Boundary elements for the analysis of the seismic response of dams including dam-water-foundation interaction effects. II

TLDR: In this article, a Boundary Element frequency domain approach that takes into account the dynamic interaction between solid and fluid regions is used to study the seismic response of concrete gravity dams, and results for a particular dam geometry, two different soil profiles, and full and empty reservoir conditions are shown.

Abstract: A Boundary Element frequency domain approach that takes into account the dynamic interaction between solid and fluid regions, which was presented in a separate paper (part I), is used to study the seismic response of concrete gravity dams. Results for a particular dam geometry, two different soil profiles, and full and empty reservoir conditions are shown. The agreement with corresponding published results obtained by other authors using Finite Elements is very good. The BE approach is shown to be capable of modelling a larger variety of soil profiles than any of the previous FE approaches. The effects of several parameters of the model on the seismic response of the dam are studied to show the importance of the joint dam-water-foundation interaction effects and the importance of the correct representation of each one of the three regions involved. Particular attention is paid to the aspects related to the BE modelling of the problem. The use of artificial boundaries, where far-field boundary conditions are prescribed, for cases where the radiation conditions are not satisfied, has been shown to be effective.