WRE 411

Chapter: Design and Construction of Gravity Dams

Topic: Forces acting on a Gravity Dam
Online Class 23 August 2020
Prepared by Mushtari Maliha
Lecturer
Department of Water Resources Engineering, BUET
Email: maliha@wre.buet.ac.bd
Review
What is a
Gravity Dam?
Review
Review: Forces Acting on a Gravity Dam
How many can you name?
Hint: There are seven
Review: Forces Acting on a Gravity Dam
1. Water Pressure
2. Uplift Pressure
3. Pressure due to Earthquake Forces
4. Silt Pressure
5. Wave Pressure
6. Ice Pressure
7. The Stabilizing force: the weight of the dam itself.
Water Pressure
• Major external force
• Exerted by the weight of water
• Key-term: Hydrostatic Pressure Distribution: Triangular in Shape
• Two cases: When upstream face is vertical and When the upstream
face is partly vertical and partly inclined
• Also consider Tailwater (if present)
Water Pressure (first case: upstream face
vertical)
Water Pressure (second case: upstream face
partly vertical and partly inclined)
Uplift Pressure
• Second major external force. Must be accounted for in all
calculations.
• Acts against the dam stability by reducing the downward weight of
the dam body.
• Amount of Uplift Pressure is a matter of research and currently
recommendations of USBR (United States Bureau of Reclamation) are
followed. (see https://www.usbr.gov/)
• According to USBR, uplift pressure intensity at heel and toe = their
respective hydrostatic pressure; and joined by a line in between.
Uplift Pressure
Earthquake Forces
• Allowance must be made
• Shake the earth and impart an acceleration in every possible direction
• Simplified for design in Horizontal and Vertical components
• Horizontal acceleration (𝛼ℎ ) and Vertical acceleration (𝛼𝑣 ) expressed
as percentage of the acceleration due to gravity
 Effect of Vertical Acceleration
• May act downward or upward

Water
Water Pressure
Pressure
Dam Body
Dam Body

Dam Foundation
Dam Foundation

Acceleration acting WORST CASE

Acceleration acting upward downward
Effect of Vertical Acceleration (contd)
Inertia force exerted by downward vertical acceleration
= Mass x Acceleration
𝑊
= x 𝛼𝑣
𝑔
Here, W = Total Weight of the Dam
𝑊
Therefore, net effective weight of the dam = W – ( x 𝛼𝑣 )
𝑔
𝛼𝑣 = 𝑘𝑣 g
𝑘𝑣 = fraction of gravity adopted for vertical acceleration (depends on
seismic zones)
Effect of Vertical Acceleration (contd)
𝑊
The net effective weight of the dam = W – ( x 𝛼𝑣 )
𝑔
𝑊
= W - ( x 𝑘𝑣 g)
𝑔
= W – W 𝑘𝑣
= W ( 1- 𝑘𝑣 )
In other words, vertical acceleration reduces the unit weight of the
dam material and that of water to (1- 𝑘𝑣 ) times their original unit
weight.
Effect of Horizontal Acceleration
Horizontal acceleration may cause the following two forces:
a. Hydrodynamic Pressure
b. Horizontal Inertia Force
Hydrodynamic Pressure
• Let’s recall:
Reservoir
Hydrodynamic Pressure
Horizontal Acceleration acting
towards the reservoir Acceleration towards
reservoir

Foundation and dam accelerate

towards the reservoir Hydrodynamic Pressure Dam Body

Water resists the movement owing to

Dam Foundation
its inertia = extra pressure =
hydrodynamic pressure
Hydrodynamic Pressure: Von Karman
Hydrodynamic Pressure: Von Karman contd
Hydrodynamic Pressure: Why Zanger?
• Von Karman: 𝑃𝑒 = 0.555 𝑘ℎ 𝛾𝑤 𝐻 2

• Zanger: 𝑃𝑒 = 0.726 𝑝𝑒 H
Here, 𝑝𝑒 = 𝐶𝑚 𝑘ℎ 𝛾𝑤 H
𝜃
𝐶𝑚 = 0.735 ( °)
90
Hydrodynamic
Pressure:
Zanger
Hydrodynamic Pressure: Zanger
Horizontal Inertia Force
• This force is generated in order to keep the body and the foundation
of the dam together as one piece.
• The direction of the produced force will be opposite to the
acceleration imparted by the earthquake.
• For stability analysis, choosing direction of force is important.
• Two cases: Reservoir full and Reservoir Empty
• Considered to be acting at the center of the gravity of the mass,
regardless of the shape of the cross section.
Horizontal Inertia Force: Reservoir Full case

Worst case: when inertia force is added to hydrostatic water pressure

Horizontal Inertia Force: Reservoir Empty case

Worst case: when inertia force creates tension at the toe (can ignore)
Horizontal Inertia Force
𝑊
• Horizontal Inertia Force = ( ) 𝛼ℎ
𝑔
𝑊
= ( ) 𝑘ℎ g
𝑔
= W 𝑘ℎ
Remaining forces
• Silt Pressure
• Ice Pressure
• Wave Pressure