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Testing Reinforced Concrete Structures For Water Tightness
Testing Reinforced Concrete Structures For Water Tightness
Concrete Structures
for Watertightness
American
Concrete Institute-AWWA
Committee
Report
The American
Concrete
Institute
Committee
350, Environmental
Engineering
Concrete
Structures,
recognized
a need for standardized
criteria
as well as a
standardized
method of testing reinforced
concrete
structures
for watertightness. AWWAs Committee
400, Waterproofing,
was also interested
in documenting the state-of-the-art
of water-tightness
testing and criteria for reinforced
concrete
tanks. A joint subcommittee
was subsequently
formed to prepare a
report containing
recommendations
on water-tightness
for reinforced
concrete
containment
structures.
This article presents
the findings
of the joint report.
1993
REPORT
103
TABLE
Example calculations
of test duration
Example
1
The structure is a flat-bottomed,
reinforced concrete
rate is 0.1 percent of the water volume in 24 h.
and equivalent
depth
leakage
of three
Example
2
The structure is a conical- or pyramidal-bottomed,
unlined, reinforced concrete tank with a 1% side
water depth and a maximum depth of 21 ft. The allowable leakage rate is 0.1 percent of the water volume
in 24 h.
To deternine
theequiualentdepth:
15 ft) xA1/3l/A
=15+2
= 17ft
in which d = equivalent
RESEARCH
AN11 TECHNOLOGY
of three days.
l
The allowable leakage rate for unlined concrete water-containment structures with a side water depth of 25 ft or
less should not exceed 0.1 percent of the
water volume in 24 h.
l
The allowable leakage rate for concrete water-containment structures with
lined walls and a side water depth of 30 ft
or less should not exceed 0.06 percent of
the water volume in 24 h.
l
The allowable leakage rate for concrete water-containment structures with
lined floors and a side water depth of 30
ft or less should not exceed 0.04 percent
of the water volume in 24 h.
l
The allowable leakage rate for fully
lined concrete water-containment structures should not exceed 0.025 percent of
the water volume in 24 h.
l
The allowable leakage rate for concrete water-containment structures that
have greater side water depths than previously indicated should be selected
using engineering judgment; special consideration should be given to the tank
floor and the location and type of concrete joints.
Watertightness test
A watertightness test should be performed on concrete water-containment
structures to ensure that incidental and
undetected defects are not allowing
undue leakage. Tested structures should
not have a leakage rate in excess of the
criteria given here. The method of testing should exclude or minimize those
factors that affect the water surface elevation during the test but are not the
result of leakage. The method of preparing for the test should eliminate or minimize water loss from the structure that is
caused by items or elements not considered part of the structural containment.
The containment structure should be
structurally complete and capable of resisting the hydrostatic pressure of the
test water. Preferably, backfill should not
be present around the structure (provided the design of the structure included this condition). Visible leakage
can then be observed, and surface dampness can be determined. The groundwater level at the structure should be below
the containment floor and preferably
below any underdrain system. The underdrain discharge line or point, adjacent
to the structure, should be exposed so
that flow in the system can be monitored
during the test. All temporary bulkheads,
cofferdams,
pipe blind flanges, and
closed valves should be checked to see
that they form a complete seal at these
outlets, and, if possible, these outlets
should be observed during the test.
Factors affecting test
Absorption. Water-containment
structures that have been drained for a significant period of time or that have not yet
been tilled will absorb water into the conJOURNAL
AWWA
1993
that the test results be corrected for observations of the gain in water from precipitation or the loss of water from evaporation. This difference can be measured
by placing a transparent, floating, open
container (calibrated and partially filled)
in the structure. The container should be
positioned away from the sides and any
overhead obstruction that may shield or
shade the container.
The container
should have sufficient freeboard to accommodate the precipitation from normal rainfall and not be overtopped by
waves generated by the wind.
Test procedure
Test preparation.
Preferably, backfill
should not be placed around the watercontainment structure before the test. Inspection points at which access is to be
gained should be open to all piping, channels, and conduits that leave the structure, including any underdrain outlets.
When the structure has gained sufficient
strength to withstand the test load and
after all outlets have been securely
sealed, the structure should be filled with
water. During filling, the outlets should
be monitored for watertightness, the underdrain outlet should be monitored for
any increase in flow, and the structure,
especially the concrete joints, should be
monitored for any visible leakage. If any
visible leakage from the structure or increase in flow from the underdrain system is observed, the condition may be
corrected before the start of the test measurements.
No allowance, however,
should be made in the test measurements for uncorrected point-source leakage. When the test preparations are acceptable, the structure should be kept
full of water for a minimum of three days
before the test is begun.
Test measurements. At the start of the
test, the location of the water surface in
new structures should be measured at a
minimum of two points 180 apart and
preferably at four points 90 apart. Measurements taken at these locations will
usually minimize the effect of differential
settlement of a tank on the computed
values. The water temperature, at a depth
of approximately 18 in. below the water
surface, should be recorded. If the specified leakage criteria for the structure is
stringent, the water temperature should
be recorded at 5-ft depth intervals. A partially filled, calibrated, open container for
evaporation-precipitation
measurement
should be positioned in uncovered watercontainment structures, and the water
level in the container should be recorded
at 24-h intervals. The structures exterior
should be inspected daily for indications
of leakage.
The test should be continued for a period of time sufficient to produce at least
a 0.5.in. drop in the water surface based
on the leakage occurring at the maximum allowable rate.
At the end of the test period, the location of the water surface should be recorded at the same location the original
measurements were taken. The water
temperature and the water surface in the
evaporation-precipitation
measurement
device should also be recorded. The
leakage rate from the tank should be
computed and corrected for evaporation-precipitation,
as applicable, and
temperature, if necessary. If the rate exceeds the criteria indicated in this article
or those specified for a particular structure, the structure has failed the test. The
structure should also be considered to
have failed the test if water is observed
flowing from the structure (other than
from the underdrain system) or if moisture (other than from precipitation or
condensation) can be transferred to a dry
hand from the exterior surfaces.
Any structure that fails the watertightness test should be repaired and retested. The repair work may include dewatering the structure and inspecting the
interior for defects that cause leakage.
References
1. COMMITTEE REPOHT.
A Summary Report on
Concrete Water-Holding
Structures. Jour.
A WWA, 70:8:458 (Aug. 1978).
2. Environmental
Engineering
Concrete
Structures. AC1 Manual of Concrete Practice AC1 35OR-1989. Part 4. Detroit, Mich.
3. Code of Practice for the Structural Use of
Concrete for Retaining Aqueous Liquids.
British
Standards
Institution,
BS
5337:1976. London (1976).
4. Code of Practice for Design of Concrete
Structures for Retaining Aqueous Liquids.
British Standards Institution, BS8007:1987
(London 1987).
REPORT
105