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Last modified
2/16/2017 11:33:02 AM
Creation date
10/6/2015 9:57:30 AM
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Reference Library
Title
WESTERN DAM ENGINEERING NEWSLETTER, VOLUME 3, ISSUE 2, MAY 2015
Author/Source
AECOM
Keywords
SAFETY INSPECTIONS, SPILLWAYS, GEOLOGY 101, GOOD FOUNDATIONS
Document Type - Reference Library
Research, Thesis, Technical Publications
Document Date
5/31/2015
Year
2015
Team/Office
Dam Safety
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<br /> <br /> <br /> <br />24 <br />types of materials should be evaluated by a <br />professional dam engineer. <br />The above discussion describes only a small selection <br />of foundation problems to be considered in the <br />evaluation and repair of existing dams and the design <br />and construction of new dams. Projects located in <br />varied geologic settings can benefit from the <br />participation of professional geologists, engineering <br />geologists, and/or geological engineers. <br />Case Histories <br />QUAIL CREEK DAM AND RESERVOIR <br />Quail Creek Reservoir is located in the southwestern <br />part of Utah near Saint George. The reservoir is formed <br />by a main dam and dike. On January 1, 1989, the 78- <br />foot-tall dike failed and released 25,000 acre-feet of <br />water causing approximately 12 million dollars in <br />damage (Carlson, D.D. and Meyer, D.F. 1989). <br />The foundation of the dike was formed by sedimentary <br />rocks deposited in a marine tidal flat environment and <br />consisted of alternating, thin beds of gypsiferous <br />siltstone, sandstone, gypsum, and dolomite (Robert <br />James, J. et al. 1989). The geology was complex, and <br />the rock was described as very weathered, highly <br />fractured, faulted, and folded. Figure 15 is an aerial <br />photograph after the failure of the dike that scoured <br />soils away exposing the underlying bedrock. <br />Figure 15 - Quail Creek Dike <br />Upon first filling of the reservoir, seepage began to <br />flow immediately through the foundation. The <br />response to the seepage was a grouting program and <br />installation of an unfiltered rock toe drain. Three <br />different phases of grouting were done between 1986 <br />and 1988. On December 31, 1988, brown, discolored <br />seepage was observed flowing at about 200 to 300 <br />gallons per minute. A filter was constructed over the <br />seepage area, but ultimately the flow was too great <br />and a backwards piping erosion failure mode caused <br />portions of the embankment to collapse, causing a <br />catastrophic failure. <br />After the failure occurred, an investigation revealed <br />that although the complexity of the foundation <br />geology was known ahead of time, proper treatment <br />of foundation defects, such as openings and voids <br />along bedding planes, was not used during <br />construction. Figure 16 shows an example of some of <br />the openings along bedding at Quail Creek Dike. In <br />addition to the nature of the foundation defects, the <br />orientation of bedding played important role in the <br />failure. As shown above in Figure 15, the orientation of <br />bedding is perpendicular to the axis of the dike which <br />allowed continuous, downstream pathways for <br />foundation seepage. <br /> <br />Figure 16 - Openings along Bedding Planes <br />Perhaps the most significant deficiency that led to <br />breach of the dike was the failure to provide adequate <br />filters to protect the core of the dam from internal <br />erosion and piping into and along the foundation. The <br />investigation of the failure concluded that several <br />adverse conditions existed that contributed to breach <br />of the dike. The conditions included: <br /> Open joints along bedding planes were not <br />treated during construction and allowed an <br />unfiltered seepage path with a direct <br />connection with the reservoir.
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