Dam–water–sediment–rock systems: Seismic analysis

A computational procedure for two-dimensional finite-element analysis of dam–water–sediment–rock systems subjected to seismic excitations is reviewed. In particular, the semidiscrete approximation of the water–sediment–rock region on the upstream side of the dam by means of a hyperelement is described in detail. The sediment is represented in the hyperelement as a fluid-filled porous solid on the basis of the Biot theory of wave propagation in poroelastic media while the water is taken as a compressible, inviscid fluid and the rock as a viscoelastic solid. An application of the procedure to a study of the effects of sediment porosity and thickness on the response of a model dam to horizontal and vertical ground motions is presented and discussed.