Name: Ronak Gilda Roll No.

CE17BTECH11032

CE4330- GEOLOGY I
Three Gorges Dam
Site Selection:
The city of Sandouping, 7 km from the entrance of Xiling Gorge at the
lower reaches of the Yangtze River, was selected as the site of the
Three Gorges Dam in 1959. The river here is much wider than it is in
other areas. A small island named Zhongbaodao lies in the middle part
of the river. The island is favorable for a river diversion scheme with
phased construction.

Site selection, 1959

The total catchment area is about 1000000 square meters and there is
about 451000000000 cubic meters of average annual runoff.

Rock Type:
The dam foundation mainly consists of rock blocks, various faults,
fractures, joints and rock bridges. Rock bridges are defined as the intact
rock between the ends of sub-parallel fractures. Most of the faults and
joints have a steep dip angle, but there are gently downstream dipping
joints that are actually the most important factors influencing the
stability of the dam. On the other hand, even in the regions where the
gently dipping fractures are most developed, no deterministic and
through-going sliding paths in the rock mass exist due to the presence
of the rock bridges. Thus, the dam could slide only if some of the rock
bridges fail, so as to create at least one through going sliding path.
Therefore, in the stability analyses, taking account of the effects of the
rock bridges becomes one of the key issues.
The site investigations show that the foundation rock mainly comprises
plagioclase granite which is intact, homogeneous and of high strength.
According to the degree of weathering, the typical weathered profile
may be divided into four zones: completely weathered, highly
weathered, moderately weathered, and slightly weathered zones. The
moderately weathered zone can be further subdivided into an upper
part and a lower part. The total thickness of the first three weathered
zones varies gradually from the ridge at riverbank (40–42 m) to
floodplain (17–20 m) and to low water riverbed (11 m), while the
thickness of the slightly weathered zone is absent or very thin in the
riverbed. The dam foundation is located on the lower part of the
moderately weathered zone or on the top of the slightly weathered
zone.

Borehole core of granite rock in dam

 Purpose of the Dam:
1. Flooding:
One of the main reasons that the Three Gorges dam was built was to
prevent flooding further downstream. The need for a dam was
highlighted in 1954 when people were killed as a result of flooding of the
Yangtze River. The need for a dam was even mentioned by Chairman
Mao, who wrote a poem Swimming in the same year as that of the
flooding. In it, he had visions of a large stone wall being built across the
river, similar to the three gorges dam.
By building a dam across the Yangtze River, it is possible to control the
flow of water. This means that the authorities can literally eliminate the
chances of flooding to all those downstream. Over a hundred thousand
people were relocated to enable construction of the dam. This was
viewed by many as an inconvenience. However, this dam is actually
preserving many more people’s lives by reducing the risk of flooding.
2. Power Generation:
Another reason why the Three Gorges Dam was constructed was to
generate electricity. There are several generators within the dam which
use the potential energy stored in the water, to generate electricity. This
is sold to many provinces around China, including Shanghai. The ability
to generate and sell power in this way will mean that the dam will
eventually pay for itself and start making profits. It started making profits
faster that what was predicted.
The electricity is generated without the need for fossil fuels. This means
that it is green, renewable energy which does not pollute the
environment. Although it is debatable that it has caused enough
environmental hazard to the ecosystems of the river and the nearby
areas but still it has helped China to reduce its Carbon Dioxide emissions
and also continue providing its thirst for electricity.
3. Environmental Impact:
The dam has been designed to impact the environment as little as
possible. It has meant that some ancient artifacts were lost, or are no
longer accessible. However, it is stated that the impact on the
environment is very small. The dam has also been designed using
modern materials and techniques to reduce the risk of it being
compromised during an earthquake or other natural disaster.
4. Tourism:
The Dam isn’t just designed to save lives and generate electricity, but it
is also a very popular tourist attraction. As it is the world’s largest
hydroelectric dam it attracts thousands of tourists every year. There are
several different ways that you can visit the dam, you can take a Yangtze
River Cruise, or view from the land. There is a museum and viewing
platforms located close to the dam. These make it easy to see the whole
extent of the dam.
5. Navigation:
The presence of the dam, the reservoir, and the ship locks will allow large
ships to travel up and downstream for the first time. Ships from
Chongqing will be able to transport goods all the way to the sea at
Shanghai.
Water holding capacity:
The Three Gorges Dam the world’s largest water conservancy project
with the biggest flood- control capability. The total storage capacity of
the reservoir is 39.3 billion cubic meters of which 22.15 cubic meters is
for flood control. After the completion of the Three Gorges Dam, the
flood discharging capacity of the Yangtze river would be 27000 to 33000
cubic meters, thus the floods from the upstream reaches of the Yangtze
river could be controlled and the middle and lower reaches of the river;
especially in Jinjiang reaches could be regulated. When the water level is
at its maximum of 175 m (574 ft.) above sea level, 110 m (361 ft.) higher
than the river level downstream, the dam reservoir is on average about
660 km (410 mi) in length and 1.12 km (3,675 ft.) in width. On
completion the reservoir flooded a total area of 632 square kilometers.
Power generated:
The Three Gorges Dam has been the world’s largest power station in
terms of installed capacity (22500 MW) since 2012. In 2014, the dam
generated 98.8 terawatt-hours (TWh) and had the world record, but was
surpassed by the Itaipú Dam, which set the new world record in 2016,
producing 103.1 TWh. Each main water turbine has a capacity of 700
MW. Coupling the dam’s 32 main turbines with two smaller generators
(50 MW each) to power the plant itself, the total electric generating
capacity of the dam is 22500 MW. Annual electricity generation in 2015
of the dam was 87 TWh.
The Three Gorges Dam reached its design maximum reservoir water level
of 175 m for the first time in 2010, in which the intended annual power
generation capacity of 84.7 TWh was realized. In 2012, the dam’s 32
generating units generated a record 98.1 TWh of electricity, which
accounts for 14% of China’s total hydro generation. The dam was
expected to provide 10% of China’s power. However, electricity demand
has increased more quickly than previously projected. Even fully
operational, on average, it supports only about 1.7% of electricity
demand in China in the year of 2011, when the Chinese electricity
demand reached 4692.8 TWh.