Subsidence analysis of hydroelectric dam using the Kalman filter – a case study in Hoa Binh hydropower plant, Vietnam

Abstract

Hydroelectric dams have a great influence on the safety of the downstream area. Therefore, deformation monitoring for assessing the safety of dam should be carried out regularly. In order to improve efficiency of the dam management, it is necessary to analyse the displacement values in space, over time to assess overally the displacement of dam. In this purpose, an attempt was conducted to analyse the subsidence of hydroelectric dams located in Hoa Binh, Vietnam using one of the most useful method – Kalman filter. Kalman filter is the unique method that can determine influence of external factors (particularly, elevation of water level in the reservoir) on dams, simultaneously forecast the displacement values of dam in the future. Moreover, Kalman filter allows to predict subsidence accurately in about 6 months that is longer prediction time than other static models. These are clearly presented and discussed in the article. The obtained results demonstrate the high applicability of Kalman filter method in analysing and forecasting the subsidence of the Hoa Binh hydroelectric dam.

Keywords

• subsidence monitoring
• prediction
• subsidence analysis
• Kalman filter
• hydroelectric dams
• external factors