Tailings Dam with Core and Filter Page 1 of 9

SOILVISION 10 Help Manual - 6/19/2020

Tailings Dam with Core and Filter

This example extends the SVDESIGNER tutorial “Tailings Dam” to create a tailings dam with a core and a filter using
SVDESIGNER with the goal of conducting seepage modeling in SVFLUX GT.

The original SVDESIGNER model can be found under:

Project: Conceptual Models

Model: TailingsFacility_CoreAndFilter

Minimum license required to complete this tutorial: SVDESIGNER

Model Description and Geometry

SOILVISION 10 Help Manual - 6/19/2020

Model Setup

The following steps will be required to set up this model:

a. Create Model
b. Import Mesh
c. Create Dam Surface
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d. Create Core Surface

e. Create Filter Surface
f. Fix Intersecting Geometry
g. Intersect Surfaces
h. Create One Bounding Region
i. Create Pond and River Regions
j. Create Final Volume
k. Generate SVFLUX Model

a. Create Model
The model must first be created in SVDESIGNER through the following steps:
1. Open the SOILVISION Manager dialog ,
2. In LEARNING MODE, select the SVDESIGNER product icon and click New Model. The model is automatically
stored in "MyProject" project.
3. Select the following entries:
Module: SVDESIGNER
System: 3D
Units: Metric
Model Name: Tailings_Core_Filter
4. Click the OK button to save the model and close the New Model dialog.

b. Import Mesh
In this tutorial, the original ground topography mesh will be imported from a .csv file provided by Bentley Systems

1. Select Import > Mesh to add a new Mesh,

2. In the Open Geometry File dialog, select the CSV file type from the drop-down list,
3. Navigate to the “C:\Program Files\Bentley\Geotechnical\SOILVISION V10\Tutorials” folder,
4. Select the file SVDESIGNER Tutorial Tailings Core Filter Foundation Data.csv,
5. Click on the Open button,
6. Click on the Yes button and then OK in the confirmation dialogs,
7. Rename the output to "Foundation Surface" by right clicking on "SVDESIGNER Tutorial Tailings Core Filter
Foundation Data" and selecting Rename,
8. As a last step, make the mesh editable by right-clicking on the Foundation Surface and selecting Actions >
Make Editable .

Now your screen will look like the image below.

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c. Create Dam Surface

The next step is to build an earth dam in the valley of the ground terrain. First, a cross-section of the dam is created
through the following steps:

1. Select New > Cross Section ,

2. Rename the Cross Section to “Cross Section - Dam”
3. Click on the Data Table pane on the right side of the window,
NOTE:
If at any point during this tutorial you are referred to the Data Table and it is not visible, , right-click on the item in
the Scene pane and select Properties.

4. Set Cross-Section Shape to “Road”,

5. Enter the following data below.

Property Value

Width, W 10

Left Height, H1 45

Right Height, H2 45

Left Angle, A1 38

Right Angle, A2 30

After the earth dam cross-section has been created, the path that the crest of the earth dam follows will now be created
through the following steps:

1. Select New > Polyline,

2. Rename the new polyline to “Polyline - Dam”,
3. Click on the Data Table pane on the right side of the window,
4. Enter the coordinates in the table below,
5. Uncheck the display of "Polyline - Dam" by clicking in its box.

X Y Z
75 160 39
210 150 39

The earth dam can now be built through the following steps:

1. Select Tools > Road Builder,

2. Select "Polyline - Dam" under Extrusion Path and "Cross Section - Dam" under Cross-Section,
3. Click OK.
4. One output mesh named “Cross Section - Dam from Polyline - Dam” will be created.
5. Delete the region “Cross Section - Dam from Polyline - Dam Boundary” since it will not be used for creating the
model volume.

Now your screen will look like the image below.

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d. Create Core Surface

To build the Core surface is a procedure similarto building the Dam surface described previously. First, a cross-section of the
Core is created through the following steps:

1. Select New > Cross Section ,

2. Rename the Cross Section to “Cross Section - Core”
3. Click on the Data Table pane on the right side of the window,
4. Set Cross-Section Shape to “Road”,
5. Enter the following data below.

Property Value

Width, W 8

Left Height, H1 45

Right Height, H2 45

Left Angle, A1 60

Right Angle, A2 60

Create a new polyline named “Polyline - Core” using the following data

X Y Z
75 160 34
210 150 34

The Core surface can now be built through the following steps:

6. Select Tools > Road Builder,

7. Select "Polyline - Core" under Extrusion Path and "Cross Section - Core" under Cross-Section,
8. Click OK.
9. One output mesh named “Cross Section - Core from Polyline - Core” will be created.
10. Delete the region “Cross Section - Core from Polyline - Core Boundary” since it will not be used for creating the
model volume.
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Uncheck the display of all the Meshes and Polylines except the meshes of “Foundation Surface” and “Cross Section -
Core from Polyline - Core” in the Scene pane. Now your screen will look like the image below.

e. Create Filter Surface

To build the Filter surface is also a procedure similar to building the Dam surface described previously. First, a cross-section
of the Filter is created through the following steps:

1. Select New > Cross Section ,

2. Rename the Cross Section to “Cross Section - Filter”
3. Click on the Data Table pane on the right side of the window,
4. Set Cross-Section Shape to “Closed Road”,
5. Enter the following data below.

