Rock Dynamics and Applications State of the Art Zhao & Li (eds)

2013 Taylor & Francis Group, London, ISBN 978-1-138-00056-8

The accident development at Sayano-Shushenskaya hydroelectric

power station in Russia
A.D. Sashourin
Mining Institute of Urals Division of Russian Academy of Science, Yekaterinburg, Russia

ABSTRACT: The paper deals with a new version of the accident at the SayanoShushenskaya HPP, which is the source of the accident current geodynamic movements in
hierarchical block rock mass at the base of the dam and station infrastructure. The mechanism of formation of fatigue cracks in steel studs cover hydraulic unit. A set of studies, which
will reveal the nature of the accident, are carried out to evaluate the possibility of local recurrence of accidents and loss of stability of the dam.

INTRODUCTION

The accident at Russias largest Sajano-Shushenskaja hydroelectric power station which

occurred August 17, 2009, attracted the attention of experts from different fields of scientific
and technological activities. Two state-level commissions such as RTN and the State Duma
have dedicated their work to identify the causes of the accident, involving investigations of
dozens of prominent scientists and specialists. The circumstances and causes of the accident
have been widely discussed in all media.
But two years after the accident, when restoration work is at full pelt and two hydroelectric
turbines were again in operation, the assessment of the accident, made by the Minister of
Energy S.I. Shmatko immediately after the events happened, This is the largest and most
unexplained accident, which has been the only one in the world. We cannot understand its
nature, is hardly changed. Administrative and organizational disruptions in the station work,
which were revealed by the commissions, are not discussed in this work because they do not
reveal the true causes of the accident. The well-known hydrobuilder A.E. Dolginin, whose
name is related to the development of hydropower potential of the Angara and Yenisei, said
about this, ... we cannot seriously believe that the accident occurred because of a few careless operatives (Dolginin 2010).
The objective of this work is to try to answer the questions that have not lighted in the
materials of the accident investigation: Is it possible to repeat the local accident on one of the
hydroelectric units? Is it possible for violation of a water main or other important structural
component of the station? What is the possibility of violation of the stability of the dam?
In the last decades, dozens of major accidents and disasters occurred in various fields of
economic activities with numerous human victims and enormous economic loss. At first
glance, all these events in different areas seem unconnected. In fact, as it can be seen from
more than 30-year research practices of the Ural School of Geomechanics, they all share a
common source of failurethe modern geodynamic movements.

2 GEOLOGICAL SETTING AT THE SAJANO-SHUSHENSKAJA POWER STATION

The Sajano-Shushenskaja hydroelectric power station is located in the incomplete formation of mountains Dzhebashsko-Dzhoyskiy tectonic unit, which is an anticline created by
the intrusion of granite, broken through to the surface through the thickness of the solid
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metamorphosed slates at about half a kilometer from the dam upstream (Fig. 1) (Marchuk
1995). Contact of granites with slates falls sharply in the cross section under the right bank, and
in the longitudinal sectionin the direction downstream of the dam forming angles of about
45 and 50. Features of its stratification cause a big difference in the capacity of slates in coast
junctions of the dam. At the left junction dam it reaches 250 meters, and in the right it increases
to 450 m. Unevenness of the two-layer base of the dam, complicated by a zone of contact metamorphism, determines the inhomogeneous deformation of the dam even if, we assume that
the geological environment at the base of the dam is in a static state, and only responds to the
dynamics of technological changes such as seasonal fluctuations in the level of the reservoir.
Figure 1 shows that the thickness of the slates was subjected to an active tectonic structure,
which, apparently, has been associated with breakthrough intrusion of granite. By separating
violations coinciding with the riverbeds of Charles and Talovka, tectonic blocks moved in
the southeastern direction for hundreds of meters. Vertical interblock advances based on the
difference of ortoslates capacities in different blocks, also number in hundreds of meters.
Thus, the contact zone of slate thickness with granites, subparallel separating violations
transverse riverbed of Yenisei, and the tectonic contacts of Cheremuhovskoy and Karymovskoy
thicknesses of paraslates with ortoslates create a contrastively-defined system of structural
blocks. One of the borders of these blocks between paraslates of Karymovskoy thickness and
ortoslates forming a fault zone intersects diagonally the dam near the left junction (Fig. 2).
In accordance with modern notions of the rock mass as a medium with hierarchical block
structure, marked blocking and structural defects do not reflect the complexity of the structure of the massif. Of course, they are only one step in the existing hierarchy and on the territory of hydroelectric power must be structural defects of various ranks. To identify the full
structural model of the rock mass of the site and deformation processes taking place in this
model we require special research.
V.I. Bryzgalov, ruled the station for a long time as CEO, regretted in his work (Bryzgalov
1999), that these issues have not been paid attention in creation and further operation of
hydroelectric station. Despite the thirty year period since the beginning of target study
of the area for the construction of the power plant, some geological structures (fractures)
and processes (crust movements) have not been studied in detail which are the main factors

