Arch dam

An arch dam is a thin, curved concrete or masonry dam structure which is built to curve upstream so that the force of the water against it squeezes the arch, compressing and strengthening the structure and pushing it into the ground. An arch dam is a good dam type for a narrow gorge in a mountainous area with steep walls of rock. [cite web
url=http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/dam/arch_forces.html
title=Arch Dam Forces
publisher=
accessdate=2007-02-05]

An arch dam generally has steel rods or prestressed steel cables reinforcements and therefore requires less concrete than does a gravity dam or arch-gravity dam. However, the bedrock in the foundation and abutments must be sound to withstand the pressure of the water.cite web
url=http://www.dur.ac.uk/~des0www4/cal/dams/conc/concf12.htm
title=Introduction to Arch Dams
publisher=
accessdate=2007-02-05]

Variations

Arch dams with more than one contiguous arch or plane are described as multiple arch dams. A double arch dam has two contiguous arches. A dam that is curved in both its horizontal and vertical planes may be called a dome dam.

The highest arch dam in the world is Inguri Dam in Georgia. It is 272 meters high and it was completed in 1980. [cite web| url = http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9042423/Inguri-Dam| title = Inguri Dam| accessdate = 2007-01-01|publisher = Britannica]

ee also

* El Atazar Dam
* Glen Canyon Dam
* Hoover Dam
* Parker Dam
* Stewart Mountain Dam
* Idukki Dam
* Gravity dam
* Arch-gravity dam

References

External links

* [http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/dam/basics.html PBS Dam Basics]
* [http://www.uq.edu.au/~e2hchans/arch_dam.html Historical Development of Arch Dams. From Cut-Stone Arches to Modern Concrete Designs] Website
* [http://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view.php?pid=UQ:9351 Historical Development of Arch Dams : from Cut-Stone Arches to Modern Concrete Designs] Article
* [http://simscience.org/cracks/advanced/arch_hist1.html Key Developments in the History of Arch Dams]