ON THE HYDRAULIC FAILURE PROBABILITY OF FLOOD CONTROL DAMS

In flood control dams it is not only the failure to prevent flood larger than their design carrying capacity, but also the uncertainties of hydraulic factors that cause disasters. In general, the hydraulic risk is not considered in most of the hydrological analysis in floodproofing plan and design. In this paper, a method of evaluating the hydraulic risk is developed by employing risk theory, and the concept can easily be extended to other types of risk analysis. As a result, it is possible not to consider the hydraulic resks when the design hydrologic risk of flood control dam is lger. Otherwise, the hydraulic risks must be noticed. The research is very helpful for the development of the flood control theory used at present.

Life Loss Estimation Based on Dam-Break Flood Uncertainties and Lack of Information in Mountainous Regions of Western China

Compared with urban floods, dam-break floods are associated with greater uncertainties, including variable dam-break modes and hydrological characteristics, so conventional flood estimation methods cannot be directly applied in the estimation of dam-break flood loss. In particular, there is scant information regarding the conditions of affected area and hydrological characteristics in southwest China. In this paper, we introduce an integrated model for estimating flood loss that is adapted to the mountainous regions of southwestern China in light of the relative lack of available information. This model has three major components: a basic information model, a dam-routed flood propagation simulation model, and a loss estimation model. We established the basic information model despite the relative lack of available information using 3S technology [remote sensing (RS); geographical information system (GIS); global positioning system (GPS)], data mining technology, and statistical analysis techniques. Our dam-routed flood propagation simulation model consists of major hydrologic processes and their governing equations for flow propagation, which we solve using finite-difference schemes. In this model, the flood propagation area is divided into grids and each grid is determined by the characteristic parameters obtained from the propagation simulation. We present a case study of the Lianghekou hydropower station in Sichuan Province, China to illustrate the practical application of this integrated model for life loss estimation. © 2017, Tianjin University and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Probabilistic analysis for the response of nonlinear base isolation system under the ground excitation induced by high dam flood discharge

According to theoretical analysis, a general characteristic of the ground vibration induced by high dam flood discharge is that the dominant frequency ranges over several narrow frequency bands, which is verified by observations from the Xiangjiaba Hydropower Station. Nonlinear base isolation is used to reduce the structure vibration under ground excitation and the advantage of the isolation application is that the low-frequency resonance problem does not need to be considered due to its excitation characteristics, which significantly facilitate the isolation design. In order to obtain the response probabilistic distribution of a nonlinear system, the state space split technique is modified. As only a few degrees of freedom are subjected to the random noise, the probabilistic distribution of the response without involving stochastic excitation is represented by the δ function. Then, the sampling property of the δ function is employed to reduce the dimension of the Fokker-Planck-Kolmogorov （FPK） equation and the low-dimensional FPK equation is solvable with existing methods. Numerical results indicate that the proposed approach is effective and accurate. Moreover, the response probabilistic distributions are more reasonable and scientific than the peak responses calculated by conventional time and frequency domain methods.

Flood management of Dongting Lake after operation of Three Gorges Dam

Full operation of the Three Gorges Dam(TGD) reduces flood risk of the middle and lower parts of the Yangtze River Basin. However,Dongting Lake, which is located in the Yangtze River Basin, is still at high risk for potentially severe flooding in the future. The effects of the TGD on flood processes were investigated using a hydrodynamic model. The 1998 and 2010 flood events before and after the operation of the TGD, respectively, were analyzed. The numerical results show that the operation of the TGD changes flood processes, including the timing and magnitude of flood peaks in Dongting Lake. The TGD can effectively reduce the flood level in Dongting Lake, which is mainly caused by the flood water from the upper reach of the Yangtze River. This is not the case, however, for floods mainly induced by flood water from four main rivers in the catchment. In view of this, a comprehensive strategy for flood management in Dongting Lake is required. Non-engineering measures, such as warning systems and combined operation of the TGD and other reservoirs in the catchment, as well as traditional engineering measures, should be further improved. Meanwhile, a sustainable philosophy for flood control, including natural flood management and lake restoration, is recommended to reduce the flood risk.

