Types and Purposes of Dams Explained
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ScribdTranslationsTypes and Purposes of Dams Explained
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ScribdTranslationsINTRODUCTION AND
TYPES OF
BARRIERS
Prof. Valquernei Jesus da Silva
[Link]
Class schedule
1. Definition [Link] dams
Two great objectives of a [Link] of concrete dams
dam Earth dam
3. Purposes 12. Earth-rockfill dam
4. Types of dams
[Link] dam with face
5. Gravity dam concrete
6. Relaxed gravity dam [Link] fill dam
[Link] concrete dam
[Link]-gravity dam
Definition
• LAW 12.334/2010 (PNSB) AND RESOLUTION No 143, OF JULY 10, 2012
any structure in a permanent or temporary water course for the purpose of
containment or accumulation of liquid substances or mixtures of liquids and
solids, encompassing the bus and the associated structures.
• CBDB – BRAZILIAN DAMS COMMITTEE
...artificial obstacles with the ability to retain water, any other liquid,
waste, debris, for storage or control purposes, may vary in
size from small solid pieces of earth, commonly used on farms, to
huge concrete or embankment structures, usually used for supply
of water, of hydropower, for flood control and for irrigation, in addition to
various other purposes.
Two main objectives of a dam
• Regularization: It regularizes the hydrological regime of a river, that is, it stores water.
in the period of influx regarding demand (ASSIS; HERNANDEZ;
COLMANETTI, 2003
• Containment:Temporarily retain water (flood cushioning) or
accumulate sediments industrial waste or mining tailings.
Purposes
A dam can be built to serve a specific purpose or to
multiple purposes, listed below:
✓ Electric power generation;
✓ Water supply;
✓ Flood control;
✓ Navigation;
✓ Sanitation;
✓ Irrigation;
✓ Waste control, etc.
Types of dams
The most common types of dams, related to construction materials and their
geometry are as follows:
✓ Gravity dam (concrete)
✓ relieved gravity dam (concrete)
✓ Arch dam (reinforced concrete)
✓ Earth dam
✓ Earth dam - rockfill.
✓ Earthfill dam
Massad (2003) also cites the buttress dam and the dam alternative.
hydraulic filling.
Gravity dam
✓ This type of dam works based on its weight;
✓ In general, it requires foundations on rock, for reasons of load-bearing capacity.
land
✓ Stability verification regarding Tipping and Sliding;
✓ The subpressures at the base occur as a result of water percolation through the
rocky foundation massif that is usually fractured or
split
Gravity dam
Caraíbas Dam in Gravity in CCR (Roller Compacted Concrete)
Relieved gravity dam
✓ Thisstructure is an alternative to the massive gravity dam. In the latter,
concrete is poorly utilized because the demands are much lower than the
concrete resistance.
✓ Incomparison, it is found that the relieved gravity dam brings savings.
no volume and reduction of the areas on which the subpressure can act and the
interstitial pressure.
✓Schreiber (1977) emphasizes that, comparing this type of dam with that of
massive concrete gravity confirms savings in volume and reduction of
areas on which subpressure and interstitial pressure can act.
Relieved gravity dam
Itaipu Dam
Arch concrete dam
✓ Its
shape, with double curvature ('shell'), causes the concrete to work in
compression
✓It is only possible to build it embedded in closed valleys, where the relationship between the
the crest width and the dam height are less than 2.5;
✓ The problem is hyperstatic and requires compatibility of deformations between
concrete structure and rocky soil, generating the need to know the
rock modulus of elasticity.
✓ It is ideal for narrow valleys where there are good conditions for arch support in the massif.
rocky of the door frames
Arch concrete dam
Hoover Dam, USA (Arch-Gravity Concrete Dam).
Gravity arch dam
✓ They are structures that have their planimetry in the shape of an arch, but that, for another
they partially function as gravity dams, combining the benefits
of both;
✓ Itscross sections are much thicker than the dams in
arch, however slimmer than gravity dams,
✓ can be built in cyclopean concrete, conventional concrete or
rolled compacted concrete.
Arch-gravity dam
Gravity dam in CCR, UHE Castro Alves, RS.
Buttress dam (pillars)
✓ They form a type of dam where the effort on the upstream face is
transmitted to the foundation through a series of buttresses, perpendicular to the
upstream parameter axis.
✓The buttresses are structures like "pillars" that bear the thrust from the pressure.
discharging the load to the foundations. The sealing wall is
formed by reinforced concrete slabs supported on the buttresses, or by
cylindrical abóbodas, in general, in the shape of a semicircle (SCHREIBER, 1977).
✓Compared to other types of dams, they are of more complex construction and
higher cost, being increasingly less used in the world in favor of those of
relieved gravity
✓ This
type of work requires care with the foundations, as its base, in contact
with the rocky mass, it is relatively small = Advantage regarding the
suppression.
Buttress dam (pillars)
Buttress Dam
Section D - Itaipu Hydroelectric Plant
Binational, PR
Types of Concrete Dams.
