Mechanism of Piping under Impervious Structures

摘要

In delta areas the land is protected from floods and high tides by dikes. In general these are constructed of impervious clays and built on a sandy aquifer as subsoil. Such structures are vulnerable to an erosion effect called piping. In this thesis a mathematical model is proposed which deals with the mechanism of piping. The model is basically analytical but employs a numerical method to refine the results. The outcome is presented in a standardized form to be used as a design rule.