DEFINITIONS

• is a barrier that impounds water or

DAMS
underground streams.
• a barrier constructed to hold back
water and raise its level, forming a
reservoir used to generate electricity
or as a water supply.
• also be used to collect water or for
storage of water which can be
evenly distributed between
locations.

• By size
TYPES OF DAMS International standards
(including International Commission on
Large Dams, ICOLD) define large dams as
• By structure higher than 15 meters and major dams as
• Arch dams over 150 meters in height. The Report of the
• Gravity dams World Commission on Dams also includes in
• Arch-Gravity dams the large category, dams, such as barrages,
• Barrages which are between 5 and 15 meters high
• Embankment dams with a reservoir capacity of more than 3
• Rock-fill dams million cubic meters.
• Earth-fill dams The tallest dam in the world is the 300-
meter-high Nurek Dam in Tajikistan.

• By Use • By material
• Saddle dam • Steel dam
• Weir • Timber dam
• Check dam
• Dry dam • Other types
• Diversionary dam • Cofferdams
• Underground dam • Natural dams
• Trailing dam • Beaver dams
 ARCH DAMS
• is a solid dam made of concrete that is curved
upstream in plan.

BY STRUCTURE • designed so that the force of the water against it,

known as hydrostatic pressure, presses against the
arch, compressing and strengthening the structure
as it pushes into its foundation or abutments.
• is most suitable for narrow gorges or canyons with
steep walls of stable rock to support the structure
and stresses.
• they are thinner than any other dam type, they
require much less construction material, making
them economical and practical in remote areas.

• For this type of dam, firm reliable supports

at the abutments
(either buttress or canyon side wall) are
more important. The most desirable place
for an arch dam is a narrow canyon with
steep side walls composed of sound
rock. The safety of an arch dam is
dependent on the strength of the side
wall abutments, hence not only should
the arch be well seated on the side walls
but also the character of the rock should
be carefully inspected.
GORDON DAM, TASMANIA

CLASSIFICATION OF ARCH DAMS

Arch dams classified with respect to
In general, arch dams are classified their structural height are:
based on the ratio of the base
thickness to the structural height (b/h) • Low dams up to 100 feet,
as:
• Medium high dams between 100– 300 feet,
• thin, for b/h less than 0.2,
• medium-thick, for b/h between 0.2 • High dams over 300 feet.
and 0.3, and
• thick, for b/h ratio over 0.3.
 LOADS • There are two basic designs for an arch
dam: constant-radius dams, which
The main loads for which an arch dam is have constant radius of curvature,
designed are: and variable-radius dams, which have
• Dead Load, both upstream and downstream curves
• Hydrostatic Load generated by the that systematically decrease in radius
reservoir and the tailwater, below the crest. A dam that is double-
• Temperature Load, curved in both its horizontal and
vertical planes may be called a dome
• Earthquake Load, dam. Arch dams with more than one
• Other miscellaneous loads that affect a contiguous arch or plane are
dam include: ice and silt loads, and uplift described as multiple-arch dams.
pressure.

EXAMPLES OF ARCH DAMS GRAVITY DAMS

• is a massive concrete or earth type
• Buchanan Dam (example of Multiple-Arch type) structure.
• Daniel-Johnson Dam
• use their own weight to resist opposing
• Flaming Gorge Dam forces. They rely on their great weight and
• Glen Canyon Dam size for stability.
• Idukki Dam
• is the most commonly built dam in the world.
• Inguri Dam
One of the reasons for this is the simplicity of
• Karun-3 dam
design
• Pensacola Dam (longest Multiple-Arch type)
• Victoria Dam • it is essential to have an impervious
• Mauvoisin Dam
foundation with high bearing strength.
• Luzzone Dam • it requires great quantities of material to
construct.[

GRAVITY DAMS ARE

CLASSIFIED AS
• “Solid”
- is the more widely used of the
two. (Grand Coulee Dam )

• “Hollow”- is frequently more

economical to construct. (Braddock
Locks & Dam)

