KINTA RCC DAM - ARE OVER-SIMPLIFIED THERMALSTRUCTURAL ANALYSES VALID?

By Allan J Crichton1 , Ikhlef Benzenati2 , Tony J Qiu2 and Jon T Williams2

ABSTRACT
The Sg Kinta Dam is a 90 m high Roller Compacted Concrete (RCC) gravity dam and is
expected to be the first RCC dam in Malaysia when construction commences in 2000. The
dam is part of the development of the Ipoh Water supply on mainland Malaysia. A thermal
- structural analysis has been completed as part of detailed design using ANSYS finite
element analysis software to assess the effect of the heat of hydration of the RCC on
resulting structural stresses. The effect of using simple linear elastic material properties on
the calculated stresses has been compared to more complex time variant material modulus
and creep analyses. From these comparisons it is shown that the simple models
overestimate initial stresses and underestimate or cannot predict the long term tensile
stresses.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The Sg Kinta Dam Project is part of the Stage II development of the Ipoh Water Supply on mainland
Malaysia. This stage of the development consists of the construction of a dam with a yield in excess
of 300ML per day, associated raw water pipeline and the water treatment plant to augment the
existing low weir and water treatment plant on the Sg. Kinta.
The Sg Kinta Dam is located approximately 12 km east of the city of Ipoh, which is in turn located
about 200 km north of Kuala Lumpur. The damsite rocks are primarily deeply weathered granites
which vary from closely jointed but healed to massive rocks. Water test results indicate that the
foundations will generally be of low permeability. The RCC aggregate will be produced from crushed
granite to be obtained from a quarry to be developed by the contractor about 1.2 km from the dam.
The Feasibility Study conducted by GHD and Angkasa GHD indicated that either a concrete faced
rockfill or a roller compacted concrete dam would be economic at the site. The subsequent Concept
Design Report completed by GHD and Angkasa GHD concluded that the least cost dam would be a
roller compacted concrete dam.
The Kinta Dam will have a maximum height of 90m and a crest length of 700 m and total concrete
volume of 850,000 m3. It will be the first RCC dam built in Malaysia and its construction is expected
to commence early in 2000.
Design of the dam including evaluation of thermal stresses has been completed. This paper
investigates the simplifications commonly adopted for thermal-structural finite element analyses of
RCC dams. The validity of these, in particular ignoring the effect of strength gain during hydration of
the RCC and the effect of creep is demonstrated with 2 dimensional analyses results. The preliminary
results of 3 dimensional analyses are also presented.

TEMPERATURE CONTROL REQUIREMENTS

Significant thermal induced stresses are developed as a result of heat of hydration of the cementitious
materials in RCC dams. The temperature distribution through the dam and its evolution with time
depends on the concrete properties, the climatic factors, the construction procedure and in particular
the thickness and the initial temperature of the lifts and also the interval between their successive
1
2

Principal Engineer, Dams Engineering, GHD Pty Ltd, Brisbane

Senior Dams Engineer, GHD Pty Ltd, Brisbane
Page 1

placement. These thermal loads induce structural stresses which can be significant enough to induce
cracking of the RCC structure.
In the design of RCC dams, it is common practice to investigate the development of thermal stresses
during and after the construction of the dam and reservoir filling. The traditional design approach is
based on a simple evaluation of the thermal strain/stress in the concrete material and then estimate the
contraction joint spacing to relieve the stresses (Tatro 1999, Tatro and Schrader 1992, 1995).
Recent developments of sophisticated software based on advanced numerical methods together with
the continually increasing power of computers mean that it is possible to accurately perform complex
analyses such as thermal-structural problems. The ANSYS computer programme based on the finite
element method was used to analyse the thermal behaviour of Kinta Dam including modeling of
elastic modulus change with time, creep behaviour and simulation of the construction process,
reservoir filling and the cooling of the dam over 10 years. The desired outcome of this numerical
modeling is:
to determine spatial distribution of temperature and its evolution with time,
to determine the stress distribution during and following the dam construction and the reservoir
water filling,
to identify the appropriate joint spacing to minimise cracking,
to optimise concrete placing temperature,
to define tensile strength required from the RCC mix and lift joints.

