Université d'Ottawa University of Ottawa

Génie Civil Civil Engineering

CVG6305-Term Project
The Rock Stability Assessment of Arch Dams and Reinforcement Technology

By

Qingcheng Yu

8452596

Instructor

Dr. Rozalina Dimitrova

-2018-
Abstract:The abutment rock mass quality and shear resistance are the critical factors
to determine the stability of arch dams. The existence of the geologic defects inside
the rock mass near dam abutment can cause insufficient bearing capacity and poor
anti-deformation ability, resulting a high risk of the entire dam displacement or cracks
even a dam failure, bringing a direct threat to the normal operation of the hydropower
station. Therefore, it is necessary to study the geological defects of the rock mass
quality near dam abutment and establish a set of method system for reinforcement
treatment, which is of great significance to the construction and maintenance of
hydropower station. This project starts from the most concerned arch dam failure
cases such as the Malpasset Dam, investigates the structural features of the rock mass
around the dam abutment and studies the underlying geology defects which relate to
the failure. Secondly, the project will look into the general rock mass quality
assessment approaches. Thirdly, a case study will be introduced in order to show the
practical applications.Finally, the project will study the different reinforcement
technology aimed at different imperfection characteristics of rock mass.It is concluded
that the through assessment of rock quality around arch dam abutment is a critical step
to ensure the dam stability and durability.The reinforcement methods should be
chosen properly based on specific geological conditions.

Key words:Arch dam, abutment, rock mass quality, reinforcement technology.

1. Introduction
1.1 Arch dam
An arch dam is a curve shaped solid shell which is generally built with cement
concrete(Fig.1a).The working nature of arch dam is like a cantilever beam in
longitudinal section and arch action in horizontal section.The arch dam is designed so
that the force of the water against it, known as hydrostatic pressure, presses against
the arch, compressing and strengthening the structure as it pushes into its foundation
or abutments[1].Another important point is that the load carrying capacity of arch
dam also depends on its curvature, i.e. greater the curvature larger will be the load
resisted[3].

For a general dam which is built perpendicular to the river channel,most anti-force
which sustains the hydrostatic pressure comes from the anti-slide force of the dam
foundation,which has a harsh requirement for base condition and a enormous and
heavy dam body.And the concrete dam body is subjected to tensile
stresses.However,the baring capacity of concrete for tensile stresses is much lower
than compressive stresses,which results in low durability(Fig.1c).In comparison,the
curved shape of arch dam can transfer most hydrostatic pressure into the dam
abutment and has a moderate requirement for base condition.Since they are thinner
than any other dam type, they require much less construction material, making them
economical and practical in remote areas[1](Fig.1b).Moreover,an arch dam is most
suitable for narrow gorges,river valleys and canyons with steep walls of stable rock to

-1-
support the structure and stresses[2].However,the constitution process of arch dams is
more difficult and time-consuming due to the complex shape and it has a high
requirement for the geological condition of rock mass in dam abutment.

(a) (b)

(c)

Fig.1 (a)The Gordon Dam in Australia[5];(b)(c)The working mechanics of the concrete arch
dam and gravity dam[6].

Classification of an arch dam depends on its angle, radius and curvature. There are
four types of arch dams:constant radius arch dam, which have constant radius of
curvature, variable-radius dams, which have both upstream and downstream curves
that systematically decrease in radius below the crest,and double-curved dam(or dome
dam),which is double-curved in both its horizontal and vertical planes. Arch dams
with more than one contiguous arch or plane are described as multiple-arch dams.

1.2 Failure Cases and Significance

The Malpasset arch dam is built for water supply, irrigation and flood control. The
dam height is 66m, the crest is 222.7m long, the bottom is 6.78m thick, the
length-to-height ratio is 3.37, and the slope of the two banks is 1:1.5. It is a flat,
double-curved arch dam with a thickness-to-height ratio of 0.103 and a storage
capacity of 51 million m3[7].

-2-
 (a) (b)

Fig.2 The The Malpasset arch dam (a) before the failure event and(b)after the failure event[8].

The Malpasset Dam broke in February 1959. More than 500 people lost their lives or
disappeared and 300,000 francs were lost. So far 60 years have passed. Many dams
experts and geologists all over the world have investigated and researched the actual
cause of the accident.

