Foundation Evaluation of Barkley Dam for Seismic Analysis

by Ronald E. Wahl, US Army Engineer Waterways, Experiment Station, Vicksburg, United States,
Richard S. Olsen, US Army Engineer Waterways, Experiment Station, Vicksburg, United States,
Paul F. Bluhm, US Army Engineer Waterways, Experiment Station, Vicksburg, United States,
Donald E. Yule, US Army Engineer Waterways, Experiment Station, Vicksburg, United States,
Mary E. Hynes, US Army Engineer Waterways, Experiment Station, Vicksburg, United States,



Document Type: Proceeding Paper

Part of: Geotechnical Engineering Congress?1991

Abstract:

An in-situ site investigation was performed at Barkley Dam, KY to gather essential information on the stratigraphy and nature of the foundation soils. From this information the site was idealized for a seismic stability evaluation of the dam. The embankment sections of the dam are founded on a complex system of alluvial deposits which are approximately 120 ft deep. Cone Penetration Tests (CPT), Standard Penetration Tests (SPT), laboratory analysis of disturbed and undisturbed samples, and a downstream exposure of a critical foundation unit beneath the dam were the main sources of data for site idealization. The foundation unit of most concern in the analysis was composed of a series of interbedded silty sands and clays. This case history demonstrates the importance of building redundancy into the exploration program as the complex stratigraphy of the foundation soils could not have been properly evaluated from any single source of data.

Subject Headings: Penetration tests | Dam foundations | Soil analysis | Seismic tests | Embankment dams | Site investigation | Geology | Kentucky | United States

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