Unsteady 2-D seepage simulation using physical analog, case of Sattarkhan embankment dam

•Seepage was simulated by distributed Multiple Reservoirs and Tubes Analog (MRTA).•MRTA elements are designed on the basis of Darcy and continuity equations.•Scaled MRTA was set up for laboratory simulation of seepage through an eartfill dam.•Experiments were conducted under transient condition.•Results approve ability of MRTA with regard to observed data and a numerical model.

SummaryThis study proposes a distributed arrangement of Multiple Reservoirs and Tubes Analog (MRTA) for simulating seepage through an embankment dam in the laboratory. Each MRTA circuit contains two major components of reservoir and friction elements whose parameters are related to those of the prototype dam by appropriate scale factors. Several circuits of MRTA were designed and assembled with a distributed arrangement in the laboratory. To evaluate the capability of MRTA in simulating seepage through the dam, an experiment was conducted under a transient condition. The outputs of MRTA were compared to the piezometric heads observed in the dam body and also to the results obtained from a numerical finite difference method (FDM). Experimental measurements revealed that MRTA was a reliable and convenient experimental tool for seepage simulation in transient conditions. The ability to provide a visual solution of the seepage partial differential equation is the most advantageous trait of the proposed MRTA.