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Lecture 8 - Open Channel

There are two types of conduits used to convey water - open channels and pressure conduits (pipes). In an open channel, the stream is not completely enclosed and has a free surface exposed to atmospheric pressure. Flow in an open channel is caused by gravity along the channel slope rather than an external head. Several formulas were developed to describe flow in open channels, including the Chezy and Manning formulas which relate flow characteristics to channel roughness, shape, and slope. The most efficient or economical channel cross sections are those that maximize discharge for a given slope, area, and roughness by minimizing the wetted perimeter. Semi-circular channels are most efficient but other shapes like rectangular and trapezoidal are more practical for different construction materials

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59 views10 pages

Lecture 8 - Open Channel

There are two types of conduits used to convey water - open channels and pressure conduits (pipes). In an open channel, the stream is not completely enclosed and has a free surface exposed to atmospheric pressure. Flow in an open channel is caused by gravity along the channel slope rather than an external head. Several formulas were developed to describe flow in open channels, including the Chezy and Manning formulas which relate flow characteristics to channel roughness, shape, and slope. The most efficient or economical channel cross sections are those that maximize discharge for a given slope, area, and roughness by minimizing the wetted perimeter. Semi-circular channels are most efficient but other shapes like rectangular and trapezoidal are more practical for different construction materials

Uploaded by

Percival Archer
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Open Channel

Two types of conduit are used to convey water, the open channel, and the pressure conduit (pipe). An open
channel is one in which the stream is not completely enclosed by solid boundaries and therefore has a free
surface subjected only to atmospheric pressure. The flow in such a channel is caused not by some external head,
but rather by the gravity component along the slope of the channel. In an open channel flow, the hydraulic grade
line is coincident with the stream surface since the pressure at the surface is atmospheric. The flow in open
channels may either be uniform or non-uniform.

Specific Energy

Based on the figure above, the head lost between any two points in the channel is:

Where S is the slope of the energy grade line and L is the length or run. The head loss balances the loss-in height
of the channel.
For a given channel shape and bottom roughness, the quantity (8g/f)1/2 is constant and can be denoted by C. the
equation becomes,

These equations are called the Chezy formulas, first developed by the French engineer Antoine Chezy in 1769.
The quantity C is called the Chezy Coefficient, varies from about 30 m1/2/s for small rough channels to 90 m1/2/s
for large smooth channels.
A great deal of hydraulic researchers correlated C with roughness, shape, and slope of various open channels.
Among them were Ganguillet and Kutter in 1869, Manning in 1889, Bazin in 1897, and Powell in 1950.

Manning Formula

Bazin Formula

Powell Equation S.I.


Uniform Flow (S = So)

The simplest of all open channel problem is the uniform flow condition. For the flow to be uniform, the velocity,
depth of flow, and cross-sectional area of flow at any point of the stream must be constant (i.e., v1 = v2, d1 = d2, A1
= A2). For this condition, the stream surface is parallel to the channel bed and the energy grade line is parallel to
the stream surface, and therefore the slope of the energy grade line S is equal to the slope of the channel bed So.

Boundary Shear Stress

The average boundary shear stress, τo acting over the wetted surface of the channel is given by:

where γ is the unit weight of the liquid, R is the hydraulic radius, and S is the slope of the EGL, and for uniform
flow or for S < 1/10 (0 < 5.7o), S = So.
Normal Depth

The normal depth dn, is the depth at which uniform flow will occur in an open channel. Normal depth may be
determined from Chezy formula with S = So. The resulting equation usually requires a trial-and-error solution.

Most Efficient Cross Sections (MES)

Also known as the most economical sections, these are sections which, for a given slope S, channel cross-
sectional area A, and roughness 11, the rate of discharge is a maximum.

From Manning formula,

It can be seen with A, n, and S constant, Q is maximum when the hydraulic radius R is maximum, and since R =
A/P, then R is maximum if P is minimum. Therefore, the most efficient section is the one that have the least
wetted perimeter and therefore requires the least cost of grading and lining, which makes it most economical.

Of all canal shapes, the semicircular open channel is the most efficient. Semicircular flumes are often built of
pressed steel and other forms of metal, but for other types of construction such a shape is impractical. For
wooden flumes, the rectangular shape is usually employed. Canals excavated in earth must have a trapezoidal
cross section, with side slope less than the angle of repose of the bank material. Thus, there are other factors
besides hydraulic efficiency which determine the best cross section.

Proportions for Most Efficient Section


Rectangular Section

Trapezoidal Section
Triangular Section
Circular Sections

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