This accident is widely considered as a result of imperfection of rock mass quality

beneath the left bank abutment.The Malpassit arch dam was built at a improper site,
applied by a improper dam type and carelessly designed. The geologic conditions of
the dam site are poor, especially for the poor quality of the rock mass beneath the left
bank of the dam.The faults are well-developed, also including schistosity, fissures and
joints, all of which have various scales and irregular occurrence.The rock mass also
includes clay with low shear strength of 1000MPa, or even lower and high deformity
and looseness.

2. Rock Quality Assessment

2.1 General Assessment
The site should avoid all kinds of long joints, faults and weak layers in rock
mass.However,if the jointing direction is parallel to the dam compressive force
direction or perpendicular to the bank surface and the jointing number is acceptable,it
can be considered as fair(Fig.3a,5b).Excepting for the cases where the faults develop
perpendicular to the compressive force direction and dip against the the compressive
force direction,it can also be considered as fair(Fig.3c).

-3-
 Unfavorable

Fair
Unfavorable
Fair

Fair Very unfavorable

Fig.3 The preference level for rock jointing and fault direction beneath the dam
abutment.(a)Jointing direction in plan view;(b) Jointing direction in cross-section
view;(b)Fault direction in plan view[11].

2.2 Rock Mass Rating System

An important consideration in the geological investigations of an arch dam abutment
is to obtain sufficient data to allow the quality of the foundation to be quantitatively
compared from one area to another. In order to do this, it is necessary to adopt a rock
mass rating system for use throughout the geological investigations[12].The rock
mass rating (RMR) is calculated as follows:

R  A B  C  D  E  F (2.21)

where
A = Compressive strength of intact rock
B = Deere’s RQD
C = Spacing of joints
D = Condition of joints
E = Ground water conditions
F = Adjustment for adverse joint orientation
2.3 Modulus of Deformation of Rock Mass
Unlike a concrete gravity dam which carries the entire load by its self weight, an arch
dam obtains its stability by both the self weight and, to a great extent, by transmitting
the imposed loads by arch action into the valley walls.As a general rule, an arch dam
requires a site with abutments of sufficient strength to support the arch thrust[12].The
general requirement for rock quality beneath the arch dam abutment should be

-4-
hard,complete,dense,impermeable,uniform, high shear strength and durability.The
Young's modulus of the rock mass should meet the following condition:

Er 1
 (2.41)
Ec 4
,where Er is the Young's modulus of the rock mass while Ec is the Young's modulus of
the dam material(generally use concrete).

The deformability or stiffness of an arch dam foundation must be estimated for

incorporation in the stress analysis of the dam.A relationship has been suggested by
Serafim and Pereira (1983) between the geomechanics classification system RMR and
the in situ modulus of deformation of the rock mass[12]. This relationship is
expressed in the following equation:

 RMR10 

E  10

40

 (2.42)

Where E is the modulus of deformation measured in gigapascals.

The publication of the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) provide
detailed test and analytical procedures for computing the rock mass modulus of
deformation D4395-84 (ASTM 1984b)[12].The following equations may be used for
computing the modulus of deformation.For a flexible loading system with Surface
deflection at center of circularly loaded area:

E
 
2 1   2 QR
(2.42)
Wc
For a flexible loading system with surface deflection at center of annularly loaded
area:

E
 
2 1   2  R2  R1 QR
(2.43)
Wc
For a rigid loading system with surface deflection :

E
 
2 1   2  R2  R1 QR
(2.43)
Wc
Where
E = modulus of deformation
m = Poisson’s ratio
Q = pressure
R = radius of loaded area or radius of rigid plate
Wc = deflection at center of loaded area
R2 = outside radius of annulus
-5-
 R1 = inside radius of annulus
Wa = average deflection of the rigid plate
P = total load on the rigid plate
2.4 Shear Strength of Rock Mass
Sliding at the concrete/foundation interface is not often an issue for arch dams. However,
it can be a failure mode if the dam’s length to height ratio is large. In addition, if the dam
relies on thrust blocks for support, the thrust blocks’ stability may be controlled by
sliding[13].

