Location
San Diego, California
Presentation Date
27 May 2010, 4:30 pm - 6:20 pm
Abstract
The seismic performance of earth dams is usually studied by two dimensional (2D) space. However, considerable judgment is required to estimate the overall three dimensional dynamic response of dams in a narrow canyon from plane strain analyses of individual sections of the dam. This is so because the plane strain analysis normally ignores the arching effect of the valley which is particularly relevant for dams in narrow valleys. Because of the arching action, the effect of the canyon geometry on the dynamic response of earth dams will be a stiffening of the system. The effect of the canyon geometry is studied by carrying out 3D model of a dam site using a finite difference code, FLAC3D. The assumed 3D model contains all details of the dam body and foundation materials but with variable valley configuration of Tendaho earthfill dam. The mentioned dam is an earth fill dam located in the Afar regional state of Ethiopia. The area is a seismically active area as it lies on the East African Rift valley which can generate earthquake of magnitude greater than 6. In addition, the alluvium foundation of the dam consists of granular materials, which may liquefy during strong earthquakes. In this paper, the numerical results for the different 3D simulations are compared and correlated. Moreover, the seismic performance of the Tendaho earth fill dam is investigated. From the results of the analyses and correlations created, the canyon geometry under which three dimensional behavior is of importance in the dynamic response of a dam are determined. And the resulting correlation is then applied to the Tendaho earthfill dam.
Department(s)
Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering
Meeting Name
5th International Conference on Recent Advances in Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering and Soil Dynamics
Publisher
Missouri University of Science and Technology
Document Version
Final Version
Rights
© 2010 Missouri University of Science and Technology, All rights reserved.
Creative Commons Licensing
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Document Type
Article - Conference proceedings
File Type
text
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Berhe, Tensay G. and Wei, Wu, "Effect of Canyon Geometry and Ground Conditions on the Seismic Performance of Tendaho Earthfill Dam in Ethiopia." (2010). International Conferences on Recent Advances in Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering and Soil Dynamics. 16.
https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/icrageesd/05icrageesd/session04b/16
Included in
Effect of Canyon Geometry and Ground Conditions on the Seismic Performance of Tendaho Earthfill Dam in Ethiopia.
San Diego, California
The seismic performance of earth dams is usually studied by two dimensional (2D) space. However, considerable judgment is required to estimate the overall three dimensional dynamic response of dams in a narrow canyon from plane strain analyses of individual sections of the dam. This is so because the plane strain analysis normally ignores the arching effect of the valley which is particularly relevant for dams in narrow valleys. Because of the arching action, the effect of the canyon geometry on the dynamic response of earth dams will be a stiffening of the system. The effect of the canyon geometry is studied by carrying out 3D model of a dam site using a finite difference code, FLAC3D. The assumed 3D model contains all details of the dam body and foundation materials but with variable valley configuration of Tendaho earthfill dam. The mentioned dam is an earth fill dam located in the Afar regional state of Ethiopia. The area is a seismically active area as it lies on the East African Rift valley which can generate earthquake of magnitude greater than 6. In addition, the alluvium foundation of the dam consists of granular materials, which may liquefy during strong earthquakes. In this paper, the numerical results for the different 3D simulations are compared and correlated. Moreover, the seismic performance of the Tendaho earth fill dam is investigated. From the results of the analyses and correlations created, the canyon geometry under which three dimensional behavior is of importance in the dynamic response of a dam are determined. And the resulting correlation is then applied to the Tendaho earthfill dam.
