A monitoring model for the stress on a super-high arch dam during pre-impoundment construction
Abstract This paper presents a proposed model for monitoring the stress on a super-high arch dam during construction. Using mathematics, mechanics, and dam engineering principles, the mathematical expressions of the self-weight component of the dam prior to and following the sealing of the bottom of the arch were derived. The visco-elastoplastic constitutive model of dam concrete during construction was identified and used to develop a stress monitoring model for a super-high arch dam. Based on in-situ stress monitoring data collected during the construction of a super-high arch dam, the stress monitoring model was applied to a super-high arch dam accounting for future impoundment, and the key components of the monitoring model were isolated. The results show that the model has high fitting accuracy and incorporates an appropriate selection of factors affecting dam stress. The hydrograph of each component conforms to the structural characteristics of super-high arch dams during construction. This model overcomes the limitations of applying the complete self-weight of the dam body on the cantilever beam and was validated using data from a super-high arch dam construction project. Thus, this paper provides evidence for a safety monitoring model for super-high arch dams during construction.