A conservative evaluation of shear strength for rock-to-rock contact on a fracture under

relatively low normal load is provided by the following equation:

S  N tan r  i  (2.51)


F 
Cos     N (2.52)
F
where

S = shear strength of fracture

N = normal stress on fracture

φr= residual friction angle

i = asperity angle

Any applied force that makes an angle less than the friction angle, ( φ ) will not cause
sliding. Any applied force that makes an angle with the normal greater than φ will cause
sliding (Fig. 4a)[13]. The definition of sliding factor of safety is:

Tan  
FS  (2.52)
Tan  
Where φ is the actual interface friction angle and α is the limiting value determined
by analysis.

-6-
 Fig.4 The (a)2-D and (b)3-D sliding model[13].

Definition of potential sliding planes in 3D is by specification of strike and dip. Strike is

the angle of the line formed by the intersection of the sliding plane with horizontal,
measured eastward from north. The dip is the angle between the sliding plane and
horizontal(Fig.4b)[13]. If i, j, and k are the unit normal vectors in the east, north, and up
directions respectively, then the i, j, and k coordinates of the strike, the dip, and the
upward directed normal to the sliding plane are as follows :

i j k

Strike Sin(S) Cos(S) O

Dip Cos(S)*Cos(D) -Sin(S)*Cos(D) -Sin(D)

Normal Cos(S)*Sin(D) -Sin(S)*Sin(D) Cos(D)

Table.1 The i, j, and k coordinates of the strike, the dip, and the upward directed normal
to the sliding plane[13]."S" stands for strike angle and "D" stands for dipping angle.

3. Case Study
3.1 Site Information
Shichengzi arch dam is located at Xinjiang Province,China.The reservoir was built in
1976 and started to store water in December 1978. The total capacity is 1945.50 million
m3. The maximum dam height is 78m, of which the lower part is a masonry stone
pedestal, and the upper part is a masonry stone arch dam. The crest elevation is 1785m,
and the normal water level elevation is 1783m. It is a medium-sized water conservancy
project that focuses on irrigation and gives comprehensive consideration to flood control.

The mainly exposed strata in the dam site are the intrusive rocks in the middle of the
Hualixi era. The lithology is dominated by the medium-grained biotite granite, followed
by the diabase mineralization. The black cloud granite is a meat red, full-crystalline,
medium-grained granite massive structure,composed of potassium feldspar, plagioclase,

-7-
quartz and a small amount of black cloud magma, and is the main bearing layer of the
dam. The feldspar diabase is unevenly distributed and appears vein-like. The thickness is
generally 3 to 15m, accounting for about 25%.

3.2 The major sliding bodies in left dam abutment

Fig.5 (a)The major faults in Shichengzi arch dam area and (b)the cross-sectional view of
the left dam abutment in Shichengzi arch dam area[14].

There are several faults and jointing in the arch dam area(Fig.5a),especially for the left
dam abutment(Fig.5b),which has 5 major sliding bodies.Some of them are listed below:

Left slide body 1: located at the elevation of the arch end of the left abutment from about
1752 to 1786m. The structural plane formed by the fracture surface L6 and the structural
plane formed by its hypothetical extension fracture L6' form a gently inclined structure
plane; the structural plane formed by the fracture L8 and its hypothesis. The structural
plane formed by the extended fracture L8' constitutes a steeply inclined structural
plane[14].

Left slide body 2: The elevation of the arch end of the left abutment is about 1749 to
1786m. The structural plane formed by the fracture surface L6 and the structural plane
formed by its hypothetical extension fracture L6' constitute a gently inclined structure
plane; the structural plane formed by the fracture L7 and its hypothesis. The structural
surface formed by the extension crack L7' constitutes a steeply inclined structure
surface[14].

3.3 The Assessment Results

The calculation results (Table.2)show that the stability of the abutment after the
impervious panel rectification of the dam body is consistent with the current state of

-8-
 stability of the arch seat at the dam body. Each slider of the left abutment can meet
anti-sliding stability requirements at low water level (abnormal water level 1740m), but
when the high water level (normal water level or check water level), some of the slides do
not meet the stability requirements, they still need to be reinforced Remediation.

Left slide Left slide Left slide Left slide Left slide Specification
body 1 body 2 body 3 body 4 body 5 value

Case 1 *2.02 *2.61 3.16 3.86 3.23 3.00

Case 2 *1.36 *1.74 *2.29 2.54 2.68 2.50

Case 3 3.25 4.11 6.28 4.82 5.22 3.00

Case 4 *8.21 *13.77 21.74 8.23 4.29 3.00

Case 5 *1.46 *1.87 2.53 2.75 3.29 2.00

Table.2 The safety factor of slide bodies in left dam abutment.*stands for the cases which
does not satisfy the anti-slide requirement[14].

