Concrete Dam Engineering

 Introduction
 Forces acting on a gravity dam
 Computation of Forces
 Weight
 Water pressure
 Uplift pressure
 Silt pressure
 Wave pressure
 Earthquake forces

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 GRAVITY DAMS
 A gravity dam is a solid structure, made of concrete or
masonry, constructed across a river to create a reservoir on
its upstream
 The section of the gravity dam is approximately triangular
in shape, with its apex at its top and maximum width at
bottom.
 The section is so proportioned that it resists the various
forces acting on it by its own weight.
 Are usually consist of two sections; namely, the non-
overflow section and the overflow section or spillway section.
 Are particularly suited across gorges with very steep side
slopes where earth dams might slip and are usually cheaper
than earth dams if suitable soils are not available for their
construction.
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Basic Definitions
1. Axis of the dam: is the line of the upstream edge of the top (or
crown) of the dam. The axis of the dam in plan is also called the
base line of the dam. The axis of the dam in plan is usually
straight.
2. Length of the dam: is the distance from one abutment to the
other, measured along the axis of the dam at the level of the top
of the dam.
3. Structural height of the dam: is the difference in elevations of
the top of the dam and the lowest point in the excavated
foundation. It, however, does not include the depth of special
geological features of foundations such as narrow fault zones
below the foundation. In general, the height of the dam means its
structural height.

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 Basic Definitions
4. Toe and Heel: The toe of the dam is the downstream edge of
the base, and the heel is the upstream edge of the base.
5. Maximum base width of the dam: is the maximum horizontal
distance between the heel and the toe of the maximum section of
the dam in the middle of the valley.
6. Hydraulic height of the dam: is equal to the difference in
elevations of the highest controlled water surface on the
upstream of the dam (i. e. FRL) and the lowest point in the river
bed

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 GRAVITY DAMS
Dam Axis
M.W.L

F.R.L.

Structural Height
Hydraulic
Height

u/s d/s

River Bed Heel

Toe

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 Base Width

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 Forces Acting on a Gravity Dam
1. Weight of the dam
2. Water pressure
3. Uplift pressure
4. Wave pressure
5. Earth and Silt pressure
6. Earthquake forces
7. Ice pressure
8. Wind pressure
9. Thermal loads.

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 GRAVITY DAMS

Forces Acting on a Gravity Dam

These forces fall into two categories as:
a) Forces, such as weight of the dam and water pressure, which
are directly calculable from the unit weights of the materials
and properties of fluid pressures; and
b) Forces, such as uplift, earthquake loads, silt pressure and ice
pressure, which can only be assumed on the basis of
assumption of varying degree of reliability.

 It is in the estimating of the second category of the forces

that special care has to be taken and reliance placed on
available data, experience, and judgment.
 It is convenient to compute all the forces per unit length
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 of the dam

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Weight of Dam
 Main stabilizing force in a gravity dam
Dead load = weight of concrete or masonry or both +
weight of such appurtenances as piers, gates and bridges.
 Weight of the dam per unit length is equal to the product
of the area of cross-section of the dam and the specific
weight (or unit weight) of the material.
 Unit weight of concrete (24 kN/m3) and masonry (23
kN/m3) varies considerably depending upon the various
materials that go to make them.
 For convenience, the cross-section of the dam is divided
into simple geometrical shapes, such as rectangles and
triangles, for the computation of weights.
 The areas and controids of these shapes can be easily
determined. Thus the weight components W1, W2, W3 etc.
can be found along with their lines of action. The total
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 weight W of the dam acts at the C.G. of its section

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 GRAVITY DAMS
Weight of Dam

W2

W3

W1
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Water Pressure (Reservoir and Tail WaterLoads)
 Water pressure on the upstream face is the main
destabilizing (or overturning) force acting on a gravity dam.
 Tail water pressure helps in the stability.
 Although the weight of water varies slightly with temp.,
the variation is usually ignored. Unit Mass of water is taken as
1000 kg/m3 and specific weight = 10 kN/m3 instead of 9.81
kN/m3.
 The water pressure always acts normal to the face of dam.
 It is convenient to determine the components of the forces
in the horizontal and vertical directions instead of the total
force on the inclined surface directly.

