5/4/2009: Customized Waterstop System Developed for Taum Sauk Re-build

In January 2008, Greenstreak engineers were called upon to assist with the design of a custom PVC waterstop profile for the Taum Sauk Upper Reservoir re-build. Design detailing of the control joints required the positioning of a ¼” thick plastic board in the cast-in-place upstream facing concrete to induce controlled cracks/joints in the reservoir. The crack-inducing plastic board was to be installed along the entire length of the PVC waterstop, adjacent to both the top and bottom surfaces of the waterstop.

It was discovered early on when using Greenstreak’s standard #726 PVC waterstop profile that it was extremely difficult to hold the crack-inducing plastic board in place during concrete placement. There was simply no efficient way to secure the plastic board to the center of the waterstop. Greenstreak and ASI engineers “put their heads together” to develop a custom PVC waterstop profile that would not only act as a waterstop required to resist 100 feet of head pressure, but also provide a means for holding the crack-inducing plastic board securely in place as the upstream facing concrete was poured.

One year later, literally miles of this custom PVC waterstop profile have been successfully installed in the Taum Sauk Reservoir, with miles more to go. When concrete placement is complete at the end of 2009, nearly 3 million cubic yards of roller-compacted and conventional concrete will be placed to construct the Taum Sauk Upper Reservoir with a crest perimeter of 1.25 miles and a height of 100+ feet.

Project Name: Taum Sauk Pumped Storage Power Plant – Upper Reservoir

Structure type: Roller Compacted Concrete containment reservoir for stored water

Location: Annapolis, MO

Owner: AmerenUE

Contractor: Ozark Constructors, LLC (joint venture of ASI Constructors and Fred Weber Inc.

Engineer: Paul Rizzo Associates