3.4 Reinforcement Technology

Based on the lack of shear strength, it is proposed to use prestressed cables to reinforce
each slider. After the cables are subjected to prestress, they will produce positive pressure
on the two sliding surfaces. The product of the positive pressure and the friction
coefficient is the sliding block. Force, change the direction of action of the anchor cable,
and the sliding resistance changes.

The left bank dam shoulder needs to set three concrete shear holes, the size is 4 × 4m, the
hole type is the city gate hole type, its top arch angle is 120°, and each shear hole plug
must pass through the corresponding fracture surface 1～2m. In the middle of the hole, a
drain hole of d=50mm is left, a d=50mm water collection hole is set around the hole, and
the concrete mark in the hole is C30[14].

Because there are multiple cracks in the left abutment, in order to strengthen the integrity
of the mountain body at the downstream of the left abutment and the cohesion of the
structural surface, consolidation grouting is performed at the location where there is a
crack. For the steeply inclined cracks of L4, L7, L8, L9, etc., the grouting hole adopts a
rafting arrangement in the position where the terrain is relatively flat; for other fractures,
the grouting holes are arranged in three rows through the fracture. Consolidation grouting
hole spacing is about 3m, a total of 86 holes, the average depth of about 7m, a total of
602m[14].

4. Conclusion
Designing arch dams must do in-depth geological exploration, drilling, and testing, clarify
the geologic stability of the dam site, engineering geology and hydro-geological

-9-
conditions, geological structure, engineering mechanical parameters, etc., and determine
whether it can serve as an arch dam site. According to the topography of the dam site and
the geological conditions, the dam type of the arch dam is selected, such as a thick arch
dam, a thin arch dam, a single curved arch dam, and a double curved arch dam. Propose
the arch dam body shape, the position of the foundation surface, the connection between
the two ends of the arch dam and the dam seat, the intersection angle between the arch
end dam axis and the shore water level, and whether the perimeter seam is used. Calculate
and analyze the stress and displacement of the arch dam to optimize the shape of the arch
dam. Design arch dam material and construction.Ground treatment design, with particular
attention to anti-seepage and drainage, reduce pressure on the dam body and abutment
rock mass. Calculation of anti-sliding stability of dam foundation abutments, including
downstream and upstream.

5. References
[1] Design of Arch Dams - Design Manual for Concrete Arch Dams, Denver Colorado:
Bureau of Reclamation, 1977.
[2]"Arch Dam Forces".Archived from the original on 5 February 2007.
Retrieved 2007-02-05.
[3] "The Constructor-Civil Engineering Home".https://theconstructor.org/water-resour
-ces/types-of-arch-dam-construction/20087/.
[4] "Slide Share".https://www.slideshare.net/DineshRishiBhoga/arch-dam.
[5] "Flickr".https://www.flickr.com/photos/proimos/3290376942.
[6] "Association of State Dam Safety Officials".https://damsafety.org/different-types-
-dams.
[7] Zhang GD.[J].Lessons from the Failure of Malpassit Arch Dam.Journal of
hydroelectric engineering.
[8] "Dinge & Goete".http://dingeengoete.blogspot.ca/2013/12/this-day-in-history-dec-
2-1959-dam.html.
[9] G. S. Sarkaria, Consulting Engineer, Vista, CA.Lessons from serious incidents at
seven arch dams.
[10] CHAI Jun-rui.[J]Review on Dynamic Stability Analysis of Rock Mass in High
Arch Dam Abutment.Journal of Liaoning Technical University （ Natural
Science)1008-0562(2001)04-0502-03
[11] Hohai University Teaching PowerPoint: "Arch Dams".
[12] Engineering and Design:ARCH DAM DESIGN.Department of the Army U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers Washington, DC 20314-1000.CECW-ED Engineer
Manual 1110-2-2201.EM 1110-2-2201.31 May 1994.
[13]Engineering Guidelines for the Evaluation of Hydropower Projects:Chapter 11
-Arch dams.March 14, 2018 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
[14]Chen HQ.[J].Spatial stability analysis of abutment rock mass of arch dam—the
program and application of arch abutment slide stability calculate
procedure.Sichuan University

- 10 -