GRAND COULEE DAM

 THE MOST COMMON
CLASSIFICATION OF GRAVITY DAMS • buttress dams, made of reinforced
BASED UPON THE MATERIALS concrete: Stony Gorge Dam
COMPRISING THE STRUCTURE IS: • Embankment dams include:
• Concrete dams include • earthfill dams: Blue Mesa Dam,
• mass concrete dams, made of: • rockfill dams: Hell Hole Dam
• conventional concrete: Dworshak Dam,
• Composite dams are a combination of
Grand Coulee Dam,
concrete and embankment dams.
• roller-compacted concrete: Upper Construction materials of composite dams
Stillwater Dam, are the same used for concrete and
• masonry: Pathfinder Dam, Cheesman embankment dams. Folsom Dam is an
Dam examples of the composite dam.
• hollow gravity dams, made of reinforced
concrete: Braddock Dam

GRAVITY DAMS CLASSIFIED WITH

RESPECT TO THEIR STRUCTURAL HEIGHT
• Gravity dams can be classified by plan ARE:
as straight or curved gravity dams.
Majority of gravity dams are straight • Low, up to 100 feet.
(Grand Coulee Dam) although some
masonry and concrete gravity dams • Medium high, between 100- 300 feet.
have the dam axis curved (Shasta
Dam, Cheesman Dam) to add stability
though arch action. • High, over 300 feet.

ARCH-GRAVITY DAMS
• is a dam with the characteristics of both
an arch dam and a gravity dam
• it is a dam that curves upstream in a narrowing
curve that directs most of the water against
the canyon rock walls, providing the force
to compress the dam.
• an arch-gravity dam can be thinner than the
pure gravity dam and requires less internal fill.
• are massive dams of concrete that resist the
thrust of water by their weight using the force
of gravity and the arch action. HOOVER DAM
 BARRAGES • According to the World Commission on
Dams, a key difference between a barrage
• is a special kind of dam which consists of a line and a dam is that a dam is built for water
of large gates that can be opened or closed storage in a reservoir, which raises the level of
to control the amount of water passing the water significantly. A barrage is built for
dam. The gates are set between flanking piers diverting water, and raises the water level
which are responsible for supporting the water only a few feet; they are generally built on
load, and are often used to control and flat terrain across wide, often
stabilize water flow for irrigation systems. meandering rivers. Barrages are larger
• term barrage is borrowed from the French than headworks.
word meaning a dam generally, its usage for • Barrages that are commonly used to dam a
such a structure in English is chiefly in Pakistan, lagoon or estuary as a method to
India, Egypt, Iraq, and other countries in the capture tidal power from tidal inflows are
Middle East. known as tidal barrages.

EMBANKMENT DAMS
• is a massive artificial water barrier. It is typically
created by the emplacement and
compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound
of various compositions of soil, sand, clay
and/or rock
• made from compacted earth
• It has a semi-permanent waterproof natural
covering for its surface, and a dense,
waterproof core. This makes such a dam
impervious to surface or seepage erosion.
Koshi Barrage • rely on their weight to hold back the force of
water, like gravity dams made from concrete.

TWO MAIN TYPES

Rock-filled dam
• are embankments of compacted free-
draining granular earth with an impervious
zone. The earth utilized often contains a
large percentage of large particles hence
the term rock-fill.
• The impervious zone may be on the
upstream face and made
of masonry, concrete, plastic membrane,
steel sheet piles, timber or other material.
GATHRIGHT DAM IN VIRGINIA
 Earth-fill dams

BY USE
• also called earthen dams, rolled-earth
dams or simply earth dams, are constructed
as a simple embankment of well compacted
earth.

SADDLE DAM WEIR

• is an auxiliary dam constructed to confine the
reservoir created by a primary dam either to permit a • A weir (also sometimes called an overflow
higher water elevation and storage or to limit the dam) is a type of small overflow dam that is
extent of a reservoir for increased efficiency. An often used within a river channel to create
auxiliary dam is constructed in a low spot an impoundment lake for water
or saddle through which the reservoir would
otherwise escape. On occasion, a reservoir is
abstraction purposes and which can also
contained by a similar structure called a dike to be used for flow measurement or
prevent inundation of nearby land. Dikes are retardation.
commonly used for reclamation of arable land from
a shallow lake. This is similar to a levee, which is a wall
or embankment built along a river or stream to
protect adjacent land from flooding.

