Design under large uncertainties using Eurocodes

As the structural safety of dams, levees, and rock tunnels explicitly is planned to be within the scope of the revised European structural design code for geotechnical structures, Eurocode 7, this project aims to create a scientific basis for the development of Swedish guidelines that facilitate a cost-effective implementation of the new Eurocodes.

Structures considered in this project are dams founded on rock and rock tunnels. For these structures, the project will establish a scientific basis for simple but reliable verification of their structural safety. Concerning dams founded on rock, this can then be used for developing the Swedish RIDAS dam safety guidelines and provide additional guidance if full implementation of Eurocode 7 is needed within the hydropower industry. In regard to rock tunnels, the scientific results produced will be communicated to the authors of the planned additional Eurocode 7 part for rock tunnels on the European level.

The European design standard (code) for geotechnical structures – Eurocode 7 (CEN, 2004) – is currently under revision and a new code will replace current design standards during 2025-2026. For Sweden, this will likely be a considerable change, as the new codes will include tunnels and dams which have until now not been designed using a European design code. For stakeholders in Sweden, it is of great importance that the Eurocodes and their implementation work well also for Swedish conditions (and not only for those conditions that are typical for central Europe). In particular, this concerns the for Sweden abundant hard crystalline rock types.