ABSTRACT
To determine the appropriate jet parameters of a Trailing Suction Hopper Dredger (TSHD), it is necessary to measure the critical jet pressure of clay cutting by a moving water jet. In this study, a series of experiments were performed on clay samples prepared in a laboratory to investigate jet cutting using the window cutting method. First, the effects of the window width on the cutting depth were investigated. Then, the method for measuring the critical jet pressure of a moving jet was proposed. The results showed that the cutting depth increases linearly with the jet pressure and the fitting lines have an intercept on the jet pressure axis. For a certain strength of clay, the intercept is almost constant regardless of the change of the rest of the experimental conditions. This intercept indicates the critical jet pressure of clay cutting by a moving jet.
