TYPES OF DAMS

BASED ON FUNCTIONS

1.Storage Dam: 
They are constructed to store water during the rainy season when there is a large flow in the river.
2.Diversion Dam: 
A diversion dam is constructed for the purpose of diverting water of the river into an off-taking canal (or a conduit).
3.Detention Dam:
 Detention dams are constructed for flood control. A detention dam retards the flow in the river on its downstream during floods by storing some flood water.
4.Debris Dam: 
A debris dam is constructed to retain debris such as sand, gravel, and drift wood flowing in the river with water.
5.Coffer Dam: 
It is an enclosure constructed around the construction site to exclude water so that the construction can be done in dry.

BASED ON STRUCTURES

1.Gravity Dam:
 These are the dams which resist the horizontal thrust of the water entirely by their own weight.
2.Arch Dam:
These are designed so that the force of the water against it, known as hydrostatic pressure, presses against the arch, compressing and strengthening the structure as it pushes into its foundation or abutments.
3.Buttress Dam:
 A buttress dam or hollow dam is a dam with a solid, water-tight upstream side that is supported at intervals on the downstream side by a series of buttresses or supports.
4.Embankment Dam: 
These are typically created by the placement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil, sand, clay and/or rock.