Contact problems in lock gates and other hydraulic closures in view of investigations and field experiences : doctor's thesis = Contactproblemen in sluisdeuren en andere keermiddelen in het licht van onderzoek en ervaring : proefschrift = Problemy kontakt

Contains a collection of the author's research results and practical experiences in the field of supports and other contact components in hydraulic closures, such as lock gates, gates of weirs and movable storm surge barriers. The subject has been approached in an interdisiplinary manner. Presented are an overview of design loads, tribological and other phenomena significant for the design and maintenance of contact components, and the impact of those components behavior on the type selection and design process of the entire hydraulic gate systems. The reference material and presented solutions are mainly collected from the author's 20 years' experience in engineering, research and construction management of water related projects, particularly hydraulic gates. Predominate part of this experience is related to his function of lead design engineer for infrastructural projects by the Civil Engineering Department. In addition to his own solutions, several works of the author's colleagues have been consulted, as well as the available literature and international contacts. In this study, an attempt is taken to emphasize the role of contact related issues in the design of lock, weir and barrier gates. A thesis has been presented and proved is that these issues ought to be considered at all projects stages, beginning with the definition of project results and ending on its satisfactory operation. Is new insofar that in engineering practice the contact problems are usually seen as an issue to be dealt with at the stage of detailed engineering. The fact is that an attention to those problems e.g. at the stage of structural system selection would help avoiding many troubles.