Experimental study of embankment breach based on its soil properties

Abstract

ABSTRACT Understanding of the phenomenon of embankment breach via overtopping is complex but essential for forecasting the flood inundation map and developing an emergency action plan. Case studies of embankment failures caused by overtopping indicate that apart from hydraulic forces, the influence of the soil properties also plays a crucial role in the formation of the breach. The influence of the soil properties on the breaching process was investigated by performing 13 experiments in the hydraulic engineering laboratory of National Institute of Technology, Rourkela, India. The data obtained from the overtopping failure of these embankments are analyzed and presented in this article. Further, a multivariable regression was performed using the test data of 25 embankments to obtain the relationship between the breach parameters and the soil properties (control variables). New nondimensional control variables, such as embankment soil factors, relative compaction effort, relative particle size, and erodibility, were proposed for developing the relationships. An attempt is made here to understand the influence of these control variables on the dam breach that is not reported so far.