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 Water Pressure (Reservoir and Tail Water Loads
ƒ The water pressure
intensity p (kN/m2)
D
varies linearly with the C
depth of the water
measured below the free
surface y (m) and is
expressed as h

PV1

p = γwy PH
E B

h/3
PV2

γw h A
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 Water Pressure (Reservoir and Tail Water Loads
 U/s face vertical: When the upstream face of the
dam is vertical, the water pressure diagram is
triangular in shape with a pressure intensity of γwh at
the base, where h is the depth of water. The total water
pressure per unit length is horizontal and is given by

PH = γ w h 2
1
2
 It acts horizontally at a height of h/3 above the base of the
dam.

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 Water Pressure (Reservoir and Tail Water Loads
U/s face inclined:
 When the upstream face ABC is either inclined or partly
vertical and partly inclined, the force due to water pressure
can be calculated in terms of the horizontal component PH
and the vertical component PV. The horizontal component
is given as earlier and acts horizontal at a height of (h/3)
above the base.
 The vertical component PV of water pressure per unit
length is equal to the weight of the water in the prism
ABCD per unit length. For convenience, the weight of
water is found in two parts PV1 and PV2 by dividing the
trapezium ABCD into a rectangle BCDE and a triangle
ABE. Thus the vertical component PV = PV1 + PV2 = weight
of water in BCDE + weight of water in ABE. The lines of
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 action of PV1 and PV2 will pass through the respective
centroids of the rectangle and triangle.

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 Uplift Pressure
 ƒWater has a tendency to seep through the pores and
fissures of the material in the body of the dam and
foundation material, and through the joints between the
body of the dam and its foundation at the base. The seeping
water exerts pressure.
 The uplift pressure is defined as the upward pressure of
water as it flows or seeps through the body of dam or its
foundation.
 A portion of the weight of the dam will be supported on
the upward pressure of water; hence net foundation
reaction due to vertical force will reduce.
 The area over which the uplift pressure acts has been a
question of investigation from the early part of this century.
 One school of thought recommends that a value one-
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 third to two-thirds of the area should be considered as
effective over which the uplift acts.

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 Uplift Pressure
The second school of thought, recommend that the effective
area may be taken approximately equal to the total area.

Code of Indian Standards (IS : 6512-1984):

 There are two constituent elements in uplift pressure: the
area factor or the percentage of area on which uplift acts and
the intensity factor or the ratio which the actual intensity of
uplift pressure bears to the intensity gradient extending from
head water to tail water at various points.
 The total area should be considered as effective to
account for uplift.
 The pressure gradient shall then be extending linearly to
heads corresponding to reservoir level and tailwater level.

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Uplift Pressure
Code of Indian Standards (IS : 6512-1984):
 In case of drain holes: the uplift pressure at the line of
drains exceeds the tailwater pressure by one-third the
differential between the reservoir and tailwater heads. The
pressure gradient shall then be extended linearly to heads
corresponding to reservoir level and tailwater level.
 In case of a crack: The uplift is assumed to be the
reservoir pressure from the u/s face to the end of the crack
and from there to vary linearly to the tailwater or drain
pressure.
 In absence of line of drains and for the extreme loading
conditions F and G, the uplift shall be taken as varying
linearly from the appropriate reservoir water pressure at the
u/s face to the appropriate tailwater pressure at the d/s face.
 Uplift pressures are not affected by earthquakes.
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 Uplift Pressure

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Earth and Silt Pressure
 Gravity dams are subjected to earth pressures on the
downstream and upstream faces where the foundation
trench is to be backfilled.
 Except in the abutment sections in specific cases, earth
pressures have usually a minor effect on the stability of the
structure and may be ignored.
 Silt is treated as a saturated cohesionless soil having full
uplift and whose value of internal friction is not materially
changed on account of submergence.
 IS code recommends that a) Horizontal silt and water
pressure is assumed to be equivalent to that of a fluid with a
mass of 1360 kg/m3, and b) Vertical silt and water pressure
is determined as if silt and water together have a density of
1925 kg/m3.