Figure 1. Schematic geological map of waterworks Sajano-Shushenskaja hydroelectric power station

(Bryzgalov 1999).
1paraslates of Cheremuhovskoy column; 2paraslates of Karymovskoy column; 3ortoslates;
4borders of Dzhoyskoy intrusion; 5zones of contact metamorphism: Aheavy, Bmiddle,
Blow; 6undivided area of contact metamorphism; 7tectonic zones; 8the angle of rocks; 9the
contour of the dam.

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Figure 2.

Fracture location and predictable geodynamic movements of structural blocks.

determining long-term stability of the territory. Neither technical facilities, nor observations
for geodynamic processes were included in the project. Only the installation of equipment in
the dam body was assumed. (Bryzgalov 1999).
Tetelmin (2010) in his work deeply analyzed the deformation processes of the system called
dam isa massif of rocks, and these processes were caused by technogenic pressures of the
created reservoir and by dynamics of seasonal changes of its level. Unfortunately, assessment
of the role of modern geodynamic movements is completely missing in the work and it is not
excluded that the undamping plastic deformations, noted by Tetelmin, represent the occurrences of current geodynamic movements.
3

DEVELOPMENT OF ROCK BLOCK MOVEMENT

Meanwhile, the results of fundamental research made by the Ural School of Geomechanics
in different parts of Urals, Kazakhstan, Western and Eastern Siberia and Yakutia, show
that modern geodynamic movements in the area of Sayano-Shushenskaya hydrounit should
be presented by trend and cyclical polyharmonical movements, concentrating in areas of
tectonic intrusions (Sashourin 2005, 2008). Definition of the parameters requires special
experimental research.
The shift occurs under the influence of trendy geodynamical motions when heredity of
paleogeodynamic movements is saving and these movements formed a block system shown in
Figure 1 in a fault zone that crosses the dam, (see Fig. 2). The intensely deformed state of the
shift transfers in the construction of the station, including the dam body and the construction of hydrounits of the machine building.
One of the elements, which perceive arising extraordinary intensively deformed state is
concrete mines of hydrounits. Depending on the parameters of the developing extraordinary intensively deformed state, concrete mines of the hydrounits under the action of trendy
and cyclical geodynamical movements with isotropic intensively deformed state change their
radius, keeping their round shape, and anisotropic intensively deformed state concrete mines
get an elliptical shape. But steel caps prevent from deformations of the mines and these
caps are separating hydro turbine chambers from the generator chambers. The connection
between caps and concrete mines is performed through 80 steel locking pins placed evenly
along a circular contour of the caps and mines.
Consequently, steel locking pins must provide joint deformation of the metal cap and concrete chamber along with the cap from the water pressure in the chamber. So the concrete
mine of hydro unit with steel locking pins should deform steel cap to give it joint final shape
with cyclical deviations. And now tenfold difference in modules of elasticity starts to take
place in the mechanism of their joint deformation (2 105 MPa for caps steel and 0.2 105
MPa for the mine concrete).
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When concrete mine of hydro unit is deforming under the influence of modern geodynamic movements, it meets a tenfold resistance of the steel cover (Fig. 3a). Force interaction
between them is carried only by the locking pins, which create a shear force, and it is represented schematically in Figure 3b. Structurally, they are meant to operate on a burst.
There are two components in the shear efforts. The first is caused by trendy deformations
of mine and cap RT. They are changing slowly over time in accordance with the laws of
development of trendy geodynamical motions. The second component has cyclical character
due to the cyclical short-period geodynamic movements. Cyclical movements have polyharmonical character, but their whole range of oscillations is in the range of the amplitude RT,
and the shear stresses caused by these motions in the locking pins are in the range of c . .
The maximum amplitudes as known from the available data about the parameters of cyclical movements, occur in cycles, with a duration from 3040 minutes to 11.5 hours, i.e. average about one hour. This provides about 10,000 cycles of stressing pins with shear force per
year. The rest range of frequencies that fills the whole time scale, certainly creates a vibration
character of change of the shearing forces on the background of the main frequency, but
their amplitudes will be located in the range of c . created by the maximum amplitude.
Thus, we can see from Figure 3b that during the deformation of the steel capconcrete
mine for an amount RT R , shear stress acts on the rod with c . T c . . The maximum