MATERIAL PROPERTIES AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS

The material properties and environmental conditions adopted for the finite element analyses are
based on laboratory data, data from literature and our experience with similar RCC mixes and are
summarised below.
The average monthly temperature varies from 26C to 32C at the project site. For the purpose of this
study, the ambient air temperature is considered constant with an average value of 29C for the whole
year. The initial foundation rock temperature is modelled as 25C which is the same as the
temperature recorded in boreholes at the quarry site approximately 1200m from the dam. The
temperature of the water in the river was recorded at 25C.
The effects of solar radiation during and following construction were incorporated by allowing an
increase in ambient temperature of 1.0 deg C to account for solar radiation heating of the concrete
surface (ACI 207.1R-87).
The RCC material properties used for the analysis were based on typical RCC properties from granitic
aggregate. RCC trial mixes are underway to define more accurately the properties of the RCC
expected to be used in construction of Kinta Dam. A coefficient of thermal expansion of 610-6 / C
has been adopted, along with a specific heat of 1000 J/kg C and a thermal conductivity of 2.6 J/s m
C. The heat of hydration of the RCC has been modelled assuming a total heat released of 43.2
MJ/m3. The rate of heat released has been calibrated against measured dam core temperatures
reported by Forbes and Williams (1998) for the Cadiangullong Dam. The results of this calibration
are summarised in figure 1 below.

Page 2

Figure 1
Temperature Rise in Dam Core
(90 kg/m3 Slag-Cement + 90 kg/m3 Flyash)

18

Temperature Rise (Deg C)

16
14
12
10
8
6

Measurement from
Cadiangullong Dam

ANSYS Model

2
0
0

20

40

60

80
Tim e (days)

100

120

140

160

Creep is the timedependent deformation of a material due to a sustained load. This inelastic strain of
the material relieves stresses in mass concrete structures. Creep can play an important role in the long
term stress analysis (Gunn and Bossoney 1996).
Creep is closely related to the modulus of elasticity and compressive strength of the concrete and is
thus a function of the age of the concrete at loading. Concrete with a high modulus of elasticity will
generally have relatively low creep.
The creep coefficient equation given by Ziming Zhang and Garga (1996) for RCC material has been
used as given below.
C(t,) = (1.01+3.23/0.3){1-e-0.036(t-)} 10-5 1/Mpa
Where t is the age of the concrete at the time of loading and is the time of calculation of the strain.
Material properties of RCC strongly depend on the age of the RCC and will significantly affect the
response of the dam at an early age where the mechanical properties are relatively low, which requires
the use of a multi-linear elastic material model. It is important that the early age stress-strain
properties are modelled (Yonezawa 1988, Ishikawa 1991, Ayotte 1997 and Zhu 1999). Some of the
most significant stresses induced into RCC occur as a result of thermal loads from heat released by
hydration of the cement. This process commences soon after placement of the RCC, which means
that, to obtain any degree of accuracy, the early age properties of the RCC should be incorporated into
any numerical model. The stress-strain curves adopted in the multi-linear elastic material model for
the Kinta Dam are shown in Figure 2. The results of the RCC trial mix programme currently under
way will be used to more precisely define these curves.

Page 3

Figure 2
Stress-Strain Curve for Different Concrete Ages
18
16
14

Stress (MPa)

12
10

10 days

30 days

90 days
180 days

360 days

>361 days

0
0

200

400

600

800
1000
1200
Strain (m icrostrain)

1400

1600

1800

2000

MODELING METHODOLOGY
The thermo-mechanical analysis was modelled using an un-coupled approach. The thermal behavior
of the dam was firstly simulated using incremental construction of the finite element mesh. The
results of the thermal model were then applied using direct superpositioning to a structural model,
which also included the step by step construction process. The analysis was time marching to closely
model the construction of 3 m RCC lifts in 10 day intervals over the 270 day construction period.
Reservoir filling was modelled over the subsequent period from 271 days to 330 days. The finite
element mesh adopted is illustrated in Figure 3.

THERMAL ANALYSIS RESULTS

Typical results of the predicted temperature variation with time are indicated in Figure 4, which
shows the temperature evolution at both the mid point (node 369) and upstream face (node 505) of the
dam. The core temperature is similar to the adiabatic temperature rise expected and shows a peak
temperature rise of 15 degrees. The surface temperature peaks (with a rise of 13 degrees) at a similar
time, drops rapidly to the ambient temperature within 4 years and is still 1 degree C above the adopted
reservoir temperature after 10 years. The core temperature is still 2 degrees higher than ambient after
10 years. The effect of the reservoir, which has a temperature of 25 degrees, can be seen as the
upstream temperature drops below that of the ambient air temperature.

