Experiments on reinforced earth dams in technical scale
Experiments on reinforced earth dams in technical scale
The large amount of area required for conventional flood protection structures, such as embankment dams and levees, often leads to conflicts with property owners. These disagreements result in lengthy planning and approval procedures, which take time that is not available in view of the increasing risk of flood events. This turns area into a resource, which is becoming increasingly important in the flood protection of the future. Obviously, flood protection systems with reduced area requirements would make a contribution to accelerated and modern flood protection. Dams of reinforced earth could offer a possibility to overcome this issue. For this reason, experiments on reinforced dam models with slopes of 70 degrees are carried out, with the aim to investigate the possibility of building resource-saving earth dams that meet the requirements of the applicable regulations. The experiments are performed on dam models with crest heights of 2.25 meters, which are equipped with different measurement technologies. The seepage water flow is recorded. Deformations of the dam surface during different loads are measured using a terrestrial laser scanner. Tensiometer water sensors determine the seepage line inside the dam. Initial results show that space savings of more than 70% are potentially possible. In the experiment no considerable deformations or displacements were determined. Even the seepage water in the most critical case of sealing failure appears to be manageable because the drain can be adequately dimensioned and the sealing system used is capable of sealing small damages itself.
Maximilian Tillmanns; Andreas Bieberstein; Sebastian Schiller; Hans Henning Stutz
11th International Conference on Physical Modelling in Geotechnics (ICPMG2026)
Session 4: Sustainability in geotechnical systems
https://doi.org/10.53243/ICPMG2026-238