Abstract
earth embankment concrete-lined reservoir is probably the most common type of water storage in use today. Such reservoirs can be built economically, are easy to maintain, and are comparatively safe, if properly constructed. The first earth embankment reservoirs were constructed by the so-called cut and fill method; that is, the earth was excavated from the center of the reservoir and deposited on the sides to form the embankment. This material was built up in layers and consolidated by rolling. In most cases, the rolled earth in the bank would be denser than the original ground upon which the embankment was placed, and because the deposited material had better compaction than the original ground under the fill, uneven settlement and the breaking up of the concrete lining after the reservoir was put in service resulted. Where the bottom material was not consolidated, a horizontal crack inevitably appeared in the concrete lining between the fill and the original ground. Many other cracks also appeared, both horizontally and vertically, indicating the uneven settlement in different parts of the embankment. These cracks in the lining would allow water to pass through and, if not repaired, would undermine the embankment. The author knows of two instances where such leakage caused the failure of a portion of a reservoir bank. To overcome this uneven settlement of reservoir banks, a new method of construction was developed and first used in the construction of large oil storage units in the Southern California oil fields. In this technique, the sides of the reservoirs were over-excavated a
Published Version
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