Seismic performance of earth dams can nowadays be performed via dynamic analyses using constitutive models of sufficient accuracy in describing cyclic soil behaviour. However, a number of assumptions different from soil model affect the problem as a whole.
In the last decades, Italy has experienced several strong earthquakes, triggering the attention on the high seismic risk associated with the potential instability of large existing earth dams. Under intense seismic events, dam response depends on various factors including the geometry and the type of water retention scheme. This paper explores the influence of these factors, comparing the seismic performance of two idealized earth dams: a homogeneous dam and a zoned dam.
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