Page 4

Node 505 - on top

of Lift 10
Node 369 - on top of Lift 7

Figure 3 - Two-dimensional Model - Mesh

Temperature (Deg C)

Figure 4
Predicted Temperature History
46
45
44
43
42
41
40
39
38
37
36
35
34
33
32
31
30
29
28
27
26
25

Node 505
Node 369

365

730

1095

1460

1825
2190
Time (days)

Page 5

2555

2920

3285

3650

STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS RESULTS

The temperatures calculated in the thermal model referred to above were used as loads for the
structural model. The thermal time steps were aligned to those of the structural model to ensure that
the strength gain with time of the structural model reflected the heat gain from hydration and then
cooling of the RCC.
A plane strain model was adopted for the 2 dimensional analyses of the maximum height cross section
of the dam. Plane strain is the condition for which the strains perpendicular to the plane of the
analyses are maintained at zero. This is analogous to fully grouted dam blocks or monolithic dam
construction as occurs for RCC dams.
Research has shown that to reproduce more accurately the stress in RCC, it is important to incorporate
elastic modulus change with time and creep into thermal stress analyses for RCC dams (Zhu 1995,
Zhang 1996, Ayotte al 1997, Ishikawa 1991). A number of material models are available in
commercially produced packages such as ANSYS. The simplest of these are the linear elastic
material model, where stress is proportional to strain for all stresses. Unloading occurs along the
same stress - strain relationship as loading. More complex material models, especially non linear or
non elastic models where the stress strain relationship is complex, require significantly more
computer resource and processing time. As such, many commercial analyses of structures have used
the linear elastic method, at least as a first approximation of material behaviour. The effect of creep
and updating elastic parameters with time, compared to a simple linear elastic model, are investigated
below.
We have investigated the stress evolution of points throughout the dam and for this paper we have
selected typical points located in the core of the dam, and near the upstream face, to identify the effect
of each of the following models:
linear elastic
linear elastic with creep
multi-linear elastic
multi-linear elastic including creep
The results of these analyses are summarised in figures 5 to 10.
Evaluation of figures 5 and 6 shows the upstream - downstream stress evolution (x direction) for the
four constitutive models. Figure 5 represents the stress in the vicinity of the upstream face at the
lower third of the dam and figure 6 is at the upper third of the dam. The results indicated that the first
peak tensile stress occurs shortly following placement of the RCC layer. The tensile stress then
increases and remains nearly constant during construction before reducing because of the effect of the
reservoir load on the upstream face. The location at 30 m elevation above the base of the dam (figure
5) shows a peak value of the tensile stress of 1.03 MPa for the linear elastic model. Allowing for the
high creep and low modulus of early age RCC with the multi-linear elastic model reduces this peak
tensile stress to 0.38 MPa. A similar ratio between peak tensile stresses for the upper part of the dam
is shown on figure 6, however, the peak tensile stresses are 0.36 MPa and 0.10 MPa respectively. The
effects of creep are not clearly shown for figures 5 and 6 within the first 720 days.
Figure 5 shows the peak tensile stress occurring almost 100 days after placement for the multi-linear
elastic models. The linear elastic model, on the other hand, shows peak tensile stresses occurring
within 10 days of placement, and is largely because the linear elastic model has a high modulus at all
RCC ages.

Page 6

1.4

Figure 5
Upstream - Downstream Stress (x direction)
(Element Close to Upstream Face, 30 m from base, Node 505)

1.2

Upstream-Downstream Stress (MPa)

+ve tension

1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
-0.2 0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

-0.4
-0.6
-0.8
-1.0
Case 1 - Linear Elastic

-1.2

Case 2 - Linear Elastic with Creep

-1.4

Case 3 - Multi-linear Elastic

-1.6

Case 4 - Multi-linear Elastic with Creep

-1.8
-2.0

Time (days)

Figure 6
Upstream - Downstream Stress (x direction)
(Element Close to Upstream Face, 75 m from base, Node 1165)
1.4

Upstream - Downstream Stress (MPa)

+ve tension

1.2
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
-0.2 0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

-0.4
-0.6
-0.8
-1.0
Case 1 - Linear Elastic

-1.2

Case 2 - Linear Elastic with Creep

-1.4

Case 3 - Multi-linear Elastic

-1.6

Case 4 - Multi-linear Elastic with Creep

-1.8
-2.0

T ime (days)

