Due to its significant superiority in withstanding high internal water pressure， prestressed double-layer lining structures have been gradually widely used in water conveyance shield tunnels in recent years. To unveil the mechanical properties of the prestressed double-layer lining structure， this study innovatively employs a similar model test method combined with acoustic emission detection technology， taking the water conveyance shield tunnel of the Zhujiang Delta Water Resources Allocation Engineering as a prototype. The internal forces， contact pressures， displacements， and damage and failure of the prestressed double-layer lining structure throughout the construction and operation process are analysed. The experimental results indicate that： during the assembly stage， the segmental lining structure can independently bear the external hydrostatic and earth pressures. During the prestressing tensioning stage， both the segmental and prestressed linings are compressed around the entire circumference. As the internal water pressure is progressively applied， the axial force of the structure gradually decreases. However， under 1.5 MPa of internal water pressure， the structure still maintains most of its area under pressure. During the prestressing tensioning stage， the segmental lining and prestressed lining separate， suggesting their interaction can be essentially disregarded. During the operation stage， the areas of separation close， thus the two structures bear the load in coordination. With the progressive tensioning of the prestress， the displacement of the double-layer lining structure increases linearly， reaching its maximum value of 1.37 mm upon completion of tensioning. At this point， the section’s ellipticity is 0.012‰. The application of 1.5 MPa of internal water pressure reduces the displacement to 1.30 mm and increases the section's ellipticity to 0.20‰. During the entire loading process， the progressive damage of the double-layer lining structure undergoes an initial elastic stage and a micro-damage stage. Inside the structure， defects compact and gradually lead to damage， but no macro-cracks appear， indicating that the structure remains in a safe state.