Seismic Performance Detection in Retrofitted Concrete Spillway by FEM

Abstract

Earthquakes damage not only buildings but also infrastructure and superstructure facilities. Therefore, the seismic performance of all structure types is of vital importance. It is known that seismic performance losses occur in various types of structures due to the earthquake effect. Various retrofitting methods are available for such structures to regain their former seismic performance. Appropriate retrofitting techniques should be applied according to the type of structure, its damage and the conditions of the region. In addition, the retrofitting process can be done to the entire structure or to some sections or parts of the structures. It is known that environmental and forced vibrations, especially in spillways, increase the destructive effects by activating the water in the spillway. In this type of situation, stiffness losses for spillways increase even more. Their collapse becomes inevitable under the influence of the next forced and environmental vibrations. For this reason, this study focused on the technique of retrofitting concrete spillways with shotcrete. A sample concrete spillway model was created using the finite element method and modal analysis was performed. Then, the same model was retrofitted with shotcrete and modal analysis was performed. When the results obtained were compared, it was seen that retrofitting with shotcrete had a positive effect on the rigidity of the concrete spillway. In light of all these findings, shotcrete can be an option for retrofitting concrete spillways.