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 Earth and Silt Pressure

D
C

PH1
PV1
h

Silt
E B
PH2
PV2
PV3
A
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 Ice Pressure
 Ice expands and contracts with changes in temperature.
 In a reservoir completely frozen over, a drop in the air
temperature or in the level of the reservoir water may cause
the opening up of cracks which subsequently fill with water
and freezed solid. When the next rise in temperature occurs,
the ice expands and, if restrained, it exerts pressure on the
dam.
 Good analytical procedures exist for computing ice
pressures, but the accuracy of results is dependent upon
certain physical data which have not been adequately
determined.
 Ice pressure may be provided for at the rate of 250 kPa
applied to the face of dam over the anticipated area of
contact of ice with the face of dam.
 The problem of ice pressure in the design of dam is not
encountered in India except, perhaps, in a few localities.
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Wave Pressure
 The upper portions of dams are subject to the
impact of waves.
 Wave pressure against massive dams of
appreciable height is usually of little consequence.
 The force and dimensions of waves depend mainly
on the extent and configuration of the water surface,
the velocity of wind and the depth of reservoir water.
 The height of wave is generally more important in
the determination of the free board requirements of
dams to prevent overtopping by wave splash.
 An empirical method has been recommended by T.
Saville for computation of wave height hw (m), which
takes into account the effect of the shape of reservoir
and wind velocity over water surface rather than on
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 land by applying necessary correction.

Wave Pressure
 Wind velocity of 120 km/h over water in case of normal
pool condition and of 80 km/h over water in case of
maximum reservoir condition should generally be assumed
for calculation of wave height if meteorological data is not
available.
 Sometimes the following Molitor’s empirical formulae
are used to estimate wave height

where Vw = wind velocity in km/hr and F = fetch length of

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reservoir in km.

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Wave Pressure
 Wave pressure diagrams can be approx by triangle l-
2-3
 Max pressure pw in kPa occurs at 0.125 hw, above the
still water level and is given by
p w = 24hw

 The total wave

forcePw, (in kN) is
given by the area of
triangle

Pw = 20hw2

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Earthquake Forces
 An earthquake sets random vibrations (waves) in the
earth's crust, which can be resolved in any three mutually
perpendicular directions. This motion causes the structure
to vibrate.
 The waves impart accelerations to the foundations
under the dam and causes its movement.
 Acceleration introduces an inertia force in the body of
dam and sets up stresses initially in lower layers and
gradually in the whole body of the dam.
 The vibration intensity of ground expected at any
location depends upon the magnitude of earthquake, the
depth of focus, distance from the epicentre and the strata
on which the structure stands.

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Earthquake Forces
 The response of the structure to the ground vibration is a
function of the nature of foundation soil; materials, form,
size and mode of construction of the structure; and the
duration and the intensity of ground motion.
 Earthquake causes impulsive ground motion which is
complex and irregular in character, changing in period and
amplitude each lasting for small duration.
 Earthquake is not likely to occur simultaneously
with wind or maximum flood or maximum sea waves.
 The value of elastic modulus of materials, wherever
required, may be taken as for static analysis unless a
more definite value is available for use in such
condition.
 Whenever earthquake forces are considered along
with other normal design forces, the permissible
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 stresses in materials, in the elastic method of design,
may be increased by one-third.

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Earthquake Forces

For the purpose of

determining the
seismic forces, the
country is classified
into five zones

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Earthquake Forces
 The earthquake force experienced by a structure
depends on its own dynamic characteristics in addition to
those of the ground motion.
 Response spectrum method takes into account these
characteristics and is recommended for use in case where it
is desired to take such effects into account.
 IS:1893 - 1984 code specifies design criteria under
earthquake condition.
 As per IS Code, for dams up to 100 m height, the
seismic coefficient method shall be used for the design
of the dams; while for dams over 100 m height the
response spectrum method shall be used.

