Systematic Literature Search and Meta Regression of Measured Static Ice Loads on Concrete Dams

Abstract

This study presents a systematic literature review of ice load measurements on dams. Several hypotheses about the relationship between the maximum ice load and external variables are tested using regression analysis on the data collected from the literature. The performed tests show that ice thickness, water level change category, and dam height are factors that have a significant and relevant relationship with the magnitude of all measured ice loads. The ice thickness is the only tested variable that also shows a significant and relevant relationship with differences in ice load between winters at one dam. The variation in recorded ice load from several sensor positions at one dam during the same winter is considerable. Generally, the difference between the sensor area and the structure–ice interaction area is large, resulting in extensive extrapolation and uncertainties regarding the representativeness of the measured results.