Influence of large-scale asperities on the stability of concrete dams

Abstract

For concrete dams founded on rock, there are only a few options in the common analysis methods to account for large‐scale asperities. However, previous research alludes that they have a significant impact on the behaviour of interfaces under shear. This study investigates the behaviour of concrete dam scale models with varying interface geometries, under a realistic set of eccentric loads. The outcome of the scale model tests shows that not only the capacity of the scale models was significantly impacted by the asperities, but also the type of failure in the scale models.