Homogeneous earth dam
✓ Typeof dam most commonly used among us, due to topographic conditions, with valleys
very open, and the availability of earth material in Brazil;
✓ It tolerates more deformable foundations, allowing for the construction of earth dams.
supported on soft soils, as in the case of the Green River dam, near
Curitiba, with a maximum height of 15 m;
✓ The slope of the upstream and downstream banks is set to ensure the
stability during the lifespan of the dam, more specifically, at the end of
construction, in operation and in situations of rapid reservoir drawdown;
✓ Susceptible to piping and surface erosion.
✓ They have an internal drainage system to allow for the stability of the structure.
✓It is a zoned structure, that is, built with a single material of
loan
Homogeneous earth dam
Homogeneous earth dam
Piping
✓ Toprevent its occurrence, it is necessary to control the percolation, both by
foundations, as much by the body of the dam.
✓ Infoundations, one can make: sheet pile walls; diaphragm; mats
upstream waterproofs
✓ In the landfill, the water flow is intercepted in order to prevent its exit on the surfaces.
two downstream slopes, through vertical filters (type 'chimney') or inclined.
✓ The filters are made of sand or granular material, with granulation
suitable to prevent the carrying of soil particles.
Rock-fill earth dam
✓ Rock fill material with a high angle of friction and guarantees
stability on the upstream and downstream slopes, even if steep (slope of
1:1.6 to 1:2.2
✓ Clay core allows for the watertightness of the system and water impoundment;
✓ The core can be centered or inclined upstream;
✓ Compressibilities between clay and rockfill similar = Apply greater pressure
in the foundations;
✓ Clay compressibility is higher than that of the rockfill = Arching of the
structure
Earth-rockfill dam
Embankment rockfill dam
Rockfill dam with face of
concrete
✓ The
dam is made up of rock fill and concrete slabs on the slope of
amount
✓ Special attention must be given to the connection between the concrete slabs, as if
supported in a deformable medium formed by the rock fill layer during the
During the construction period, significant deformations and settlements occur.
✓ In addition, attention should also be given to the connection between the concrete face and
the foundation to ensure the airtightness of this region. (MORI, 1999)
✓ Some advantages of this type of dam are: faster construction, as
can be built independently of the weather; steeper slopes, which
provides lower volumes of material and greater height of the structure. It is ideal for
regions with low availability of clay and sand, and with prolonged periods
of rain. (MORI, 1999)
Rockfill dam with face of
concrete
Hydraulic fill dam
✓ They are dams where the embankment is constructed through a hydraulic process, that is, the soil
is transported with water, through pipelines, to the construction site;
✓When being discharged, the material segregates, separating the sands, which form the
backrests of the embankment, of the fines (silts and clays), which end up constituting the
core of the dam;
✓ Low cost;
✓ A large volume of soil is detached due to the lowering of the slopes (1:5);
✓ In light of the construction process, the sands of the embankments appear with
soft and saturated compactness, subject to the phenomenon of liquefaction.
✓The advantage is the low cost, despite the large volume of soil (slope: 1:5)
Hydraulic fill dam
Factors that affect the choice of type of
dam
✓ Incidents (survey conducted in 1961 in Spain):
• 40% related to foundation problems;
• 23% due to inadequate spillways;
• 12% due to construction defects.
✓ Incidents (ICOLD survey, 1973)
• 32% project failure;
• 30% inadequate hydrological and geological-geotechnical investigations
• 17% constructive deficiencies.
✓ Importance of investigations in the project and construction of dams.
Factors that affect the choice of type of
dam
✓ Principle factors:
a) Geological-geotechnical;
Hydrological-hydraulic;
c) Topographical;
d) Loan materials;
e) Cost;
f) Deadline;
g) Climate;
h) Constructive
Personal preference or professional experience of the designer
Factors that affect the choice of type of
dam
Examples
✓ A concrete dam would overcome the weather and deadline issue, but it would require
foundation on rock, therefore excavations of 10 to 20 m in depth, besides
that the dam should be almost twice the height, greatly increasing the cost of the work; and
✓ A homogeneous earth dam, due to its flexibility, could be constructed over
the soft soil, with balance berms, but it was discarded due to the weather: the
compaction works, by conventional means, and around moisture
great, they would be harmed by the rains, affecting the construction deadline.
✓A arch dam can only be built if there are sufficiently deep valleys.
closed and conditions for rocky foundation suitable
Factors that affect the choice of type of
dam
Examples
✓ In
Brazil, the valleys are quite open, requiring large dams.
For economic reasons, earth and/or earth-embankment dams are used.
encasement, allowing the structures to be executed in concrete
auxiliary structures (sluices, powerhouse, bottom discharge, water intakes, etc.).
✓ There are certain places with rock outcrops in abundance, which can serve as
quarries. In these cases, the option ends up being riprap dams, with
clay cores or concrete membranes
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