The Library
Field survey of desiccation fissuring of flood embankments
Tools
Dyer, M. (Mark), Utili, Stefano and Zielinski, M. (Marcin) (2009) Field survey of desiccation fissuring of flood embankments. Proceedings of the ICE - Water Management, Vol.162 (No.3). pp. 221-232. doi:10.1680/wama.2009.162.3.221 ISSN 1741-7589.
Research output not available from this repository.
Request-a-Copy directly from author or use local Library Get it For Me service.
Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/wama.2009.162.3.221
Abstract
Early studies on the 1953 North Sea floods showed that desiccation fissuring of clay fill can play a major role in the failure of flood embankments under overflow conditions. However, the onset of desiccation fissuring in embankments and its contribution towards breach initiation has not been fully researched. Field and laboratory studies were thus carried out into the desiccation fissuring of clay flood embankments in the UK. The work found that a critical condition is reached when desiccation creates an interconnected network of sub-vertical and sub-horizontal fissures, which significantly increases the mass permeability of the fill material and hence allows rapid seepage of flood water through the surface layer of the embankment. It is suggested high rates of seepage cause localised uplifting of clay blocks, leading to progressive slope failure and successive breaching. Small-scale desiccation tests carried out on discs of soil in pressure plates showed very good agreement between the onset of cracking in the pressure plates and the moisture content recorded in the field. This suggests that it is possible to assess the susceptibility of a fill material to desiccation fissuring from the soil water characteristic curve.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Subjects: | T Technology > TA Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General) | ||||
Divisions: | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Engineering > Engineering | ||||
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Embankments, Flood damage prevention, Floods, Soil mechanics | ||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Proceedings of the ICE - Water Management | ||||
Publisher: | ICE Publishing Ltd. | ||||
ISSN: | 1741-7589 | ||||
Official Date: | June 2009 | ||||
Dates: |
|
||||
Volume: | Vol.162 | ||||
Number: | No.3 | ||||
Number of Pages: | 12 | ||||
Page Range: | pp. 221-232 | ||||
DOI: | 10.1680/wama.2009.162.3.221 | ||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||
Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access | ||||
Funder: | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Flood Risk Management Research Consortium (FRMRC), Great Britain. Dept. for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Great Britain. Environment Agency |
Data sourced from Thomson Reuters' Web of Knowledge
Request changes or add full text files to a record
Repository staff actions (login required)
View Item |