Presentation for INACOLD

Rock-Filled Concrete Dams

Prof. Feng JIN

Department of Hydraulic Engneering

Tsinghua University

email: jinfeng@tsinghua.edu.cn

2020.9.10
OUTLINES

⚫ Rock-Filled Concrete Dam

⚫ Research on RFC

⚫ Design and Construction of RFC Dams

⚫ RFC Dams in China

⚫ Brief introduction to SPUC

⚫ Conclusions
 Embankment Dam or Concrete Dam
⚫ Embankment dam ⚫ Concrete dam
• Usually cheap
• Can be constructed on
rock, sand and gravel, or
other poor foundation
• Collapse when flood
overtopping
• Mainly be constructed on
solid rock foundation
• Safer when flood overtopping,
important feature to resist
more severe flood when
climate change
• Expensive
• Vulnerable to thermal
cracking, have to temperature
control
 Main type of concrete dam

Gravity Dam Arch Dam Buttress Dam

Conventional concrete Roller compact concrete Self-compacting concrete

 Main issues on concrete dam

Thermal Cracking
Cement
consumption
Temperature control
Cooling Cracking
resistance
TC
Cracking Hydration
resistance heat
TC

Rock SCC RFC

Introduction Video to RFCD
Advantages of RFCD
⚫ Much less cement consumption
• Cheap
• No cooling pipe
Rock 55%
⚫ No vibration or roller compaction
• Less machinery and labor
• Easier quality control to obtain better
quality without thermal cracking Aggregate
⚫ Environmental Friendly 27%
Water 9%
⚫ Similar design with conventional Mineral
admixture 6%
concrete dam Cement 3%
• Same dam section
• Less transverse joints Volumetric ratio of
materials in RFC
OUTLINES

⚫ Rock-Filled Concrete Dam

⚫ Research on RFC

⚫ Design and Construction of RFC Dams

⚫ RFC Dams in China

⚫ Brief introduction to SPUC

⚫ Conclusions
 Filling test of RFC
⚫ Collaborative research with NWU USA

⚫ Inferior limit of filling performance

Xie Y.T., etc. Experimental study of filling capacity of self-compacting concrete and its influence on the properties
of rock-filled concrete, Cement and Concrete Research, 56, 121-128, 2014
 Grate-Box test
s=10mm, n=0.660,
d=272.5mm, θ=14.4°

s=8mm, n=0.663,
d=270.0mm, θ=16.3°

s=6mm, n=0.644,
d=270.0mm, θ=19.3°

Wang Y.Y.，Jin F. etc. Grating-box test: A testing method for filling performance evaluation of self-compacting
mortar in granular packs, Construction and Building Materials, 181 (2018) 358–368
 DEM simulation for Bingham Fluid

黄绵松，堆石混凝土中自密实混凝土充填性能的离散元模拟研究，清华大学博士论文，指导教师：安雪晖，2010
 LBM+DEM simulation
➢ LBM
1
f i ( x + ei t , t + t ) = f i ( x , t ) − ( f i ( x , t ) − f i eq ( x , t ))

➢ Bingham model
transfer collision
 c  u ( ci  u )2 u 2 
fi ( x , t ) = i  1 + i 2 +
eq
4
− 2 ➢ Papanastasiou model
 c s 2 c s 2cs 

➢ DEM
 FT = −kT T FT   FN
FN =  K N  m

 FT = −  FN FT   FN
N

➢ LBM+DEM

ma +cv = Fc + F f + mG
I + c = Tc + T f

Chen S.G. etc. Three-dimensional simulations of Bingham plastic flows with the multiple-relaxation-time lattice
Boltzmann model，Engineering Applications of Computational Fluid Mechanics，10:1, 346-358, 2016
 Pouring process of RFC：DEM-LBM
⚫ Blocking Factor
Cv f Cvs
BF = +
Q f d gap Qs d gap

⚫ Critical BF = 2

Chen S.G.. etc. Lattice Boltzmann-Discrete Element Modelling Simulation of SCC flowing process for Rock-
Filled Concrete, COMPUTER MODELING IN ENGINEERING & SCIENCES, special issue, 2019
 Conclusions in filling research
⚫ Enough margin remains for present technology, i.e.
• Grain size of rock > 300mm
• requirement to HSCC

⚫ Requirement to grain size of rock can be relax if

necessary after test

⚫ Consumption of HSCC, or volumetric ratio of voids

in rockfill, is related to the grading of rockfill. It
shall be studied in the future.
 Material properties of RFC
⚫ Strength
• compress
• tensile
• shear

⚫ Elastic module

⚫ Seepage resistance

⚫ Freeze-thaw resistance

⚫ Hydration thermal
rise
……
Wang J.T. etc.，Measurement and Evaluation of the Thermal Expansion Coefficient of Rock-Filled Concrete，
Journal of Testing and Evaluation，41(6)：20120293，2013
 Micro & porous structure
⚫ Porosity of ITZ
beneath rocks reaches
peak

⚫ Self-compacting type
has a better
performance than
conventional vibration
type.

