Parlons Sciences

Visite de Associate Professor Emina Hadžalić
Faculty of Civil Engineering, University of Rijeka, Croatia

Numerical analysis of dam-reservoir interaction with monitoring data: A case study of Salakovac Dam

Hydropower remains a cornerstone of reliable, renewable electricity generation, making the structural integrity and operational efficiency of dams, which are the integral components of hydropower plants, critical for safety and continuity of supply. This lecture will present a digital twin framework that couples advanced numerical modelling with field monitoring to assess the current condition and failure risk of concrete gravity dams. Building on a dam-reservoir finite element model, formulated with the dam as a non-isothermal saturated porous medium and the reservoir as an acoustic fluid, this approach ensures consistent transfer of displacement, temperature, and pressure across the dam-reservoir interface and captures nonlinear behaviour under extreme loads. Monitoring data are used to calibrate boundary conditions, external loads, and key material parameters so that the model reflects the current state of the dam. The methodology is demonstrated on the Salakovac concrete gravity dam, where the calibrated twin is next employed to simulate extreme scenarios and potential failure mechanisms.