Figure 3. The mechanism of fatigue destruction of locking pins.

ascheme of joint deformation of the mine and cap; ba scheme of fatigue fissure extension; Rmjoint
deformation of the mine and its cap from trend movements; Rucyclical deformation (vibration) of
short-period cyclical movements; c . Ttrendy shifting stresses; c . ucyclical shifting stresses.

Figure 4. Diagram of fatigue destructions of the locking pins (% of section) and the zone of cyclical
shear forces of the locking pins from cyclical short-period geodynamic movements (Ru).

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value of rods c . T + c . will be achieved in a period when R matches the RT, and the
minimum will be achieved when RT and R are directed in different directions. Consequently,
the rod is exposed by cyclical force with the constant trendy shift c . T .
Figure 4 shows the actual diagram of fatigue destructions of each rod cross-section in
percentage to its area of the cross section, constructed according to the investigation act of
RTN commission for hydro unit number 2. Anisotropy is clearly seen in the distribution of
fatigue destructions. Zones with high specific fatigue destruction and zones without fatigue
destructions determine the directions maximum and minimum stresses and strains, respectively, acted on the accidental hydro unit. In this figure theoretical zones of cyclical shear
forces of the locking pins under uniaxial forcing of the system called mine-cap are also
rebuilt in the direction of sectors with the numbers of pins 21-41 and 61-1. Good correlation
between the theoretical cyclical shifting zones with the actual diagram of fatigue destructions
of the locking pins allows to conclude that the actual stress state of mine hydro unit number
2 is close to uniaxial, but some variations of the directions in these sectors during the period
of accumulation of fatigue destructions had occurred.

STRUCTURE DAMAGE AND FAILURE

Thus, the reason for destruction of the locking pins, in general, is clear. But sudden nature
of the final blast of all locking pins in the accident remains unclear. The total sum of
the remaining area of locking pins, which amounts according to different estimates, about
65 percent, provided the multiple reserve separation durability. For example, at the Nurek
hydroelectric power station in 1983 when 55 of 72 locking pins were destroyed, and these
locking pins were holding cap, the generator compartment was flooded relatively long in
time, thus water line was blocked. The remaining 17 pins were not broken.
Boom in the sudden nature of the destruction of the locking pins could make a contribution and this boom was prior to breakout of water, marked by eyewitnesses of the
accident. The nature of this boom did not find any explanation in the materials of the
investigation. Meanwhile, boom may be evidence of the dynamic nature of the destruction
of concrete in the mine hydroturbine. This nature is similar to shocks in the rocks which are
widely distributed in the mining practices. Although concrete is not directly related to bump
hazardous materials, but the conditions of dynamic destruction can arise as a result of high
stress concentration in the concrete of mine unit with the subsequent short period increases
of stresses outreaching the speed of rheological properties of the concrete.
A similar dynamic destruction of the concrete occurred at the column number 11 in the
aquapark Transvaal in Moscow. Explosive destruction of concrete column which was
recorded by surveillance camera prompted that the development was not an act of terrorism.
It was possible to check version of the dynamic fracture of concrete in the hydro unit mine
number 2 at the investigation stage of the nature of concrete destruction. Unfortunately,
no enough attention was given to this phenomenon in the published materials of the
investigation.

