Hydromill trench cutter

The hydromill trench cutter is a type of construction equipment designed to dig the narrow but deep trenches used in the casting of slurry walls. Typically, it is a cutter attachment mounted on a crawler crane base machine, with different types of hose handling systems. The machine excavates by cutting the soil using two cutting wheels, while a powerful pump extracts the loose material mixed with some of the slurry, typically bentonite.

Hydromill trench cutter with two cutter wheels at bottom

Machine components

The hydromill, also known as hydraulic cutter, basically consists of:

  • Base machine, usually a crawler crane, of adequate capacity
  • Hose handling system, for both hydraulic and slurry hoses, these systems can vary between hose tension, or hose drum
  • Hydraulic cutter, which typically consists of two cutting wheels, a slurry pump, and flaps to control its direction in case of deviation

Usually, there are two sets of hoses, one for hydraulic oil, and another for extraction of slurry from the diaphragm wall.

Cutter wheels

Hydraulic cutter assemblies have a standard length of 2.8 metres (9 ft 2 in), with various widths, varying from 60 centimetres (24 in) up to 250 centimetres (98 in). Cutting wheel teeth depend mainly on the type of soil intended to be excavated.

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