A quantitative model for danger degree evaluation of staged operation of earth dam reservoir in flood season and its application

Based on the natural disaster risk evaluation mode, a quantitative danger degree evaluation model was developed to evaluate the danger degree of earth dam reservoir staged operation in the flood season. A formula for the overtopping risk rate of the earth dam reservoir staged operation was established, with consideration of the joint effect of flood and wind waves in the flood sub-seasons with the Monte Carlo method, and the integrated overtopping risk rate for the whole flood season was obtained via the total probability approach. A composite normalized function was used to transform the dam overtopping risk rate into the danger degree, on a scale of 0-1. Danger degree gradating criteria were divided by four significant characteristic values of the dam overtopping rate, and corresponding guidelines for danger evaluation are explained in detail in this paper. Examples indicated that the dam overtopping danger degree of the Chengbihe Reservoir in China was 0.33-0.57, within the range of moderate danger level, and the flood-limiting water level （FLWL） can be adjusted to 185.00 m for the early and main flood seasons, and 185.00-187.50 m for the late flood season. The proposed quantitative model offers a theoretical basis for determination of the value of the danger degree of an earth dam reservoir under normal operation as well as the optimal scheduling scheme for the reservoir in each stage of the flood season.

Dams and Floods

The possible mitigation of floods by dams and the risk to dams from floods are key problems. The People's Republic of China is now leading world dam construction with great success and efficiency. This paper is devoted to relevant experiences from other countries, with a particular focus on lessons from accidents over the past two centuries and on new solutions. Accidents from floods are analyzed according to the dam's height, storage, dam material, and spillway data. Most of the huge accidents that have been reported occurred for embankments storing over 10 hm3. New solutions appear promising for both dam safety and flood mitigation.

Influence of inflow discharge and bed erodibility on outburst flood of landslide dam

Accurate prediction of the hydrographs of outburst floods induced by landslide dam overtopping failure is necessary for hazard prevention and mitigation. In this study, flume model tests on the breaching of landslide dams were conducted. Unconsolidated soil materials with wide grain size distributions were used to construct the dam. The effects of different upstream inflow discharges and downstream bed soil erosion on the outburst peak discharge were investigated. Experimental results reveal that the whole hydrodynamic process of landslide dam breaching can be divided into three stages as defined by clear inflection points and peak discharges. The larger the inflow discharge, the shorter the time it takes to reach the peak discharge, and the larger the outburst flood peak discharge. The scale of the outburst floods was found to be amplified by the presence of an erodible bed located downstream of the landslide dam. This amplification decreases with the increase of upstream inflow. In addition, the results show that the existence of an erodible bed increases the density of the outburst flow, increasing its probability of transforming from a sediment flow to a debris flow.

A framework of numerical simulation on moraine-dammed glacial lake outburst floods

Glacial outburst floods（GLOFs） in alpine regions tend to be relatively complicated, multi-stage catastrophes, capable of causing significant geomorphologic changes in channel surroundings and posing severe threats to infrastructure and the safety and livelihoods of human communities. GLOF disasters have been observed and potential hazards can be foreseen due to the newly formed glacial lakes or the expansion of existing ones in the Poiqu River Basin in Tibet, China. Here we presented a synthesis of GLOF-related studies including triggering mechanism（s）, dam breach modeling, and flood routing simulation that have been employed to reconstruct or forecast GLOF hydrographs. We provided a framework for probability-based GLOFs simulation and hazard mapping in the Poiqu River Basin according to available knowledge. We also discussed the uncertainties and challenges in the model chains, which may form the basis for further research.

