Centrifuge modelling of a river embankment subjected to transient seepage conditions

This paper reports the results of a centrifuge test on a silty sand river embankment compacted in unsaturated conditions and subjected to flooding. The measures of pore water pressure from tensiometers and pore pressure transducers show that the saturation line reaches the landside only after an unrealistic long-lasting flood, proving that the assumption of steady-state seepage for the design or assessment of a river embankment is too much conservative approach.