INTRODUCTION TO HYDROLOGY HANDOUT

Department of Water Resources and Irrigation Engineering by Habtamu M.

1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Definition of Hydrology

Hydrology is an earth science. It is the science that deals with the occurrence,
circulation and distribution of water of the earth and the earth’s atmosphere. As a
branch of earth science, it is concerned with the water in streams and lakes, rainfall
and snowfall, snow and ice on the land and water occurring below the earth’s surface
in the pores of the soil and rocks. In a general sense, hydrology is a very broad subject
of an inter-disciplinary nature drawing support from allied sciences, such as
meteorology, geology, statistics, chemistry, physics and fluid mechanics.

Hydrology is basically an applied science. To further emphasize the degree of

applicability, the subject is sometimes classified as:
1. Scientific hydrology: the study which is concerned chiefly with academic
aspects.
2. Engineering or applied hydrology: a study concerned with engineering
applications.
In a general sense, engineering hydrology deals with
(i) estimation of water resources,
(ii) the study of processes such as precipitation, runoff, evapotranspiration
and their interaction, and
(iii) the study of problems such as floods and droughts, and strategies to combat
them.
A knowledge of hydrology is fundamental to decision making process where water is
a component of the system of concern. Water and environmental issues are
inextricably linked, and it is important to clearly understand how water is affected by
and how water affects ecosystem manipulations.
1.2 Applications of Engineering Hydrology
Engineering hydrology is the science of water resource engineering which deals with
the study of occurrence, distribution, movement and the properties of water on the
earth or beneath the earth surface or in the atmosphere.
1.2.1 Features of Hydrology
The engineering hydrology deals with the following features:
1) Estimation of water resources
2) Study the components of the hydrological cycle like precipitation, runoff,
transpiration, and their interactions.
3) Study the problems of floods and droughts and preventive actions.
1.2.2 Scope of Engineering Hydrology
The main scope of engineering hydrology is:

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Department of Water Resources and Irrigation Engineering by Habtamu M.
1) Determination of Maximum Probable Flood
2) Determination of Water yield from a basin
3) Study the groundwater development
4) Determination of maximum intensity of the storm
1.2.3 The main applications of engineering hydrology are:
1. Hydrology provides guidance for undergoing proper planning and
management of water resources.
2. Calculates rainfall, surface runoff, and precipitation.
3. It determines the water balance for a particular region.
4. It mitigates and predicts flood, landslide and drought risk in the region.
5. It estimates the water resource potential of the river basins
6. Enables real-time flood forecasting and flood warning..
7. Hydrology analyses the variations observed in the catchments by bringing a
relationship between the surface water and groundwater resources of the
catchment.
8. Hydrology studies the required reservoir capacity that is necessary for
irrigation and municipal water supply purpose during drought conditions.
9. It is used in the design and operation of hydraulic structures
10. It is used for hydropower generation.
11. Brings measures to control erosion and sediment
1.3 Hydrologic Cycle
Water occurs on the earth in all its three states, which are: liquid, solid and gaseous,
and in various degrees of motion. Evaporation of water from water bodies such as
oceans and lakes, formation and movement of clouds, rain and snowfall, streamflow
and groundwater movement are some examples of the dynamic aspects of water. The
various aspects of water related to the earth can be explained in terms of a cycle
known as the hydrologic cycle.

A convenient starting point to describe the cycle is in the oceans. Water in the oceans
evaporates due to the heat energy provided by solar radiation. The water vapor moves
upwards and forms clouds. While much of the clouds condense and fall back to the
oceans as rain, a part of the clouds is driven to the land areas by winds. There they
condense and precipitate onto the landmass as rain, snow, hail, sleet, etc. A part of the
precipitation may evaporate back to the atmosphere even while falling. Another part

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Department of Water Resources and Irrigation Engineering by Habtamu M.
may be intercepted by vegetation, structures and other such surface modifications
from which it may be either evaporated back to the atmosphere or move down to the
ground surface. A portion of the water that reaches the ground enters the earth’s
surface through

infiltration, enhances the moisture content of the soil and reaches the groundwater
body. Vegetation sends a portion of the water from under the ground surface back to
the atmosphere through the process of transpiration. The precipitation reaching the
ground surface after meeting the needs of infiltration and evaporation moves down the
natural slope over the surface and through a network of gullies, streams and rivers to
reach the ocean. The groundwater may come to the surface through springs and other
outlets after spending a considerably longer time than the surface flow. The portion of
the precipitation which by a variety of paths above and below the surface of the earth
reaches the stream channel is called runoff. Once it enters a stream channel, runoff
becomes stream flow.

