Jiangya Dam


The Jiangya Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Loushui River, located northeast of Zhangjiajie in Hunan Province, China. The primary purpose of the multi-purpose dam is flood control but it also generates hydroelectricity, supplies water for irrigation and municipal use and improves navigation.

Background

The dam's power plant has a 300 MW capacity and generates on average 756 GWh annually. It provides for the irrigation of and water storage for about 50,000 people. The dam also reserves for flood storage and supports a 20-ton ship lift. Construction on the dam began in 1995, the first generator was operational in 1998 and the project complete in 1999. The dam was constructed with roller-compacted concrete and is noteworthy because it was the first dam to use the slope/inclined laying process as opposed to horizontal. This technique was used from the dam's midsection upward and reduced both the cost and time of construction. The dam was constructed at a cost of about US$400 million, of which $97 million was provided by the World Bank.

Design

The dam is a tall and long concrete gravity dam with a structural volume of. The base of the dam is wide and the crest is at an elevation of while the reservoir has a normal elevation of. The dam sits at the head of a catchment area and creates a reservoir with a capacity of. The dam's spillway is controlled by four gates and at the base of the chutes, flip buckets dissipate the water's energy. Within the three center spillway piers are three intermediate outlets. These outlets and the spillway can discharge up to. The dam's power house is located underground on the dam's right bank and contains three 100 MW Francis turbine-generators. The dam's 20-ton ship lift is located on the left bank and is long. The irrigation intake is located on the left bank of the reservoir.

VLF-transmitter

Over the eastern part of Jiangya reservoir at 29°35'21"N 110°44'23"E multiple wires of a VLF-transmitter used for transmitting orders to submarines are spun. The facility is similar to Jim Creek Naval Radio Station, but much larger,