Numerical Simulation of Dam-Break Flooding of Cascade Reservoirs

Previous studies at home and abroad have mainly focused on single dam-break, and little attention has been paid so far to the dam-break of cascade reservoirs. Multi-source flooding, which can lead to three-dimensional turbulent phenomena and superposition effects, is the main difference between the dam-break of cascade and single reservoirs. Detailed descriptions of the coupled numerical simulation of multi-source flooding have little been reported, and the initial wet riverbed is rarely considered in current models. Therefore, in this paper, a method based on the three-dimensional (Formula presented.) turbulence model coupled with the volume-of-fluid method is proposed to simulate the dam-break flooding of cascade reservoirs. The upstream river, reservoir, and downstream river are connected by the internal boundary method, and the initial conditions, including river flow and reservoir water, are determined according to the results of the numerical simulation. Coupled numerical simulation of different dam-break flooding is then achieved. The present work solves the challenges presented by the enhancement and superposition of natural river flow, upstream flooding, and downstream flooding. This paper provides a theoretical basis for future studies on the dam-break flood routing of cascade reservoirs. © 2017 Tianjin University and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany

Badush Dam: A Unique Case of Flood Wave Retention Dams Uncertain Future and Problematic Geology

Badush Dam is a partially completed dam and a unique case of flood retention dams. Its intended main function is to perform flood protection once in its lifetime;that is if Mosul Dam would collapse. In such a case, the Badush dam would temporarily store the whole flood wave and route it safely to the downstream. For this end, the bulk of the reservoir is left dry, while the remaining volume at the lower part which is intended for power generation does not give an economic justification for building the full height of the dam. The short duration of the intended use as a protection dam has led to relaxing many design assumptions which have raised concerns over the dam integrity. The current controversy rages now over whether to continue the construction of the dam as it was first designed or to change all that in view of the similar site geology of Mosul Dam. Mosul dam foundations suffer at the moment from the severe continuous dissolution of the soluble materials in its foundation leading to continued maintenance grouting of that foundation. This paper gives an overview of the history of Badush dam, its current design and what new requirements which are needed if it is to replace Mosul Dam itself.

Analysis of Flood Risks Upstream from the Imboulou Hydroelectric Dam on the Léfini River, a Tributary of the Right Bank of the Congo River

The analysis of the risk of flooding upstream from the Imboulou hydroelectric dam on the Léfini River in the Republic of Congo-Brazzaville, focused on the evolution of annual rainfall and flow in the study area during the period from 1970 to 2020 before and after the building of the dam in 2005, by applying statistical methods. These methods were used to analyse the spatial and temporal evolution of rainfall and flow at the unique hydrometric station located at the RN2 (National Road N°2) bridge in the village of Mbouambé in the Pool region. This work has shown that rainfall is not the cause of flooding in the Léfini catchment area. The monthly flow coefficient (MFC) showed exceptional flooding from November and December onwards after the dam was built, resulting in a variability of flows, with periods of high and low water. In addition, the annual average flow (AAF) and the maximum average flow (MAF) increased after the dam was built. Maximum average flows (MAF) were higher than annual average flows (AAF) throughout the period of study (1970-2020). The annual and monthly rainfall-runoff relationship showed changes after the dam was built, particularly from 2009 and during the months of November and December. .

基于DAMBRK模型的老鹰岩一级水电站溃坝洪水数值模拟分析

模拟分析水库溃决洪水,预估溃坝洪水对下游沿江居民生命财产安全的影响,对防灾减灾措施研究和完善流域应急管理机制具有重要意义。通过大渡河老鹰岩一级水电站为研究对象,采用DAMBRK溃坝数学模型计算了不同溃决方案并分析其影响,其中整个泄洪冲沙孔闸段瞬间溃决时对下游的危害最大。

基于MIKE FLOOD模型的西北城市河道橡胶坝群洪水风险分析研究

由于西北城市河道比降大,暴雨和山洪形成河道洪水突发性强,河道橡胶坝群的修建改善了城市生态环境,同时也客观上增大了城市洪水风险。基于MIKE FLOOD水动力学模型,对西北城市橡胶坝群河道典型案例进行了一二维耦合水动力学模型计算,研究了在河道遭遇大洪水时橡胶坝群未塌坝运行的洪水动态演进情况,定量计算了对城市可能造成的淹没情况以及洪灾损失,指明了橡胶坝群未按照防汛预案采取度汛措施而造成的潜在洪水风险,并且提出了降低城市河道橡胶坝群洪水风险的建设管理措施。

