Impact of arch dam cracking on monitoring data

It is well established that the proper functioning of dams plays an important role in society. Therefore, as a fundamental part of their safety, the identification of anomalies by monitoring their deformations must be given special consideration. The ability to detect cracks based on monitoring device records depends largely on the number of devices included in the dam's original design, their arrangement, and their accuracy. This paper aims to help determine the appropriate spacing and accuracy of the devices for detecting a given crack. For this purpose, numerical simulations of cracks that match the most likely cracks in arch dams are performed based on a real dam, ensuring that such cracks result in an opening wide enough to be of concern. Afterward, the study analyzes the impact of the length and depth of the crack and the accuracy and position of the monitoring device on the ability of the system to detect the crack.