Performance of Cogoti Dam Under Seismic Loading

At the time of its completion in 1938, the 280 ft (85 m) high Cogoti concrete face rockfill dam was exceeded in height by only one other dam of its type in the world, Salt Springs Dam. The dam contains 915,000 cu yd (700,000 m3) of dumped rockfill, and the total area of the face slab is 172,000 sq ft (16,000 m2). Cogoti Dam is located in north central Chile approximately 170 miles (275 km) north of Santiago. Due to the remote location from major sources of cement and availability of rock, a concrete face rockfill dam design was selected. Since the completion of Cogoti, central Chile has been subjected to four major earthquakes ranging from 7. 1 to 7. 9 Richter. Although Cogoti was constructed of high-lift dumped rockfill with compaction or sluicing, no earthquake damage to the face slab has occurred.