Abstract: Thin concrete panels act as the main impervious body of CFRD (Concrete Face Rockfill Dam), and it is particularly important to prevent leakage at the panel seam joints. If a large amount of leakage occurs, the engineering safety and economy will be severely affected. In the aim of improving the sealing performance of surrounding joints of panels, we compared several typical sealing structures from aspects of structure design, sealing principle, deficiencies of structure and materials. Furthermore, we present a novel structure consisting five sealing levels for the surrounding joints of CFRD panels. Results reveal that the proposed structure retains the strengths of other structures, and also makes up for their deficiencies.

Key words: CFRD, peripheral joint, sealing structure, flexible packing material, a new type of sealing structure