基于MIKE FLOOD的城区溃坝洪水模拟研究

大坝安全不仅影响工程效益,还影响人民的生命和财产安全,溃坝洪水模拟可以对水库大坝的失事影响做出评估,对制定应急预案和防洪减灾具有重要意义。以深圳市龙华新区民治水库及下游片区为研究对象,基于MIKE FLOOD将MIKE11模型和MIKE21模型进行动态耦合,对溃坝洪水在下游的演进过程进行仿真模拟。模型采用瞬间溃(瞬间部分溃和瞬间全溃)以及逐渐溃两种溃决方式,分别模拟4种工况下的溃口流量过程线以及下游洪水演进过程。结果表明:瞬间溃的洪峰流量较大,出现在溃坝开始时刻,而逐渐溃的洪峰流量相对较小,出现在渗透破坏变形发展至上部坝体坍塌时刻,之后均随库区水位逐渐降低,下泄流量变小,直至库区水体排空。溃坝洪水对上游地区横岭村附近破坏较大,淹没水深较深。民治河中游段居民和商业区附近洪水流速接近5 m/s,对建筑物有一定破坏力,左侧向南村地势较低,淹没情况最为严重,并且在洪水消退后仍有3 m左右积水。民治河下游地区在洪水消退后也有少量积水。

A catastrophic natural disaster chain of typhoon-rainstorm-landslide-barrier lake-flooding in Zhejiang Province, China

On August 10,2019,due to the effect of a rainstorm caused by Super Typhoon Lekima,a landslide occurred in Shanzao Village,China.It blocked the Shanzao stream,forming a barrier lake,and then the barrier lake burst.This is a rare natural disaster chain of typhoon-rainstorm-landslide-barrier lake-flooding.This study was built on field surveys,satellite image interpretation,the digital elevation model(DEM),engineering geological analysis and empirical regression.The purpose was to reveal the characteristics and causes of the landslide,the features and formation process of the barrier lake and the dam break flooding discharge.The results show that the volume of the landslide deposit is approximately 2.4×105 m3.The burst mode of the landslide dam is overtopping,which took only 22 minutes from the formation of the landslide dam to its overtopping.The dam-break peak flow was 1353 m3/s,and the average velocity was 2.8–3.0 m/s.This study shows that the strongly weathered rock and soil slope has low strength and high permeability under the condition of heavy rainfall,which reminds us the high risk of landslides and the importance of accurate early warning of landslides under heavy rainfalls in densely populated areas of Southeast China,as well as the severity of the disaster chain of typhoon-rainstorm-landslide-barrier lake-flooding.

Risk analysis for earth dam overtopping

In this paper, a model of overtopping risk under the joint effects of floods and wind waves, which is based on risk analysis theory and takes into account the uncertainties of floods, wind waves, reservoir capacity and discharge capacity of the spillway, is proposed and applied to the Chengbihe Reservoir in Baise City in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The simulated results indicate that the flood control limiting level can be raised by 0.40 m under the condition that the reservoir overtopping risk is controlled within a mean variance of 5×10-6. As a result, the reservoir storage will increase to 16 million m3 and electrical energy generation and other functions of the reservoir will also increase greatly.

Is Mosul Dam the Most Dangerous Dam in the World? Review of Previous Work and Possible Solutions

Mosul Dam is an earth fill dam located on the Tigris River in North Western part of Iraq. It is 113 m in height, 3.4 km in length, 10 m wide in its crest and has a storage capacity of 11.11 billion cubic meters. It is, constructed on bedrocks which consist of gypsum beds alternated with marl and limestone, in cyclic nature. The thickness of the gypsum beds attains 18 m;they are intensely karstified even in foundation rocks. This has created number of problems during construction, impounding and operation of the dam. Construction work in Mosul Dam started on January 25th, 1981 and started operating on 24th July, 1986. After impounding in 1986, seepage locations were recognized. The cause of seepage is mainly due to: 1) The karsts prevailing in the dam site and in the reservoir area. 2) The existence of gypsum/anhydrite rock formations in the dam foundation alternating with soft marl layers and weathered and cavernous limestone beddings. 3) The presence of an extensive ground water aquifer called Wadi Malleh aquifer, which affects considerably the ground water regime in the right bank. The dissolution intensity of the gypsum/anhydrite ranged from 42 to 80 t/day which was followed by a noticeable increase in the permeability and leakages through the foundation. Inspection of the dam situation in 2014 and 2015 indicates that the dam is in a state of extreme unprecedentedly high relative risk. In this work, possible solutions to the problem are to be discussed. It is believed that grouting operations will elongate the span life of the dam but do not solve the problem. Building another dam downstream Mosul Dam will be the best protective measures due to the possible failure of Mosul Dam, to secure the safety of the downstream area and its’ population.

