Investigating the Effects of Vertical Joint on the Seismic Behavior of Arched Concrete Dams under Non uniform Excitation (Case Study of Karun4 Dam)

Dam behavior investigation has been considered for a long time, with many studies conducted to identify and predict factors influencing such structures. In common dynamic analyses of dams, an input acceleration is typically used. At the same time, it was proved that such structures with a large contact with the ground usually experience different accelerations in their various supporting points. Applying different accelerations on different supports of a structure can increase their stresses and displacements. The stresses can be among factors affecting dam stability. Thus, it is very important to accurately study its effect on the dynamic behavior of arc concrete dams. Furthermore, in most arc dam analyses, their bodies have been treated as integrated, while such dams are constructed by putting together concrete blocks with vertical joints in practice. In the current study, after building an ABAQUS three-dimensional model of Karoon-4 Dam as the tallest arc concrete dam in Iran, it was attempted to apply the vertical joints to compare the dynamic behavior of arc concrete dams under uniform and non-uniform analyses and the case in which the dam body is modeled in an integrated form. The results revealed that the non-uniform analysis increased  stresses and displacement of  dam.....