NPDP Dam Dictionary

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Term AKA Definition
Bulkhead A one-piece fabricated steel unit which is lowered into guides and seals against a frame to close a water passage in a dam, conduit, spillway, etc. An object used to isolate a portion of a waterway for examination, maintenance, or repair. A wall or partition erected to resist ground or water pressure.
Bulking The increase in volume of a material due to manipulation. Rock bulks upon being excavated; damp sand bulks if loosely deposited, as by dumping, because the apparent cohesion" prevents movement of the soil particles to form a reduced volume."
Butt joint Open joint In pipe, flat ends that meet but do not overlap.
Butterfly valve A valve designed for quick closure that consists of a circular leaf, slightly convex in form, mounted on a transverse shaft carried by two bearings.
Buttress dam A dam consisting of a watertight upstream part supported at intervals on the downstream side by a series of buttresses (walls normal to the axis of the dam). Buttress dams can take many forms. See arch-buttress dam, flat slab or slab and buttress dam, massive head buttress dam, multiple arch dam, and solid head buttress dam.
By (Kilometers or Miles) Select the units (kilometers or miles) for the radial distance.