Characteristics of Plane Gate Vibration and Holding Force in Closing Process by Experiments

A 1:25 scale physical model test was employed to study the plane gate vibration and holding force under the conditions of the fixed gate opening and closing process, respectively. We paid more attention to the characteristics of the gate vibration, holding force and the failure of gate-closing in closing process. The correlation between gate vibration and holding force was further examined. The results show that vertical vibration is weaker than the lateral and horizontal vibrations in fixed gate opening and is stronger than the lateral and vertical vibrations in closing process. Gate vertical vibration is self-excited vibration with a frequency of 7–14 Hz. Besides, crawl vibration in closing process is related to the upstream water depth. The higher the water level is, the earlier the crawl vibration appears. After the crawl stage, plane gate stops motion at a certain distance from the chamber floor and then the failure of gate-closing happens. Finally, gate vibration in three directions is significantly correlated with the holding force. In closing process, holding force has positive correlation with the vertical vibration and has negative correlation with the lateral and horizontal vibrations. In the crawl stage, the average of correlation coefficient in lateral, vertical and horizontal direction is −0.723, 0.733 and −0.664, respectively. Thus, the influence of gate vibration on holding force should be taken into consideration in determining the hoists capacity.