Abstract
The volumes of soil required for the construction of an earth dam are usually of importance, so that, consequently, a key aspect to mitigate the negative impacts of dam construction, both from an economic and environmental point of view, is the use of materials in the vicinity of the dam location. However, this is often complicated because the existence of good quality materials with homogeneous properties, necessary for the dam core, is scarce in sites near the dam and their presence in sufficient volume for its construction is not usual. Unfortunately, using and transporting soil with good geotechnical characteristics to construct the core in a faraway location is economically and environmentally unsustainable. Therefore, the possibility of using less suitable material at the dam site as part of the core must be studied. Thus, in the present research the use of a soil of great heterogeneity in its geotechnical properties with a great dispersion of permeability is analyzed. Considering permeability as a random variable, combinations of representative values of heterogeneous soils are analyzed using their mean permeability and coefficients of variation that allow generating different lognormal distribution functions to carry out a Monte Carlo analysis. By maintaining the soil’s global heterogeneity, it was possible to study an unlimited disposition of lifts of different permeability. The statistical formulation allowed the research of the variation of the seepage flows and maximum gradients produced as a function of the variability of their mean permeability, being able to detect the factors with the greatest influence on the generation of high flows and gradients. Thus, it was possible to verify how high gradients were obtained for situations in which the seepage flow rates were moderate and low; the highest maximum gradients were observed in the lowest lifts of the dam core. In addition, based on the results of the Monte Carlo analysis, design charts have been developed for flow rates and maximum gradients, dependent on the mean permeability and the coefficient of variation, which allow judging whether heterogeneous material can be used, under conditions of safety, for the construction of the core of a dam.
Highlights
The most widespread type of dam is the earth dam
The volumes of soil required for the construction of an earth dam are usually of importance and the use of materials in the vicinity of the dam is often complicated because the existence of good quality materials with homogeneous properties is scarce in sites near the dam
Geotechnical recommendations prescribe a high proportion of fines and a high homogeneity of geomechanical characteristics for the material used in the dam core
Summary
The most widespread type of dam is the earth dam. This is due to the fact that these types of dams adapt reasonably well to practically any foundation ground (something that does not happen with concrete dams, which need more resistant, more compact and less deformable foundations); if it is possible to carry out a good identification and study of the materials present in the surroundings of the work, these dams can be built using these materials, reducing the need for large volumes of input materials that have to be brought from distant sites.It should be noted that, in general, the volumes of soil required for the construction of an earth dam are usually of importance; it is a great advantage to be able to dispose of existing materials in nearby sites to the dam, both from an economic point of view and for reducing the environmental impact. The most widespread type of dam is the earth dam This is due to the fact that these types of dams adapt reasonably well to practically any foundation ground (something that does not happen with concrete dams, which need more resistant, more compact and less deformable foundations); if it is possible to carry out a good identification and study of the materials present in the surroundings of the work, these dams can be built using these materials, reducing the need for large volumes of input materials that have to be brought from distant sites. A key aspect to mitigate negative impacts of dam construction is the use of materials in the vicinity of the dam location. This is often complicated because good quality materials, with homogeneous geotechnical properties, are scarce and their presence in the vicinity of the dam in sufficient volume for its construction is not usual
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