Calibration of HEC-RAS Model for One Dimensional Steady Flow Analysis—A Case of Senegal River Estuary Downstream Diama Dam

The Sahelian regions have experienced a drought that has made them vulnerable to hydro-climatic conditions. Strategies have been developed to reduce this vulnerability. The governments of Senegal, Mauritania, Mali and Guinea have created the Organization for the development of the Senegal River (OMVS in french) with the aim of realizing large hydraulic installations. This resulted in the construction of the Diama and Manantali dams in the Senegal River Basin. The first aims to stop the saline intrusion, the second to regulate the flow of the river, to allow the irrigation of agricultural perimeters, and to produce electrical energy. The impoundment of the Diama dam has modified the hydraulic behavior of the estuary. The purpose of this study is to carry out the hydraulic modeling of the estuary of Senegal river downstream of the Diama Dam in transient mode by the HEC-RAS software. Two geometric models were constructed on the basis of a digital terrain model (DTM) using the Arc-GIS and HEC GeoRAS soft wares after processing the collected topographic data. The first geometric model, of which the areas of Senegal river downstream Diama Dam have been represented by cross-section, is one-dimensional. The second one is also one dimensional;in this model, the area of the Senegal River estuary downstream Diama Dam is introduced as water storage zones. The components of these models are the stream sections, lateral links, and storage areas. The flood hydrograph downstream Diama Dam is introduced as conditions at the upstream limits of the models while the tidal is introduced as a downstream condition. After the stability and calibration, the results given by HEC-RAS simulations are the variations of the water levels, the temporal variations of the flow rates for each section, the maximum flow velocities and the propagation times of the flood waves. The analysis and comparisons of these results strongly suggest using HEC-RAS issues as a decision-making tool helping to manage floods during times of crisis.

Regional Design Storm and Flood Modelling—Risk Implications in Ungauged Catchments

Most planned developments in a catchment for control of excess water using a culvert, bridge or dam spillway are located at a site in a stream where there are no discharge measurements. Even though, for gauged catchments a number of established flood frequency models and rainfall-runoff models do exist, for ungauged catchments mostly regional flood frequency and event-based rainfall-runoff models are used, which depend on regional parameters. In this paper, a regional approach for design floods is presented and risk implication for design of drainage structures assessed. A case study in light of the above has been considered at four ungauged sites in the Limpopo Drainage Basin in north-eastern Botswana.

Development of Flood Forecasting System Using Statistical and ANN Techniques in the Downstream Catchment of Mahanadi Basin, India

The floods in river Mahanadi delta are due to either dam release of Hirakud or due to contribution of intercepted catchment between Hirakud dam and delta. It is seen from post-Hirakud periods (1958) that out of 19 floods 14 are due to intercepted catchment contribution. The existing flood forecasting systems are mostly for upstream catchment, forecasting the inflow to reservoir, whereas the downstream catchment is devoid of a sound flood forecasting system. Therefore, in this study an attempt has been made to develop a workable forecasting system for downstream catchment. Instead of taking the flow time series concurrent flood peaks of 12 years of base and forecasting stations with its corresponding travel time are considered for analysis. Both statistical method and ANN based approach are considered for finding the peak to reach at delta head with its corresponding travel time. The travel time has been finalized adopting clustering techniques, there by differentiating high, medium and low peaks. The method is simple and it does not take into consideration the rainfall and other factors in the intercepted catchment. A comparison between both methods are tested and it is found that the ANN methods are better beyond the calibration range over statistical method and the efficiency of either methods reduces as the prediction reach is extended. However, it is able to give the peak discharge at delta head before 24 hour to 37 hour for high to low peaks.