Analysis of Sluice Foundation Seepage Using Monitoring Data and Numerical Simulation

Abstract

For sluices built on soil foundations, seepage safety of the foundation is one of the most concerns during operation of sluices. Monitoring data could reflect the real seepage behavior in the foundation, but of which the shortcoming is that generally only the local seepage states can be measured. The seepage field in the whole foundation can be analyzed by numerical simulation. The permeability coefficients of the foundation materials significantly affect the numerical simulation results; however, it is difficult to accurately determine the values of permeability coefficients. In this paper, an approach based on response surface method (RSM) for calibration of permeability coefficients was proposed, and the efficiency of parameter calibration is improved by constructing the response surface equation instead of time-consuming finite element calculation of foundation seepage. The seepage in a sluice foundation was analyzed using monitoring data and numerical simulation. The monitoring data showed that the seepage pressure in the foundation periodically varies with high value in flood season and low value in dry season. After calibration of the permeability coefficients of the foundation materials using the measured seepage pressure, the seepage fields in the foundation for different water levels were numerically simulated to investigate the cause for the periodical variation of the seepage pressure and the seepage safety of the foundation was assessed with the calculated seepage gradients. The methods adopted in this study could be applied to seepage analysis for sluice foundations with similar geologic conditions and antiseepage measures.