CHECK DAM DRY DAM

• A check dam is a small dam designed • A dry dam also known as a flood
to reduce flow velocity and control soil retarding structure, is a dam designed to
erosion. Conversely, a wing dam is a control flooding. It normally holds back
structure that only partly restricts a no water and allows the channel to flow
waterway, creating a faster channel freely, except during periods of intense
that resists the accumulation of flow that would otherwise cause flooding
sediment. downstream.
 UNDERGROUND DAM
DIVERSIONARY DAM
• Underground dams are used to trap groundwater and
store all or most of it below the surface for extended
• A diversionary dam is a structure designed use in a localized area. In some cases they are also
to divert all or a portion of the flow of built to prevent saltwater from intruding into a
a river from its natural course. The water freshwater aquifer.
may be redirected into a canal or tunnel • are typically constructed in areas where water
for irrigation and/or hydroelectric power resources are minimal and need to be efficiently
production. stored, such as in deserts and on islands like
the Fukuzato Dam in Okinawa, Japan. They are most
common in northeastern Africa and the arid areas of
Brazil while also being used in the southwestern United
States, Mexico, India, Germany, Italy, Greece, France
and Japan.[

TAILINGS DAM
• There are three raised tailings dam
• is typically an earth-fill embankment dam designs,
used to store tailings — which are the upstream, downstream and centerli
produced during mining operations after ne, named according to the
separating the valuable fraction from the movement of the crest during raising.
uneconomic fraction of an or
• Conventional water retention dams can • The specific design used it dependent
serve this purpose but due to cost, a upon topography, geology, climate,
tailings dam is more viable. e. the type of tailings and cost.

• An upstream tailings dam consists of trapezoidal

embankments being constructed on top but toe to
crest of another, moving the crest further upstream. This • Because tailings dams often store toxic
creates a relatively flat downstream side and a jagged chemicals from the mining process,
upstream side which is supported by tailings slurry in the
impoundment. they have an impervious liner to
• The downstream design refers to the successive raising prevent seepage. Water/slurry levels in
of the embankment that positions the fill and crest the tailings pond must be managed for
further downstream. stability and environmental purposes as
• A centerlined dam has sequential embankment dams well.
constructed directly on top of another while fill is
placed on the downstream side for support and slurry
supports the upstream side.
 STEEL DAMS
• is a type of dam (a structure to impound or retard the
flow of water) that is made of steel, rather than the
more common masonry, earthworks, concrete

BY MATERIAL or timber construction materials.

• Relatively few examples were ever built. Of the three
built in the US, two remain, the Ashfork-Bainbridge
Steel Dam, built in 1898 in the Arizona desert to supply
locomotive water to the ATSF, and the Redridge Steel
Dam, built 1901, in the Upper Peninsula of
Michigan to supply water to stamp mills. The third,
the Hauser Lake Dam in Montana, was finished in
1907 but failed in 1908.

PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION
• Steel dams use a series of footings anchored in the
earth. These footings hold struts which in turn hold up a
series of deck girders which in turn hold steel plates. It is
these plates that the water comes in contact with. The
girders and plates are angled in the downstream
direction so that part of the weight of the water acts
with a downward force on the struts and footings,
holding them in place. (Consider that, if the plates were
vertical, as in a steel cofferdam, all the force would be
horizontal and much more massive struts and anchors
would be required to counteract the horizontal force
and bending moment.)
REDRIDGE STEEL DAM
(UPSTREAM SIDE)

CANTILEVER STRUTTED
DIRECT STRUTTED
• In the direct strutted version, shown in the illustration, all
the struts are parallel. There is thus no tensile force in the
plate girders. • In the cantilever strutted version, shown
in the illustration , the top strut (or struts,
depending on design) can be fashioned
into a cantilever truss. By all going to the
same footing, the upper part of the
deck girders are thus in tension and the
moment of the cantilever section is
offset by the moment of the water
impinging on that section.
 SCALLOPING

• In both types of construction, it is

typical for the plates to have
a scalloped appearance. It is not
known if this is due to the steel
stretching or if this was a designed-in
feature. It may have been to allow for
expansion/contraction as the
temperature changed.