Figure 7
Cross Valley Stress (z direction)
(Element Close to Upstream Face, 30 m from base, Node 505)
1.4

Cross Valley Stress (MPa) +ve tension

1.2
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
-0.2 0

100

200

300

400

500

600

-0.4
-0.6
-0.8
-1.0
-1.2

Case 1 - Linear Elastic

-1.4

Case 2 - Linear Elastic with Creep

-1.6

Case 3 - Multi-linear Elastic

-1.8

Case 4 - Multi-linear Elastic with Creep

-2.0

Time (days)

Page 7

700

Figure 8
Cross Valley Stress (z direction)
(Central Element, 21 m above base, Node 369)
1.4
1.2

Cross Valleyl Stress (MPa) +ve is

tension

1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2

0.0
-0.2 0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

-0.4
-0.6
-0.8
Case 1 - Linear Elastic

-1.0
-1.2

Case 2 - Linear Elastic with Creep

-1.4

Case 3 - Multi-linear Elastic

-1.6

Case 4 - Multi-linear Elastic with Creep

-1.8
-2.0

Time (days)

Figure 9
Cross Valley Stress (z direction)
(Central Element, 75 m above base, Node 1161)
1.4

Cross Valley Stress (MPa) +ve tension

1.2
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
-0.2 0.0

500.0

1000.0

1500.0

2000.0

2500.0

3000.0

3500.0

-0.4
-0.6
-0.8
-1.0

Case 4 - Linear Elastic

-1.2

Case 4 - Linear Elastic with Creep

-1.4

Case 4 - Multi-linear Elastic

-1.6

Case 4 - Multi-linear Elastic with Creep

-1.8
-2.0

T ime (days)

Figure 10
Cross Valley Stress (z direction)
(Element Close to Upstream Face, 75 m from base, Node 1165)
1.4
1.2

Cross Valley Stress (MPa) +ve tension

1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
-0.2 0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

-0.4
-0.6
-0.8
-1.0

Case 1 - Linear Elastic

-1.2

Case 2 - Linear Elastic with Creep

-1.4

Case 3 - Multi-linear Elastic

-1.6

Case 4 - Multi-linear Elastic with Creep

-1.8
-2.0

Time (days)

Page 8

3500

Figure 7 represents the cross valley stress (z direction) for a point 30 m above the dam base. Again,
the linear elastic model overestimates the compressive stress calculated with 1.55 MPa recorded
against 1.24 MPa estimated by the multi-linear elastic model. The linear elastic model shows a more
rapid return to a lower level stress condition than the creep models which show a residual stress,
clearly evident even at the 720 day mark.
This interpretation of the results is supported by observations of RCC in the field. At early ages the
RCC exhibits low strength and modulus, and high creep rates, which serve to both reduce stress
attraction because of the low modulus and irrecoverable creep strain development.
Of greater significance to the long term behaviour of the dam, is the effect of creep on residual
stresses within the structure. The effect of creep is most clearly shown on figure 8 which shows that,
in conformance with classical elastic theory, the linear elastic model is in compression in the centre of
the dam for the duration that the core is warm, and dissipates to zero stress when the core of the dam
has cooled. Applying a creep model results in dissipation of the compressive stress at relatively early
ages, with a locked in tensile stress appearing when the dam has cooled. This is more in keeping with
observed contraction joint openings of RCC dams following construction. The peak tensile stress
developed at 10 years is 1.04 MPa for the multi-linear elastic model with creep, while the linear
elastic model with creep overestimating the tensile stress slightly with a peak of 1.12 MPa at 10 years.
Figure 8 also demonstrates the overestimation of peak stresses by the models without creep at early
ages of the RCC. A peak compressive stress of 1.85 MPa is recorded within 20 days of placement by
these models compared to 1.22 MPa with the multi-linear elastic model with creep. The effects of
creep are soon apparent, with a peak compressive stress during a second peak at 300 days after
placement of 1.48 MPa with the multi-linear elastic model with creep comparing to a peak
compressive stress of 1.95 MPa with the linear elastic model without creep. Beyond 100 days after
placement, the effects of the multi-linear elastic model are less apparent, with both creep models
deviating from their no-creep counterparts.
Creep behaviour is strongly dependent on the duration of loading. The creep and no creep
counterparts of both the linear elastic and multi-linear elastic models are shown to exhibit the same
behaviour for the upper levels of the dam, as shown by figure 9 and 10. This is because the heating
and cooling cycle at the upper parts of the dam are more rapid, and creep effects do not have time to
dissipate any compressive loading.
The effect of overestimation of the compressive stress by the linear elastic model is also shown in
figures 9 and 10 for early age RCC. For example, figure 9 shows a peak compressive stress of 1.44
MPa for the linear elastic model compared to 0.96 MPa for the multi-elastic model at the same age.