Xie Y.T. etc. Experimental study of the interfacial transition zone (ITZ) of model rock-filled concrete,
Cement & Concrete Composites, 55, 223–231,2015
Wang Y.Y., Jin F. etc. Experimental Study on Effects of Casting Procedures on Compressive Strength,
Water Permeability, and Interfacial Transition Zone Porosity of Rock-Filled Concrete, J. Mater. Civ. Eng,
ASCE, 28(8): 04016055., 2016
 Shrinkage and creep performance
⚫ Shrinkage of RFC is
only 1/3 of SCC
⚫ Creep of RFC is much
smaller than SCC

He S.Q. etc, Experimental study on the creep behavior of rock-filled concrete and self-compacting concrete,
Construction and Building Materials, 186, 53–61,2018
 Fracture toughness and fracture energy
Model I Model I-II

⚫ Model I c/h=0.4
Toughness
KIC=0.47MPam
Energy
Gf=1900N/m

⚫ Model I-II
c/h 0.4 0.8 1.2
Gf (N/m) 2400 1717 1225

李永秋，自密实堆石混凝土材料力学性能及 I 型断裂性能试验研究，山东科技大学硕士论文，指导教师： 王海超，2012

辛建达，自密实堆石混凝土 I—II 复合型断裂性能试验研究，山东科技大学硕士论文，指导教师： 王海超，2012
Conclusions in material property research
⚫ Density, modulus and Poisson’s ratio，strength，
resistance of seepage and freeze-thaw，thermal
physical properties of RFC are similar to that of
conventional concrete
⚫ RFC has lower cement consumption, hydration
thermal rise, shrinkage and creep
⚫ RFC has higher fracture toughness and fracture
energy
⚫ RFC is a excellence construction material for dams
OUTLINES

⚫ Rock-Filled Concrete Dam

⚫ Research on RFC

⚫ Design and Construction of RFC Dams

⚫ RFC Dams in China

⚫ Brief introduction to SPUC

⚫ Conclusions
 Profile design of RFC dams

Spillway
Impervious Spillway
Impervious
zone zone
Dam body Dam body

Gallery Gallery

Cushion 河床段垫层混凝土

Non-Overflow Spillway Non-Overflow Spillway

RFC Gravity Dam RFC Arch Dam

 Construction Joints

⚫ No longitudinal joints

⚫ Spacing of transverse joints 30-60m or even

more, 134m in Dagutai RFC gravity dam

⚫ Keys and grouting system at transverse joints

of arch dam needed
RFC dam body

B
HSCC
Impervious
zone

Copper RFC Gravity Dam RFC Arch Dam

waterstop
Impervious zone upstream

⚫ Keys and grouting system at transverse joints

of arch dam needed

RFC dam body

HSCC
HSCC
Gallery

⚫ Integral casting by HSCC

Construction process

Rock
HSCC
selection
performance
Formwork
Rock rinse if HSCC testing
necessary Mixing
Green
Rock HSCC cut
transportation transportation

Rock Rock HSCC RFC

Leveling completed casting Curing
Layout of construction

Mixing plant

Left

Right
Upstream
Requirements for Rock

⚫ Hard and fresh rock

⚫ Saturated compressive strength > 30-40 MPa

⚫ Grain size > 300 mm

⚫ Surface mud content < 0.2-0.5 %

Requirements for HSCC

Index Requirement Cement

Slump, mm 260～280 Strength consumption(kg/m3)
Slump Floe, mm 650～750 Avg. Min Max
V-Funnel Flow, s 7～25 C9015 155 132 179
C9020 182 152 212
Stability of Self- ≥1
compacting, h C9025 192 145 247
HSCC mixing and transportation
Pump pipe Mixing plant +
concrete Pump

Concrete truck

Mixing plant
 Downstream
≦
３
ｍ
Upstream
Downstream
HSCC Casting

ｍ
≦
３
Upstream
Other measures of casting
Lift surface treatment
OUTLINES

⚫ Rock-Filled Concrete Dam

⚫ Research on RFC

⚫ Design and Construction of RFC Dams

⚫ RFC Dams in China

⚫ Brief introduction to SPUC

⚫ Conclusions
RFC dams in CHINA
⚫ Till 2019
• 79 RFC Dams Completed
• 41 RFC Dams under construction
1084,3

⚫ Highest RFC dam

• Gravity dam 90 m
• Arch dam 69 m

RFC Volume Placed （104 m3） 391,0

288,1
215,8
218
165,4
126,1
102,2
51,2 82,0
33,0
12,0 12,1 18,4 24,7
0,2 5,1
162

1 2 4 6 10 97
20 62 76 85 117 137
33 51
Songlin RFC Gravity dam (H=90m)

Upstream

Downstream
 Some other RFC Gravity dam
⚫ Xiaowujiang RFC Gravity dam H=47.2m

⚫ Maopo RFC Gravity dam H=43m

⚫ Construction dam in 7 months

 Some other RFC Gravity dam
⚫ Koushang RFC Gravity dam H=58.4m

⚫ Weitan RFC Gravity dam H=59m

Baijia RFC arch dam (H=69m)
 Lytang RFC arch dam
⚫ H=53.5m

⚫ Integral casting without

transverse joints
Mengshan arch dam (H=24m)
Standards and Codes
Technical documents by World bank and
ICOLD
OUTLINES

⚫ Rock-Filled Concrete Dam

⚫ Research on RFC

⚫ Design and Construction of RFC Dams

⚫ RFC Dams in China

⚫ Brief introduction to SPUC

⚫ Conclusions
Self-Protected Underwater Concrete
⚫ Underwater Protected Agent (UPA)

⚫ Filling performance under water of

SPUC is almost same as in land
⚫ More than 20 projects employed
Longbeiwan spillway rehabilitation
Remarks

⚫ RFC technology can be not only employed in

gravity dams, but also in arch dams
⚫ Broad application prospects of RFC are
shown in practical engineering projects due
to many advantages, such as high quality,
economic, labor saving, fast construction
⚫ SPUC is an innovative underwater concrete
technology
Thank for your attention!

Email:
jinfeng@tsinghua.edu.cn