Seepage Analyses of Tailings Dam Using 3D Saturated‐Unsaturated and Equivalent Seepage Method

Abstract Seepage safety control of tailings dam is the key technology for preventing leakage and ensuring dam safety to avoid geo‐hazards and protect the ecological environment. To obtain an accurate seepage field of the whole tailings dam area, especially the modeling of geotechnical mat, a 3D saturated‐unsaturated seepage method is used to calculate the seepage filed, in which the phreatic surface is captured by a cut‐off negative pressure method via a penalty function with a parameter. An equivalent seepage model of a geotechnical mat is established to calculate accurately its seepage characteristic. The equivalent seepage model is applied to analyze the seepage field of a tailings dam in China. The seepage field is also investigated when the geotechnical mat cannot work well. The seepage surface will be left up, when the geotechnical mat is damaged.