PRELIMINARY 3D ANALYSES RESULTS

Preliminary three dimensional analyses have been performed using the multi elastic model with creep
as described above. Early results from these analyses show some interesting traits of monolithic RCC
construction which require further investigation. These include:
A significant underestimation of the cross valley tensile stresses compared to a two dimensional
model.
The placement temperature should be close to the average ambient temperature at the site, not as
cool as practicable as is current practice. This finding is similar to those reported by U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers (1994).
Significant reductions in thermal stresses are instead found by cooling a small zone of RCC at the
upstream face of the placement area.
These are being further investigated for the Kinta Dam design and construction.
Page 9

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The four analyses presented clearly show the need to use more sophisticated material models to
accurately describe both short term and long term thermal effects on RCC stresses. Without
modelling creep effects, the residual tensile stresses, as observed in actual RCC structures, cannot be
simulated with an analytical model using linear elastic behaviour alone. Moreover, the early age RCC
properties have a significant effect on the peak tensile and compressive stresses developed in the
structure. A linear elastic model overestimates these stresses by up to 3.6 times.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors are grateful to MUC for the permission to prepare and publish this paper. They would
also like to thank Angkasa-GHD Sdn Bhd in Malaysia and GHD Pty Ltd in Australia for the
encouragement and support in the preparation of the paper.

REFERENCES
ACI 207.1R - 87, Mass Concrete for Dams and Other Massive Structures
Ayotte E., Massicotte B., Houde J., Gocevski V. (1997), Modeling the Thermal Stresses at Early Ages
in a Concrete Monolith, ACI Materials Journal, Vol. 94, No. 6, 1997.
Barrett P. R. Foadian H. James R. J. Rashid Y. R. (1992), Thermal-structural Analysis Methods for
RCC Dams, Roller Compacted Concrete III, American Society of Civil Engineers, New York, 1992.
Gunn R. M. and Bossoney C. (1996), Creep Analysis of Mass Concrete Dams, Hydropower & Dams,
Issue Six, 1996.
Fobes B.A., Williams, J. T., (1998) Thermal Stress Modeling, High Sand RCC Mixes and In-situ
Modification of RCC Used for Construction of Cadiangullong Dam NSW, ANCOLD, Sydney, 1998.
Ishikawa M. (1991), Thermal Stress Analysis of Concrete Dam, Computers & Structures, Vol. 40,
1991.
Tatro, Stephen B., and Ernest K. Schrader (1992), Thermal Analysis of RCC - A Practical Approach,
Roller Compacted Concrete III, American Society of Civil Engineers, New York, 1992.
Tatro, Stephen B. (1999), Commentary on the Corps of Engineers Approach to Thermal Analysis,
International Symposium on Roller Compacted Concrete Dam, Chengdu, China, 1999.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (1994), Engineering Technical Letter (ETL) 1110-2-365, Nonlinear,
Incremental Structural Analysis of Massive Concrete Structures, Washington, DC, 1994.
Yonezawa T., Takahi K., Yamaguchi Y., Jikan S. (1988), Measurement and Analysis of Cracks
Caused by Thermal Stress in Mass Concrete, ICOLD, San Francisco, 1988.
Zhang Zinming. and Garga V. K. (1996), Temperature and Temperature Induced Stresses for RCC
Dams, Dam Engineering, Vol VII, Issue 2, 1996.
Zhu Bofang (1995), Compound Layer Method for Stress Analysis Simulating Construction Process of
Concrete Dam, Dam Engineering, Vol VI, Issue 2, 1995.
Zhu Bofang., Xu Ping., Wang Shuhe.(1999), Thermal Stresses and Temperature Control of RCC
Gravity Dams, International Symposium on Roller Compacted Concrete Dam, Chengdu, China, 1999.
Page 10