Comparison of 2‐D and 3‐D Dynamic Analyses of Earth Dams

Abstract

Considerable judgment is required to estimate the overall three‐dimensional dynamic response of a dam in a narrow canyon from plane strain analyses of individual sections of the dam. Accordingly, the purpose of this paper is to present a comparison between the results of three‐dimensional and two‐dimensional dynamic analyses of two dams with different canyon geometries. From this comparison the conditions under which three‐dimensional behavior is of importance in the dynamic response of a dam are determined. Additionally, the applicability of two‐dimensional analyses for the determination of the dynamic behavior of dams in steep walled canyons is evaluated.