ABSTRACT

This paper presents the monitoring of the dynamic properties of a concrete gravity dam. The dam under investigation is the new Brežice dam on the Sava River in Slovenia. In order to capture the reference state of this structure, its investigation was initiated already during the construction. During the start-up tests of the generating units, we had a unique opportunity to capture all the operational maneuvers that can occur unplanned during regular operation. Structural behavior is measured at several discrete locations on the dam structure as well as on the turbine. Various measurement equipment is used, including a state-of-the-art Laser Doppler Vibrometer. Surface velocities are captured in the time-domain; in order to identify dominant frequencies of the system, the data are then transformed to the frequency-domain.