Department of Earth Sciences

IIT Roorkee

CONCRETE AND MASONRY DAMS

(Engineering Geology Assignment)

Submitted by:

Submitted to:

Roopak Malik

Prof. Anbalagan

(11410024)

Dept. of Earth Sciences

IIT Roorkee

CONTENT
GRAVITY DAM
CONCRETE DAM
ARCH DAM
BUTTRESS DAM
CUPOLA DAM
RCC DAM
MASONRY DAM

A dam is a barrier built across a stream, river or estuary to hold and control
the flow of water for such uses as drinking water supplies, irrigation, flood
control and hydropower generation etc.
On the basis of STRUCTURAL BEHAVIOUR dams can be classified as: GRAVITY DAM
EMBANKMENT DAM

GRAVITY DAM
A Gravity dam has been defined as a structure which is designed in such a way
that its own weight resist the external forces.

A gravity dam is a massive sized dam fabricated from concrete or stone

masonry. They are designed to hold back large volumes of water. By using
concrete, the weight of the dam is actually able to resist the horizontal thrust
of water pushing against it. This is why it is called a gravity dam. Gravity
essentially holds the dam down to the ground, stopping water from toppling
it over.
The foundation of a Gravity Dam must be
capable of resisting the applied forces
without overstressing of the dam or its
foundation.
The major forces acting on dam are:Horizontal Forces:- The horizontal forces on
the dam tend to make it slide in the
downstream direction, which results in
horizontal stresses at the base of the dam.
These in turn may try to induce shear failure
in the concrete at the base or along the
concrete-rock contact or within the rock
foundation.
Uplift forces:- Uplift forces , in combination with other loads, tend to
overturn/topple the dam, which in turn may cause the crushing of rock at the
toe of dam.
Gravity dams are well suited for blocking rivers in wide valleys or narrow
gorge ways. Since gravity dams must rely on their own weight to hold back
water, it is necessary that they are built on a solid foundation of bedrock.
One of the greater advantage of Gravity dams is that these dams are very
durable and require very less maintenance.
Now based on the construction material used while making a Gravity dam, these dams
are further classified as:-

Concrete Dam

 Masonry dam

Concrete Dam
A concrete dam is a structure designed and built for the purpose of holding back
water that is usually placed across the path of a river.

Concrete Gravity Dams rely on the weight of the concrete of which they are
built to resist the forces (gravity, water pressure, earthquake) to which they
are subjected. A concrete dam is the strongest type of dam built in modern
times and may take several forms. Concrete itself is a building material
made from water, cement, sand and gravel, or aggregate.
In modern times, nearly every dam is made either partially or entirely from
concrete. Concrete is an excellent material for constructing dams because it
is very strong when under compression i.e. when pressed down or pushed
together. Many designs for concrete dams take advantage of this property to
produce extremely large dams, capable of holding back many cubic miles (1
cu. mile = 4.2 cu. kms) of water.
These dams are heavy and massive wall-like structures of concrete in which
the whole weight acts vertically downwards. As the entire load is transmitted
on the small area of foundation, such dams are constructed where rocks are
competent and stable.

Dams constructed from concrete have these basic designs:Arch Dams

An arch dam is
curved in plan, with
its convexity towards
the upstream side.
They transfers the
water pressure and
other forces mainly
to the abutments by
arch action.
An arch dam is quite
suitable for narrow
canyons with strong
flanks which are
capable of resisting
the thrust produced by the arch action. The section of an arch dam is
approximately triangular like a gravity dam but the section is comparatively

thinner. The arch dam may have a single curvature or double curvature in
the vertical plane. Generally, the arch dams of double curvature are more
economical and are used in practice.
The arch dam is one of the most elegant of civil
engineering structures. In cross section, the dam is
narrow in width, but, when viewed from above, it is curved so
the
arch faces the water and the bowl of the curve looks
downstream. This design uses the properties of
concrete as its strength. Concrete is not strong in
tension (when it is pulled or stretched), but it is very
strong in compression (when it is pushed or
weighed down). The arch dam uses the weight of the
water behind it to push against the concrete and close
any joints; the force of the water is part of the design of the
dam.
Arch dams are built across narrow, deep river gorges, but now in recent
years they have been considered even for little wider valleys. C-H ratio
greater than equal to 3 is preferred.