Property Value

Width, W 30

Left Height, H1 20

Right Height, H2 20

Left Angle, A1 60

Right Angle, A2 60

Create a new polyline named “Polyline - Filter” using the following data
X Y Z
150 97 10
150 142 14

The Filter surface can now be built through the following steps:

11. Select Tools > Road Builder,

12. Select "Polyline - Filter" under Extrusion Path and "Cross Section - Filter" under Cross-Section,
13. Click OK.
14. One output mesh named “Cross Section - Filter from Polyline - Filter” will be created.
15. Delete the region “Cross Section - Filter from Polyline - Filter Boundary” since it will not be used for creating the
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model volume.

Uncheck the display of all the Meshes and Polylines except the meshes of “Foundation Surface”, “Cross Section - Core
from Polyline - Core” and “Cross Section - Filter from Polyline - Filter” in the Scene pane. Now your screen will look
like the image below.

f. Fix Intersecting Geometry

1. In the Scene pane, multi-select all the surfaces “Foundation Surface”, “Cross Section - Filter from Polyline - Filter”,
“Cross Section - Dam from Polyline - Dam” and “Cross Section - Core from Polyline - Core” by using Ctrl-left-click,
2. Right-click on either of the selected items, select Actions > Surface Intersections > Fix Intersecting Geometry,
3. Click OK,
4. Four new meshes named “Foundation Surface-fixed”, “Cross Section - Filter from Polyline - Filter-fixed”,
“Cross Section - Dam from Polyline - Dam-fixed” and “Cross Section - Core from Polyline - Core-fixed” will
be created.

g. Intersect Surfaces
The Foundation, Dam, Core and Filter surfaces now exist. The next step is to generate new surface meshes by intersecting
the surfaces. The intersection command creates a new surface that is the intersection result; neither input is changed. This
is necessary to generate accurate display with no gaps and overlaps and to allow volume calculations later. The following
steps are used to intersect surfaces:

1. The “Foundation Surface-fixed” surface doesn't need to be modified.

2. Multi-select “Foundation Surface-fixed” and “Cross Section - Filter from Polyline - Filter-fixed” surfaces.
Right-click on either of the selected items, select Actions > Surface Intersections > Merge Into New Surface.
Keep the default settings and click OK. A new mesh will be created and rename it to “Merged Surface - Filter”.
3. Multi-select “Cross Section - Core from Polyline - Core-fixed” and “Merged Surface - Filter” surfaces. Right-
click on either of the selected items, select Actions > Surface Intersections > Merge Into New Surface. Keep
the default settings and click OK. A new mesh will be created and rename it to “Merged Surface - Core”.
4. Multi-select “Cross Section - Dam from Polyline - Dam-fixed” and “Merged Surface - Core” surfaces. Right-
click on either of the selected items, select Actions > Surface Intersections > Merge Into New Surface. Keep
the default settings and click OK. A new mesh will be created and rename it to “Merged Surface - Dam”.
Now four intersected surfaces have been created, and they will be used to build the final model volume later.
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h. Create One Bounding Region

Numerical solvers require exact geometry to operate smoothly. To ensure accurate volume output, a bounding region is
created through the following steps:

1. Select New > Region ,

2. Update the data table with the coordinates in the table below,
3. In the Scene pane, rename the output to "Model Extents" by right clicking on "Region" and selecting Rename,

X Y
10 10
10 320
270 320
270 10

i. Create Pond and River Regions

To apply the upstream Pond and downstream River boundary conditions on the surface in SVFLUX model, the Pond and
River regions need to be created. The following steps are used to generate the Pond region:

1. Right-click on the “Merged Surface - Dam” mesh, select Actions > Generate Pond and click Draw,
2. Left-click in the middle of upstream of the dam,
3. Set the elevation to 37,
4. Click OK.
A new region named “PondBoundary” will be created, and Now your screen will look like the image below.

To generate the River region:

1. Right-click on the “Merged Surface - Dam” mesh, select Actions > Generate Pond and click Draw,
2. Left-click in the middle of the downstream side of the dam,
3. Set the elevation to 10.2,
4. Click OK.
5. A new region named “PondBoundary1” will be created. Rename the region to “RiverBoundary”.
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6. Select Tools > Set Operation,

7. Select “RiverBoundary” from the Subject List and “Model Extents” from the Clip List,
8. Select Intersection for the “Set Operation” option,
9. Click OK.
10. A new region named “Intersection” is created. Rename the region to “RiverBoundary – New”.
Now your screen will look like the image below.

j. Create Final Volume (New > Volume)

A volume containing four layers will now be created, using the surfaces and regions created above. Layers are bounded by
two surfaces, so a volume with four layers will require five surfaces in total. The complete volume is now created through
the following steps:

1. Select New > Volume... ,

2. Add 3 regions. Choose “Model Extents” from the drop list for Index 1, “PondBoundary” for Index 2 and
“RiverBoundary - New” for Index 3.
3. Add 5 surfaces and select the following sources:

Index Source Constant

5 Merged Surface - Dam N/A

4 Merged Surface - Core N/A

3 Merged Surface - Filter N/A

2 Foundation Surface-fixed N/A

1 <constant> -50

4. Click OK to create the volume,

5. Uncheck display of all Meshes and Regions.

Now your screen will look like the image below.

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k. Generate SVFLUX Model

A model can be created from the volume to be used in the SVOFFICE/SVFLUX module by following these steps:

1. Right-click on Model Volume and Select Actions > Generate Model,

2. Enter the options as shown in the table below:

Module SVFLUX

System 3 3D

Type Steady-State
Units Metric
Time Units Day
Model Name TailingsWithCoreAndFilter

3. Click OK to generate model.