The consequences of a large dam failing can be disastrous. However, predicting the performance of concrete dams during earthquakes is one of the most complex and challenging problems in structural dynamics. Based on a nonlinear approach, Seismic Safety Evaluation of Concrete Dams allows engineers to build models that account for nonlinear phenomena such as vertical joint slippage, cracks, and cavitation. This yields more accurate estimates. Advanced but readable, this book is the culmination of the work carried out by Tsinghua University Research Group on Earthquake Resistance on Dams over the last two decades.

• Nonlinearity characteristics of high concrete dams, seismic analysis methods, evaluation models
• A systematic approach to nonlinear analysis and seismic safety evaluation of concrete dams
• Includes nonlinear fracture of dam-water-foundation interaction system, dynamic fluid-structure
• Covers soil-structure interactions, and meso-scale mechanical behavior of concrete are all international front issues of the field