Allowable grouting pressure by fracture mechanics in concrete dams

As a main damage control method, chemical grouting is widely used in various concrete dams for dealing with harmful cracks. The kernel of good quality grouting is the allowable grouting pressure, which is calculated in view of fracture mechanics by weight function method in this paper. Different fracture calculating models are established and the stress intensity factors of them are obtained. The results show that the concrete fracture toughness, the crack length and the stress distribution along crack face are the three important influence factors of the allowable grouting pressure. Finally the suggestion of crack grouting pressure value is made by author, which may be useful for engineering application.