11/3/2018

Dam Engineering  Structures for Flow Diversion
• brings together a range of disciplines, like structural,
hydraulics and hydrology, geotechnical, environmental
etc.
• primary purpose of a dam is to provide for the safe
retention and storage of water
• a dam must be structurally stable against overturning
and sliding
• the rock or soil on which it stands must be competent
to withstand the superimposed loads without crushing
or undue yielding.
• The reservoir basin is created must be watertight and
seepage through the foundation of the dam should be
minimal.

In order to harness the water potential of a river 
optimally, it is necessary to construct:
1. Storage structure, usually a dam, which acts like a
reservoir for storing excess runoff of a river during
periods of high flows (as during the monsoons) and
releasing it according to a regulated schedule.

2. Diversion structure, which may be a weir or a barrage

that raises the water level of the river slightly, not for
creating storage, but for allowing the water to get
diverted through a canal situated at one or either of its
banks. Since a diversion structure does not have enough
storage, it is called a run‐of‐the river scheme.

Diversion Structures
Weir with falling shutters Barrage with vertical lift gate

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EARTH‐FILL Embankment dams ROCK‐FILL Embankment dams

(a) Homogenous with toe drain (a) Vertical clay core and
drains
(b) Homogenous with chimney
drain and horizontal blanket
(b) Inclined clay core and
(c) Zoned with clay core drains
chimney drain and horizontal
blanket (c) Upstream decked with
asphaltic or concrete
(d) Zoned with earth and rockfill membrane and drains

(d) Central asphaltic

membrane with drains

Choosing a suitable location of dam
Concrete Dams Detailed investigations are carried next to examine the option
that satisfies as being most economical, technically more
suitable and convenient for construction etc.
1. Topographic Requirement
2. Submergence possibilities
3. Geotechnical suitability
4. Hydrologic adequacy
a) The average quantity of water available in the river through out year.
b) The minimum flow of the river, both as the absolute minimum and 
the minimum average over a period of a month or a year.
c) The maximum flow that has been recorded and estimates of what 
might occur in future.
5. Sedimentation possibilities
6. Availability of a suitable spillway site
7. Possibility of river diversion during construction

Selection of the type of dam
1.Environment and public opinion
2.Availability of construction material
3.Unavailability of skilled workers
4.Seismicity
5.Geology and foundation strength
6.Hydrology
7.Valley shape and overburden

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Design and Construction of Concrete  Basic shape of a concrete gravity dam
Gravity Dams
• Dams constructed out of masonry or concrete and which rely solely
on its self weight for stability fall under the nomenclature of gravity
dams.

• It is not just sufficient to design a strong dam structure, but it is

equally important to check the foundation as well for structural
integrity.

• For concrete dams, the stress developed at the junction of the base
becomes quite high, which the foundation has to resist. Usually
concrete gravity dams are constructed across a river by excavating
away the loose overburden until firm rock is encountered which is
considered as the actual foundation. Nevertheless not all rocks are
of the same quality; they vary with different geological materials The increasing width of the section towards the base is
and the process by which they have been formed over the years. logical since the water pressure also increases linearly with
depth.

A gravity dam should also have an appropriate spillway for releasing excess 
Inclined Upstream/ Partially Inclined Face flood water of the river during monsoon months

stilling basin 

The stilling basin dissipates

energy of the fast flowing water
by formation of hydraulic jump at
basin location.

Typical Layout of a concrete 
gravity dam in plan

If a concrete gravity dam is 
appreciably more than 20 m in 
length measured along the top of 
the dam from one bank of the 
river valley to the other, then it is 
necessary to divide the structure 
into blocks by providing 
transverse contraction joints. 

The contraction joints allow 
relieving of the thermal stresses

Gated Spillway Section
Overflow and non‐overflow 
blocks 

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Layout of  Fundamentally a gravity dam should satisfy the following

Blocks criteria:

1. It shall be safe against overturning at any horizontal position

within the dam at the contact with the foundation or within
the foundation.

2. It should be safe against sliding at any horizontal plane within

the dam, at the contact with the foundation or along any
geological feature within the foundation.

3. The section should be so proportional that the allowable

stresses in both the concrete and the foundation should not
exceed. Safety of the dam structure is to be checked against
possible loadings, which may be classified as primary,
secondary or exceptional.

Loading classification is made in terms of the applicability

Technically a concrete gravity dam derives its stability from the
and/or for the relative importance of the load.
force of gravity of the materials in the section and hence the
name. The gravity dam has sufficient weight so as to withstand
Primary loads are identified as universally applicable and
the forces and the overturning moment caused by the water
of prime importance of the load.
impounded in the reservoir behind it.
Secondary loads are generally discretionary and of lesser
magnitude like sediment load or thermal stresses due to It transfers the loads to the foundations by cantilever action
and hence good foundations are pre‐requisite for the gravity
mass concreting.
dam.
Exceptional loads are designed on the basis of limited
The forces that give stability to the dam include: 
general applicability or having low probability of
occurrence like inertial loads associated with seismic 1. Weight of the dam  
2. Thrust of the tail water  
activity.

The forces that try to destabilize the dam include:  The forces to be resisted by a gravity dam fall into two categories
as given below:

1. Reservoir water pressure  1. Forces, such as weight of the dam and water pressure which
2. Uplift   are directly calculated from the unit weight of materials and
3. Forces due to waves in the reservoir  properties of fluid pressure and
4. Ice pressure 
5. Temperature stresses  2. Forces such as uplift, earthquake loads ,silt pressure and ice
pressure which are assumed only on the basis of assumptions
6. Silt pressure  of varying degree of reliability. In fact to evaluate this
7. Seismic forces  category of forces, special care has to be taken and reliance
8. Wind pressure  placed on available data, experience and judgment.

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Planning the Hydroelectric‐Power Development

1. Assemble hydrologic data on streams, and 
4. Determine requirements to be satisfied 
determine the amount of water available and its  (maximum instantaneous load in kW, total 
distribution throughout the year and from year to  energy in kW‐hr per year, and variation of kW 
year. with time).
2. Make preliminary designs for all installations that  5. Select feasible projects as close to the load 
seem competitive in cost, and determine the most  center as possible.
economic design at each site.
6. Compare the best designs from several sites, 
3. While the two preceeding designs are underway, 
make a prelimiary evaluation of social, political and  and select the site or selection of sites that 
environmental impacts of the various alternatives. proves best for production of required power.