PSM provides industry-leading methods of earth and rock embankment dams analysis coupled with over 20 years of practical insight and experience.

Rigorous risk assessment failure modes include:

• Seepage
• Piping
• Overtopping
• Scour and erosion
• Slope stability
• Rapid drawdown
• Numerical modelling of crack propagation.

We provide comprehensive analysis of rock mass characteristics and behaviour using Abaqus, FLAC3D, 3DEC, Scaled Boundary Finite Element Method (SBFEM), 2D and 3D finite element modelling of rock.

Services include:

• Linear and non-linear deformation
• Discrete or stochastically generated structures
• Stress history
• Groundwater pressures
• Crack propagation
• Creep and strain softening.

We offer review, design, construction, operation and closure of tailings and other industrial dams.

Services include:

• Site investigation and testing
• Material selection
• Storage cut, fill and volume determination
• Water balance and hydrological design
• Embankment design to ANCOLD and other guidelines
• Industrial dams for the storage of special fluids such as caustic soda
• In-pit and underground storage design
• Capping design, construction and monitoring
• Use of liners such as clay or geosynthetics
• Operations manuals to achieve high strength, low emissions or reduced closure costs.

We have extensive experience with discharge systems, spillways, underdrainage and decant systems.

Our full range of construction services includes:

• Earthworks specification
• Specification testing
• Design monitoring
• Sedimentation and consolidation testing
• Construction supervision
• Certification
• Reporting to meet regulator requirements.

We assess dam stability using seepage analysis of leak discharges through embankments, low velocities and pore pressure.

For steady or transient flows, we use coupled modelling in both 2D and 3D, using Geostudio (Seep/w; Sigma/w; Slope/w); RS2; RS3, FEFLOW and Abaqus software.

We prepare detailed hydrological and hydraulics studies. We assess:

• Rainfall and runoff taking account of long-term inflow and seepage or evaporation loss patterns for reservoir sizing or yield analysis
• Historical or design runoff events for spillway capacity design
• Risk of dam overtopping
• Design of intakes, spillways and outlets and specialist hydraulic structures
• Specialist assessment of scour and erosion.

Depending on the nature and complexity of the problem, we apply first-principle hand calculations as well as more complex numerical analysis (including 3D CFD modelling) or scale physical modelling techniques.

Our sophisticated scour-prediction tools combine rock mass modelling with hydraulic models to assess spillway erosion.

Setting an industry benchmark, PSM developed these tools from Dr Steven Pells’ 2016 research into erosion (scour) risk in unlined spillways at over 30 large dam spillways.