Dam of argillites and siltstones

Abstract

1. The use of low-strength argillites and siltstones in the given dam showed that these soils can be used widely in dam construction. 2. The placement of soils of useful excavations in the dam, the bulk of which was composed of argillites and siltstones, markedly reduced transport costs on hauling the soil masses, and the location of the borrow pits in the flood zone reduced the area of lands allocated for construction and loss of agricultural production. 3. The possibility of year-round excavation and placement of argillites and siltstones in the dam accelerated the construction of the structures and delivery of water to consumers by means of the start-up complexes. 4. The observed operating settlement of the dam was considerably less than the predicted, which evidently is related to the gradual soaking of the Taurian soils from the reservoir as it filled during construction. 5. Owing to the scientifically developed specifications of placing the soils in the earth dam and high-quality performance of the construction works, the required calculated characteristics of the argillites and siltstones and also of the clay soils in its components were attained. This provided stability of the dam of new soil material.