Reducing Erosion of Earthen Levees Using Engineered Flood Wall Surface

Abstract

Erosion was one of the major causes for the failure of New Orleans levee system during Hurricane Katrina. Protection of flood walls from erosion failure can be achieved in many different ways. This study consisted of experimental research to develop engineered flood wall surfaces that can reduce the erosion energy of the plunging water before the water hits the levee surface, so that the flood protection system becomes more resilient. Test results were compared to hydrodynamics simulation results by using FLOW3D. The results revealed that the erosion resistance of levees can be substantially reduced by providing protective structures at the surface of the flood walls. An effectively designed protective structure could reduce the erosion depth as much as 40% and extend the erosion time as much as 400%.