Abstract
La Villita earth and rockfill dam in Mexico has been subjected to five major earthquakes during the period 1975–1985. The recorded time histories of crest acceleration and associated permanent displacements imply the occurrence of seismically induced localized stick-slip slope deformations. In this paper, the upstream-downstream seismic response of La Villita dam is investigated in detail. The dam vibration characteristics are represented by a one-dimensional shear-wedge elasto-plastic numerical model. Available bedrock acceleration histories are employed as input excitation and seismic response is calculated using a step-by-step time integration procedure. Crest acceleration histories are computed and further employed to predict the observed permanent displacements. For that purpose, an elastic-perfectly plastic single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) model is used in a Newmark-type sliding mass analysis. The predicted SDOF permanent displacements are found to be similar to their recorded counterparts. Moreover, this yielding SDOF model is found to capture the peculiar asymmetric response characteristics associated with the evolution of stick-slip displacements, and observed in the recorded crest accelerations of La Villita Dam. Finally, the employed numerical procedures are found to demonstrate the possible development of additional permanent crest displacements during future seismic events.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.