project:
Jan 2023
Dec 2027
Ongoing
Hydrogeochemical impacts on hydropower dams
Understanding the degradation of grout injections, rock bolts, drainage systems, and up-lift is considered essential to state the existing and future levels of dam safety. Most previous studies and research projects on dam safety analysis were focused on mechanical or seepage analysis, monitoring, alarm limits or remedial grouting approaches. However, the impact of coupled hydrogeological and geochemical processes on the degradation of grout curtains in fractured rock of hydropower dam foundations remains an important topic that has not been comprehensively studied yet.
This important research gap and the need for safety assessment of hydropower dams strongly motivates this project, where emphasis will be on the degradation processes of grout curtains in fractured rock, aiming to understand how hydrodynamic and geochemical processes control the grout degradation in fractured rock foundations of Swedish hydropower dams. This project aims to increase dam safety through a better understanding of the coupled processes of groundwater flow and geochemistry and their impact on hydropower dams, thereby enabling the determination of present state and prediction of when and where remedial actions may be needed.