OBSERVATION AND DISCUSSION

Dynamic fracture of rocks at the base of hydro unit, which occurred as a rock burst, was
considered in as the primary reason of the accident (Pak & Dolgonosov 2011). Location of
rocks hit (in the mine concrete or in the surrounding rocks) in this case does not matter, but
community of its consequences is important. In both cases, the dynamic release of the disturbed mass can instantly block an outlet channel and stop the flow of water.
There are two possibilities. In the first case, the turbine which has a generator with a kinetic
energy, continues rotating in the still water and turns into a propeller. Hydroelectric power,
which stood at the moment of the accident about 400 megawatts, clears the reason for the
sudden blast of all remaining locking pins, lift and flight of the hydro unit.
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The second variant was considered above (Pak & Dolgonosov 2011). In the authors opinion, the instant watershed sealing of the destroyed rock mass sent water column energy
conduit to stem of the hydro unit turbine hall.
Thus, the boom which is a dynamic destruction of the hydroturbine concrete mine,
finally locks the chain of events which resulted in the accident:
extraordinary cyclical deformation of the hydro unit concrete mine, under the influence of
modern geodynamic movements;
occurrence of cyclical shear stresses and fatigue fissures in the hydro unit cap fixing the
locking pins;
dynamic destruction of the drain system concrete structure as a form of rock hit with
instant capping of the drain channel and stop of the waterway;
transition of turbine into the state of the propeller in the still water, final blast of the remaining section of the locking pins with the release of the hydrounit in the powerhouse.
Thats how schematically one of the largest accidents of our time looks like.
Nature, reasons and source of the accident on the hydro unit No 2 allow to make two main
conclusions. First, such an accident with particular specific variations is possible in the subsequent station operation at any of the ten hydro units or any of their waterways. Second, the
dam can not be guaranteed from the development of destructive deformations.
Complex of risk evaluation studies of emergency deformation processes on the station
should include:
research of structural-tectonic model of the rock mass in the area of the station;
determination of parameters of modern geodynamic movements: trendy movements for the
period of 3040 years by executing retrospective monitoring; short period cyclical movements;
cameral construction works of fields of stress-strain state of the rocks at the station:
trendy horizontal and vertical movements and deformations; cyclical amplitudes of horizontal and vertical movements and deformations, trendy and cyclical movements stress
increments;
predictive estimates of impact changes of the stress-strain state at the station;
the development of actions to reduce the risk of accidental deformation processes in the
station.
Without carrying out complex research, clarifying the reason for the accident, which
occurred on August 17, 2009, possible options for further developments remain unanswered,
raising reasonable fears and anxiety among population living near the dam.

CONCLUSION

1. Official investigations and extensive public discussions did not reveal the real sources and
causes of the accident at the GA-2 Sajano-Shushenskaja power plant on August 17, 2009.
At the same time, the accident is one of the indicators that show that the actual working
conditions of the station and deformation processes occurring on the station differ significantly from project.
2. Without determination of the sources and causes of the accident, recovery and further
plant operation does not exclude recurrence of similar local accidents at hydro units and
waterways, and also violations of the dam stability with the appearance of massive emergency for cities and villages located in the lower basin of the Yenisei HPS.
3. Materials given in the article show that the source of the accident are the structural features
of the rock mass in the area of HPS, trendy and cyclical geodynamic movements occurring
in the massive and their interaction with technogenic system of hydropower plant.
4. Ensuring further safe operation of the plant and reducing social tensions among the population potentially threatened by the Yenisei basin requires specific complex researches,
from which predictive estimation can be made on possible development and actions can
be taken to reduce the risk of catastrophic events.
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REFERENCES
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Sayano-Shushenskaya Hydroelectric Power Station. Atlanta: Ed. House Surikov. 563 s.
Dolginin, E.A. 2010. Sayano-Shushenskaya HPS: Reflections after the accident. Hydraulic Engineering
2: 5354.
Marchuk, A.N. 1995. Earthquake prediction in the power station with the measuring system of the
dam. Hydraulic Engineering 8: 3438.
Pak, G.L., Dolgonosov, V.N. 2011. On the possible causes of the accident at the Sayano-Shushenskaya
HPS. Safety in Industry 2: 2226.
Sashourin, A.D. 2005. Sources and ways to prevent natural and man-made disasters in the mineral
resources / / . Geomechanics in Mining: Report of the International Conference: 242247. Yekaterinburg:
MI UD RAS, 2005, p. 242247.
Sashourin, A.D. 2008. Diagnosis of geodynamic activity in order to ensure safety of subsoil use. Mining
of Information-Analytical Bulletin 6: 274278.
Tetelmin, V.V. 2010. Analysis of irreversible processes in the alignment of the Sayano-Shushenskaya
HPS. Hydraulic Engineering 2: 4751.

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