Assessment of water flow measurements in a zoned dam using artificial neural network models

Abstract

This paper concerns about the assessment of the hydraulic behavior of a 50 m height zoned dam used for industry water supply, located in Alentejo region, in Portugal. The original draining system of the embankment is composed of a sub-vertical filter, located downstream of the central core, and by a drainage blanket placed over the foundation, in the deeper area of the valley, which, in turn, discharges to a downstream drainage toe. In this study, the achieved performance of neural network models to predict the flow rate in a drain was very good when compared with traditional multiple linear regression models. Despite the good results presented, it is necessary to carry out further studies including the results obtained from other individual drains, and it is not dispensable a global evaluation of the dam safety on the basis of a comprehensive analysis of the various observed parameters. Finally, it is always wise to carry out the safety evaluation simultaneously with various models rather than with just one model.