The Impact of Fine-Layering of Tailings Dam on the Variation Pattern of Infiltration Lines

Abstract

The type of soil and its compactness significantly influence its permeability coefficient, which in turn affects the drainage difficulty of soil pore water and the distribution of the infiltration line. However, current tailings dam models typically consider only a single soil layer instead of taking into account the differences in soil types and compactness, resulting in a deviation between simulated results and actual conditions. To address this issue, this study proposes three models with a gradually increasing degree of layering refinement based on soil type and compactness. These models aim to simulate the variations in the infiltration line under three different strategies: constant head, rainfall, and drainage. The simulation results indicate that the average increase in the infiltration line of the three schemes after rainfall is 46.2%, 65.88%, 83.52%, respectively; the fitting percentages for each scheme of infiltration line after 720 days of drainage and the constant head stage are 72.38%, 88.27%, and 93.61%, respectively. It can be seen that the higher the refinement level of the layered model, the more sensitive it is to changes in the infiltration line. Furthermore, as the refinement level of the layered model increases, the simulation effect on the changes in the infiltration line improves, and the simulated results become more consistent with the actual situation. This finding provides a strategy and possibility for the study of the tailings dam’s infiltration lines, safety, and stability.