LEFM applications to concrete gravity dams

The evaluation of the safety factor of old dams under higher flood levels in the last few years has been investigated under the assumptions of fracture mechanics. The extensive need for research in this field was recognized by the U.S. Army Crops of Engineers that now requires a fracture mechanics investigation prior to the rehabilitation of cracked massive concrete structures. In large structures, such as dams, because of the smaller size of the fracture process zone with respect to the structure size, limited errors should occur under the assumptions of linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM). In this paper, theoretical considerations and approximate expressions for the evaluation of stress intensity factors and crack propagation in concrete dams are presented. Furthermore, a parametric study of gravity dams under the assumptions of LEFM is performed. Finally, a scale law for the evaluation of the maximum water level carried by cracked dams is proposed