DESIGN TRADEOFFS
SPILLWAYS AND PIPES

• There are two design trade-offs, the girder plate angle • Steel dams may or may not have a
and the strut angle. Increasing the girder/plate angle
towards the horizontal, the normal component of the
spillway. The Ashfork-Bainbridge did not
force will increase towards vertical; this means that have one but was designed to allow water
footings do not need to resist as much horizontal force, to pour directly over the crest, while the
but requires more steel for a given upstream head. Redridge had both a spillway and a water
Increasing the strut angle towards vertical reduces the
horizontal moment on the footings, reducing the risk of pipe to supply water to downstream stamp
sliding mills.

There were also some known disadvantages:

ADVANTAGES AND • Constructing good footings is key to a successful dam as
DISADVANTAGES they must bear weight, not settle too much and resist
Steel Dam proponents claimed some advantages: horizontal travel.
• Steel fabrication techniques, even at the turn of the • The long term strength of the dam is not known. The two
19th century, allowed for faster and cheaper examples in the US still standing are not currently under
construction than masonry significant water load
• The structure is statically determinate allowing precise • The lightness of the structure means it is more vulnerable
calculations of load and member strength needed to wear due to water vibrations than more massive
• Since steel is more flexible than concrete, they are dams
more resistant to catastrophic failure due to ground • Maintenance needs are higher, rust and corrosion must
settling be addressed
• Frost does not affect them the way it does concrete or • Stresses can be quite concentrated, which could cause
masonry stress cracking as a failure mode.
• Non–catastrophic leaks can be addressed by welding • As with other dams, undermining is a possible failure
mode (this is believed to be why the Hauser Lake dam
failed.)
 Two common variations of timber dams
TIMBER DAMS were the crib and the plank.
• widely used in the early part of the industrial revolution and in
frontier areas due to ease and speed of construction. Rarely
built in modern times because of relatively short lifespan and • timber crib dams were erected of heavy
limited height to which they can be built, timber dams must be
kept constantly wet in order to maintain their water retention
timbers or dressed logs in the manner of a
properties and limit deterioration by rot, similar to a barrel. The log house and the interior filled with earth or
locations where timber dams are most economical to build rubble. The heavy crib structure supported
are those where timber is plentiful, cement is costly or difficult
to transport, and either a low head diversion dam is required the dam's face and the weight of the
or longevity is not an issue. Timber dams were once numerous, water. Splash dams were timber crib dams
especially in the North American west, but most have failed,
been hidden under earth embankments or been replaced used to help float logs downstream in the
with entirely new structures. late 19th and early 20th centuries.

• Timber plank dams were more elegant

structures that employed a variety of
construction methods utilizing heavy timbers
to support a water retaining arrangement of
planks.

TIMBER CRIB DAM IN MICHIGAN

COFFERDAMS
• A cofferdam (also called a coffer) is a
temporary enclosure built within, or in pairs

OTHER TYPES
across, a body of water and constructed to
allow the enclosed area to be pumped out,
creating a dry work environment for the major
work to proceed. Enclosed coffers are
commonly used for construction and repair
of oil platforms, bridge piers and other support
structures built within or over water. These
cofferdams are usually welded steel structures,
with components consisting of sheet
piles, wales, and cross braces.
 NATURAL DAMS
• Dams can also be created by natural
geological forces. Volcanic dams are
formed when lava flows, often basaltic,
intercept the path of a stream or lake
outlet, resulting in the creation of a natural
impoundment. An example would be the
eruptions of the Uinkaret volcanic
field about 1.8 million–10,000 years ago,
which created lava dams on the Colorado
A COFFERDAM ON THE OHIO RIVER NEAR OLMSTED,
River in northern Arizona in the United
ILLINOIS, BUILT FOR THE PURPOSE OF CONSTRUCTING States
THE OLMSTED LOCK AND DAM

BEAVER DAMS
• are dams built by beavers to provide
ponds as protection against predators such
as coyotes, wolves, and bears, and to
provide easy access to food during winter.
These structures modify the natural
environment in such a way that the overall
ecosystem builds upon the change,
making beavers a keystone species.

