Mehrad Kamalzare

Investigation of Levee Failure and Validation of Erosion Evolution: Embankments, Earthen Dams and Levees Mehrad Kamalzare

The Purpose of this research was to develop tools that would improve understanding of the process of dams, embankment and levee failure mechanism, and reduce the risk of failure. This would be crucial to avoid devastative failures such as hurricane Katrina in 2005, which caused a disaster in southern parts of United State of America. There are more than 14,000 miles of levee only in US, in addition to thousands of miles of dams and levees in Europe, Asia and other parts of the world. These levees are protecting highways, power plants, bridges, etc. Only in US, 881 counties are being protected by the levees and the failure of these levees and dams can be a threat to life of 160 million Americans. The integrity of the national system of levees is therefore a critical matter for different nations.