Optimization analysis of polymer anti-seepage wall’s density of earth dam under traffic load

Purpose Since the polymer anti-seepage wall’s density directly affects the stress and deformation safety and the engineering cost of earth dams under traffic load, this paper aims to seek the optimal polymer anti-seepage wall’s density under the premise of ensuring the deformation coordination, the safety and the engineering economy of the earth dam. Design/methodology/approach The functional relationship between each index and the polymer anti-seepage wall’s density is constructed through regression analysis. By establishing a multi-objective optimization analysis method for the density of polymer anti-seepage walls, the density of polymer anti-seepage walls is optimized and analyzed. Findings Carrying out the optimization analysis for an earth dam from the schemes of equal weight, deformation coordination and strength reserve, the optimal density of polymer anti-seepage wall is 0.260 g/cm3, 0.291 g/cm3 and 0.295 g/cm3, respectively. Originality/value In this work, in order to optimization analyze the polymer anti-seepage wall’s density of earth dam under traffic load, a calculation model of polymer anti-seepage wall considering the effect of seepage and stress coupling filed under traffic load is established. According to the possible failure mode of the earth dam, a suitable weight distribution scheme is proposed, and the optimal density of the polymer anti-seepage wall under different schemes is provided.