COMMON PURPOSES

A BEAVER DAM IN LASSEN VOLCANIC

NATIONAL PARK
 LOCATION AMBUKLAO DAM
• One of the best places for building a dam is a narrow • The Ambuklao Hyroelectric Plant is located in the
part of a deep river valley; the valley sides can then
mountains of Bokod, Benguet and is about 36
act as natural walls. The primary function of the dam's
structure is to fill the gap in the natural reservoir line left kilometers northeast of Baguio City. The plant was
by the stream channel. The sites are usually those designed to provide 75 MW (megawatts) of
where the gap becomes a minimum for the required energy to the Luzon grid. It utilizes the Agno River
storage capacity. The most economical arrangement is which is the longest waterway in the Island of
often a composite structure such as a masonry dam Luzon.
flanked by earth embankments. The current use of the • During the 50's the Ambuklao dam was the highest
land to be flooded should be dispensable.
and biggest in the Far East. It is made of earth and
rockfill

AGUSAN DAM

• The Agusan Hydroelectric Plant, the downstream

plant of two proposed plants, was constructed in
Damilag, Manolo, Fortich, and Bukidnon[1] to
serve the immediate domestic and industrial
requirements of the area.

ANGAT DAM
• is a concrete water reservoir embankment
hydroelectric dam that supplies the Manila
metropolitan area water. It was a part of the
Angat-Ipo-La Mesa water system. The reservoir
supplies about 90 percent of raw water
requirements for Metro Manila through the facilities
of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage
System and it irrigates about 28,000 hectares of
farmland in the provinces of Bulacan and
Pampanga.
 BINGA DAM
• Binga Dam is a dam connected to a hydroelectric
power plant situated at Barrio Binga, Barangay
Tinongdan in Itogon, Benguet, Philippines. The plant
was constructed in 1956 and was opened in 1960
• Type of dam Storage, Earth and Rock fill

CALIRAYA DAM
• Location Laguna (province)
• Type of dam Embankment dam

Caliraya Dam is an embankment dam located in the

town of Lumban province of Laguna, in the Sierra Madre
Mountain Range of the Philippines. The reservoir created
by the dam, Lake Caliraya, initially supplied one of the
oldest hydroelectric plants in the Philippines, and later
became a popular recreational area for numerous water
sports and fishing.

IPO DAM

• Ipo Dam is a gravity concrete water reservoir dam

found in the Philippines. The dam is located about
7.5 kilometres downstream of the Angat Dam in
Norzagaray, Bulacan province. It was a part of the
Angat-Ipo-La Mesa water system.
 LAMESA DAM
• The La Mesa Watershed and Eco-Park consists of the La
Mesa Dam and an ecological nature reservesite in
Quezon City commissioned in 1929 in the Philippines.
• The water collected in the reservoir is treated on-site by
the Maynilad Water Services, and at the Balara
Treatment Plant further south by the Manila Water. Both
water companies are private concessionairesawarded
by the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System,
the government agency in charge of water supply.

MAGAT DAM
• Type of dam Rock-fill dam

• Magat Dam is a large rock-fill dam on the island of

Luzon in the Philippines. The dam is located on Magat
River, a major tributary of Cagayan River

PANTABANGAN DAM
• Pantabangan Dam is an earth-fill embankment
dam on the Pampanga River located in
Pantabangan in Nueva Ecija province of the
Philippines. The multi-purpose dam provides water
for irrigation and hydroelectric power generation
while its reservoir, Pantabangan Lake, affords flood
control. The reservoir is considered one of the
largest in Southeast Asia and also one of the
cleanest in the Philippines.
 SAN ROQUE DAM
WAWA DAM
• The San Roque Dam, operated under San Roque • Wawa Dam (also known as Montalban Dam) is a
Multipurpose Project (SRMP) is a 200 meters tall, 1.2 gravity dam constructed over the Marikina River in
kilometer long embankment dam on the Agno River. It the municipality of Rodriguez in Rizal province,
spans the municipalities of San Manuel and San Philippines.. It was built in 1909 during the American
Nicolas, Pangasinan and is nearly 200 km north of Metro colonial era to provide the water needs for Metro
Manila.
Manila. It used to be the only source of water for
Manila until Angat Dam was built and Wawa was
abandoned. Due to insufficiency of water supply
for Metro Manila, there was a strong clamor to
reuse the dam.