Enhanced Criterion for Base Soil Retention in Embankment Dam Filters
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 132, Issue 12
Abstract
In effective filters, potentially erodible base particles are transported to the filter and retained to form a stable self-filtration layer. At any given time, the mass proportion of the filter and the base materials in this layer depends on the initial porosity of the filter and the subsequent porosity of the self-filtration layer. In this paper, an analytical procedure is given to obtain the particle size distribution (PSD) of the self-filtration layer by combining the PSDs of the filter and the base soil modified by , where 95% of filter constrictions are finer than the size denoted by . The assessment of internal stability of the PSD of the self-filtration layer forms a rational model to successfully identify the effective filters from their ineffective counterparts. The proposed model is verified by large-scale laboratory tests carried out by the writers in addition to other published data. The model performance is acceptable in relation to various base and filter materials, and provides an alternative and rigorous design approach by eliminating most limitations of the conventional particle based criteria (e.g., ratio).
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Acknowledgments
The writers express their special thanks to Dr. Mark Locke (SMEC-International), former Ph.D. candidate at the University of Wollongong, for his contribution to the development of initial framework of the CSD model. The support provided by Snowy Mountain Engineering Corporation (SMEC, Melbourne) and Sinclair Knight Mertz Ltd. (SKM, Sydney) in this area of research is appreciated.
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© 2006 ASCE.
History
Received: Sep 28, 2005
Accepted: Apr 21, 2006
Published online: Dec 1, 2006
Published in print: Dec 2006
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