Buttress Dams
These type of dams consists of thin upstream
sloping deck, supported by buttresses. The
name "buttress" dam comes from the
structure of the dam itself. The dam is
supported at intervals by several buttresses,
concrete slabs reinforced with steel, which form
a watertight seal against the river.
Buttress dams are of three types:
(i)
(ii)
(iii)

Deck type,
Multiple-arch type, and
Massive-head type.

A deck type buttress dam consists of a sloping deck supported by buttresses.

Buttresses are triangular concrete walls which transmit the water pressure
from the deck slab to the foundation. Buttresses are compression members.
Buttresses are typically spaced across the dam site every 6 to 30 meter,
depending upon the size and design of the dam. Buttress dams are
sometimes called hollow dams because the buttresses do not form a solid
wall stretching across a river valley. The deck is usually a reinforced concrete
slab supported between the buttresses, which are usually equally spaced.

In a multiple-arch type buttress dam the deck slab is replaced by horizontal

arches supported by buttresses. The arches are usually of small span and
made of concrete. Multiple-arch buttress dams were the first type of buttress
dam ever built.
In a massive-head type buttress dam, there is no deck slab. Instead of the
deck, the upstream edges of the buttresses are flared to form massive heads
which span the distance between the buttresses. The buttress dams require
less concrete than gravity dams. But they are not necessarily cheaper than
the gravity dams because of extra cost of form work, reinforcement and
more skilled labor. The foundation requirements of a buttress are usually less
stringent than those in a gravity dam.
The deck slope influences stability parameters and the stresses in the
buttress. A relatively flat slope, while providing good stability, may result in
high tensile stresses parallel to the upstream face. The optimum slope is
found by trial, and for economy should be as steep as possible while still
satisfying stability and stress requirements. The shape of the buttress also
influences stresses.
The buttresses may be of a single- or double-wall (hollow) construction and
must satisfy the same stress and stability requirements as a gravity dam. In
addition, buttresses must be designed to prevent buckling in accordance
with reinforced concrete design practices. For this reason, bracing or struts
may be placed between adjacent buttresses; stiffeners or counterforts may
be placed on the sides of the buttresses, or, in the case of double-wall
buttresses, diaphragms or curtain walls may be used between the walls.
Buttress spacing is based upon economy and is usually established by trial
studies.
Placing a roadway, spillway, power intake, or outlet in a buttress dam
involves no special problems. The spillway crest and downstream apron can
be supported by the buttresses and are designed in the same manner as
deck slabs. Piers could be constructed on the weir and the crest gated on
buttress dams if desired. Buttress dams also can accommodate outlets.
Outlet openings are provided either in the deck between buttresses or, for
thick buttresses, in the buttress itself.

Cupola dam

In wider valleys with gentle sloping sides,

the stresses near the center of the arch
may become excessive and, to withstand
this, the wall is designed with curvature
in both plan view as well as in sectional
view too. They are called as Double
Curvature Dams also. Due to its characteristic
design the transfer of load is uniform
throughout the foundation. However, the

design and construction of this type of

dams is very challenging.
As the dam section is quite thin so there is every possibility that we get more
seepage of water below the dam. As this will increase the erosion of
foundation rocks so we are required with foundation rocks which are quite
resistant to erosion.
Due to arching action, the maximum load is shifted to abutments so we
require strong abutment rocks with very less geological discontinuities. Tight
narrow gorges with C-H ratio 3 or less are preferred for the construction of
Cupola dams.

Roller-Compacted Concrete (RCC) Dams

Dams constructed of RCC are concrete gravity dams, and their stability
requirements and methods of analysis are similar to those of gravity dams. In
addition to construction methods, they differ from gravity dams principally in
mix design and details of appurtenances.
The major advantage of RCC dam construction is the speed at which the dam
can be constructed, with the associated resulting economies. Special facing
techniques usually are employed for forming the faces of RCC dams. These
include precast concrete face panels, conventional concrete facing mix
placed in conventional formwork, and extruded concrete curbs. The
interlocking precast concrete panels are held in place by steel anchors
embedded in the RCC as it is placed.