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Earthquake Forces
 Basic seismic coefficients (α0) and seismic zone factors
(F0) in different zones shall be taken as given in Table. The
design seismic forces shall be computed on the basis of
importance of the structure I (Table) and its soil-
foundation system β (Table).
 In Seismic Coefficient Method the design value of
horizontal seismic coefficient (αh) shall be computed as

α h = β Iα 0
 In response Spectrum Method the response acceleration
coefficient is first obtained for the natural period and
damping of the structure and the design value of horizontal
seismic coefficient (αh) shall be computed using

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 α h = β IF0 S a g

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Earthquake Forces

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Earthquake Forces

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 Earthquake Forces

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 GRAVITY DAMS
Earthquake Forces
where Sa/g = average acceleration coefficient as read from Fig
for a damping of 5 percent and fundamental period of
vibration of the dam corresponding to
2
γm
T = 5.55
H
B gEm
where H = height of the dam in m, B = base width of the dam in
m, γm = unit weight of the material of dam in N/m3, g =
acceleration due to gravity in m/s2, and Em, = modulus of
elasticity of the material in N/m2. Where a number of modes are
to be considered for seismic analysis αh shall be worked out
corresponding to the various mode periods and dampings and
then design forces shall be computed. If actual response spectra
is available then the same may be used directly instead of the
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 above equation.

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 Earthquake Forces

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 Earthquake Forces
Effect of Horizontal Acceleration: causes
two forces: (1) Inertia force in the body of
the dam, and (2) Hydrodynamic pressure of
water.
Inertia forces: The inertia force acts in a direction opposite to
the acceleration imparted by, earthquake forces and is equal to
the product of the mass of the dam and the acceleration. For
dams up to 100 m height the horizontal seismic coefficient shall
be taken as 1.5 times seismic coefficient αh at the top of the dam
reducing linearly to zero at the base. This inertia force shall be
assumed to act from upstream to downstream or downstream to
upstream to get the worst combination for design. It causes an
overturning moment about the horizontal section adding to that
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 caused by hydrodynamic force.

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Earthquake Forces
For dams over 100 m height the response spectrum method
shall be used. The base shear, VB and base moment MB may
be obtained by the following formulae:

VB = 0.6Wα h M B = 0.9W h α h
where W = total weight of the masonry or concrete in the dam
in N, and = height of the centre of gravity of the dam above the
base in m. For any horizontal section at a depth y below top of
the dam shear force, Vy, and bending moment My, may be
obtained as follows

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 Earthquake Forces

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Earthquake Forces
Hydrodynamic forces: Due to horizontal acceleration of the
foundation and dam there is an instantaneous hydrodynamic
pressure (or suction) exerted against the dam in addition to
hydrostatic forces. The direction of hydrodynamic force is
opposite to the direction of earthquake acceleration. Zanger
presented formulae based on electrical analogy and with
assumption that water is incompressible. The pressure variation
is elliptical-cum-parabolic. The hydrodynamic pressure at depth
y below the reservoir surface shall be determined as follows
pey = C s α h γ w h
where pey = hydrodynamic pressure intensity (Pa) at depth y, h
= depth of reservoir (m) and Cs = coefficient which varies with
shapes of u/s face and depth of water.
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Earthquake Forces

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Earthquake Forces
Effect of Vertical Acceleration:
 The effect of vertical earthquake acceleration is to change
the unit weight of water and concrete or masonry.
 Acceleration upwards increases the weight and
acceleration downwards decreases the weight. Due to
vertical acceleration a vertical inertia force F = αVW is
exerted on the dam, in the direction opposite to that of the
acceleration.
 When the acceleration is vertically upwards, the inertia
force F = αVW acts vertically downwards, thus increasing
momentarily the downward weights. When the acceleration
is vertically downwards the inertia force F = αVW acts
upwards and decreases momentarily the downward weight.

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 Home Work
Check the stability of the gravity dam section shown in Figure
at the section AA' assuming the location of dam in Zone IV,
Wind velocity 115 km/hr and Fetch length 25 km.

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