of tunnel blasting. These articles are dedicated to investigating objectives such as blasting vibration, rock damage, and vibration energy individually. However, no systematic analysis is conducted to consolidate and analyze the findings from the literature related to tunnel blasting. This study addresses this by offering a systematic review to explore the state of tunnel blasting research. A science mapping approach using bibliometric analysis is employed to examine 144 peer-reviewed journal articles. The review identified the most influential journals, institutions, researchers, and articles on tunnel blasting research, and it also summarizes the research hotspots of tunnel blasting according to the cluster analysis of research keywords. Findings in this review revealed the contribution of two leading journals, three leading institutions, and three leading researchers on the research of tunnel blasting. Moreover, four research keywords, i.e., blasting vibration, numerical simulation, rock damage, and overbreak, were identified as the research hotspots in 2018–2023. Finally, this review also speculated the future research directions/avenues of tunnel blasting, aiming to bring to light the deficiencies in the currently existing research and provide paths for future research.