Temporary panel
supports must be
utilized until
sufficient RCC
strength is developed
at the anchor
embedment.
Conventional forms
have been used on a
number of projects to
support conventional
concrete facing
mixes. The use of
concrete curbs
involves the placing
of the facing
elements by a slip
form paving
machine.
Appurtenant features are designed to minimize their interference with the
continuity of RCC construction. For example, diversion conduits and outlet
works, if possible, should be embedded by conventional concrete in
abutment trenches or below the main dam section.
Advantages of RCC Dams:(A) Dams are a vital, but aging, part of our public works infrastructure. The
challenge is to find cost-effective repair and replacement methods without
sacrificing safety and reliability. RCC has three key properties that make it
uniquely suited for dams: economy, performance, and high-speed
construction. It has the required strength and durability.
(B) It protects dams from over-topping failure, earthquakes, and erosion. It
can be placed quickly and easily with large-volume earth-moving equipment.
Its generally transported by dump trucks, spread by bulldozers, and
compacted by vibratory rollers.
(C) Sections are built lift-by-lift in successive horizontal layers so the
downstream slope resembles a concrete staircase. Once a layer is placed, it
can immediately support the earth-moving equipment to place the next
layer. After RCC is deposited on the lift surface, small dozers typically spread
it in thick layers. Workers also place it with motor graders, spreader boxes,
and paving machines. Older concrete and masonry dams can be buttressed

with RCC to increase resistance to earthquake loading and to improve

stability to prevent overturning and sliding.
(E) RCC is used as backfill to support conventional concrete spillways. Due to
its high resistance to abrasion, RCC is also used to construct stilling basins,
build liners for outlet channels, and form grad the first successful application
of RCC technology was demonstrated in 1974. The repair of the collapsed
intake tunnel of Tarbela Dam proved that the material had more than
adequate strength and durability. The maximum placement of 18,000 m3 of
RCC in one day, which is still the worlds record, was a clear evidence of the
potential of this new construction method (Refer Figure 4).

Masonry dam
Any dam constructed mainly of stone,
brick or concrete blocks jointed with
mortar. A dam having only a masonry
facing should not be referred to as a
masonry dam. Masonry dams differ
from rock-fill dams in that the stone is
hand-placed with mortar resulting in
the entire dam being impermeable.
Structure wise it is similar to that of a
Gravity Dam except that the material
used for the construction of such type
of dams are stone masonry blocks.
Stone masonry blocks can be carved
out of hard massive igneous rocks like
granite, syenite etc. Fine to medium
grained rocks are preferred because
smaller grains have a large surface
area which comes in contact with other grain thus less concentration of
stresses thus preventing the partial melting of the grains, which might
otherwise be the case if coarse grained rocks are used.
Fairly wide to wide valleys are preferred to accommodate the main dam and
appurtenant structures. For this purpose C-H ratio >4 is required. Hard
massive rocks are preferred as foundation rock however we can also manage
with moderately hard rocks also. As maximum load is concentrated on river
bed foundation so it should be taken care of that there should be no faults or
thrusts below the dam i.e. there should be less number of Geological
discontinuities in the foundation rock.

Height in general preferable less than 50m sometimes up to 80m.

There should be availability of sufficient reserves of masonry blocks near the
dam site so as to minimize the cost of transportation. To cut out the masonry
blocks of a given dimension we require skilled man power also.
Ex.. 63m high and 510m long Gandhisagar dam across Chambal river in M.
P

Geological Investigation for Concrete and Masonry Dams

1. Rock should be sound and resistant to static and dynamic forces.
2. Valley slopes should be stable.
3. Dam foundation should be safe from sliding.
4. The foundation rocks should be of same geological properties.
5. Reservoir should be free from seepage/leakage.
6. Rocks should be resistant to corrosion, erosion, solution, drying and
wetting.
7. Reservoir drainage and overburdens should be resistant to erosion and
sliding.
8. In case of arch dams the abutments should be extremely strong.
9. The site should have a permissible:(a) Spillway and
(b) Diversion tunnel and/or outlet works, if any.
10. Construction material should be economically available.
11. Overall economy and safety.