The sequence of events as above is a simplistic picture of a very complex cycle that
has been taking place since the formation of the earth. It is seen that the hydrologic
cycle is a very vast and complicated cycle in which there are a large number of paths
of varying time scales. Further, it is a continuous recirculating cycle in the sense that
there is neither a beginning nor an end or a pause. Each path of the hydrologic cycle
involves one or more of the following aspects: (i) transportation of water, (ii)
temporary storage, and (iii) change of state. For example, (a) the process of rainfall
has the change of state and transportation, and (b) the groundwater path has storage
and transportation aspects.

Of the many processes involved in the hydrologic cycle, the most important are:

Evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, and runoff

What are the basic components of Hydrological Cycle?

The basic components of a hydrological cycle constitute:

1. Precipitation
2. Runoff
3. Evaporation
4. Transpiration

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5. Infiltration
6. Storage on the land surface (depression storage, ponds, Lakes, Ponds,
reservoir storage, etc.)
7. Soil moisture storage
8. Ground water storage

Figure 1: Hydrologic Cycle

1.4 Water Budget

The quantities of water going through various paths of the hydrological cycle in a
given system can be described by the continuity principle known as water-budget
equation or hydrologic equation.
1.4.1 Catchment Area
The area of land draining into a stream or a water course at a given location is known
as the catchment area. It is also called drainage area or drainage basin (watershed).
A catchment area is separated from its neighboring areas by a ridge called divide in
the USA and watershed in UK (Fig. 2). The areal extent of the catchment is obtained
by tracing the ridge on a topographic map to delineate the catchment and measuring
the area by a planimeter.

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Figure 2: Catchment Area

1.4.2 Water-Budget Equation
The primary input in a hydrologic budget is precipitation.Figures1below illustrate
this. Some of the precipitation (e.g., rain, snow, hail) may be intercepted by trees,
grass, other vegetation, and structural objects and will eventually return to the,
atmosphere by evaporation. Once precipitation reaches the ground, some of it may fill
depressions (become depression storage), part may penetrable the ground (infiltrate)
to replenish soil moisture and groundwater reservoirs, and some may be come surface
runoff-that is, flow over the earth's surface to a defined channel such as a stream.
Figure.3 shows the disposition of infiltration, depression storage, and surface runoff.

Figure 3: Water budget

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For a given problem area, say a catchment, in an interval of time Δt, the continuity

equation for water in its various phases is written as:

Mass inflow – Mass outflow = change in mass storage

If the density of the inflow, outflow and storage volumes are the same,

ΔI- ΔO = ΔS
1.1
ΔI = inflow volume of water into the problem area during the time period, ΔO =
outflow volume of water from the problem area during the time period, and ΔS =
change in the storage of the water volume over and under the given area during the
given period. In applying this continuity equation [Eq. (1.)] to the paths of the
hydrologic cycle involving change of state, the volumes considered are the equivalent
volumes of water at a reference temperature. In hydrologic calculations, the volumes
are often expressed as average depths over the catchment area.
While realizing that all the terms in a hydrological water budget may not be known to
the same degree of accuracy, an expression for the water budget of a catchment for a
time interval Δt is written as:
P – R – G – E – T = ΔS
1.2
In this, P = precipitation, R = surface runoff, G = net groundwater flow out of the
catchment, E = evaporation, T = transpiration and ΔS = change in storage.
The storage S consists of three components as
S = Ss + Ssm + Sg 1.3
where Ss = surface water storage,
Ssm = water in storage as soil moisture, and
Sg= water in storage as groundwater.
1.5 World Water Balance
The total quantity of water in the world is estimated to be about 1386 million cubic
kilometers’ (M Km3). About 96.5% of this water is contained in the oceans as saline
water. Some of the water on the land amounting to about 1% of the total water is also
saline. Thus, only about 35 M Km 3 of fresh of fresh water is available. Out of this
about 10.6M km3 is both liquid and fresh and the remaining 24.4 M km3 is contained
in frozen state as ice in the polar regions and on mountain tops and glaciers. An
estimated distribution of water on the earth is given in Table below.

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Table 1: Distribution of water on the earth

Volume Percent Percent fresh

2
Item Area (KM ) (km3) total water water
1. Oceans 361.3 1338 96.5 _
2. Ground water
a. fresh 134.8 10.53 0.76 30.1
b. saline 134.8 12.87 0.93 _
3. Soil moisture 82 0.0165 0.0012 0.05
4. Ice caps &
glaciers 16 24.0235 1.7 68.6
5. Other ice and
snow 0.3 0.3 0.025 1
6. Lakea
a. fresh 1.2 0.007 0.26
0.0910
b. saline 0.8 0.0854 0.006 _
7. Wetlands 2.7 0.01147 0.0008 0.03
8. Rivers 148.8 0.00212 0.0002 0.006
9. Biological water 510 0.00112 0.0001 0.003
10. Atmospheric
water 510 0.0129 0.001 0.4

Total:
(a) All kinds of
510 1386 100
water (b) Fresh
2.5 100
water 148.8 35
Table from WORLD WATER BALANCE AND WATER RESOURCES OF THE
EARTH, © UNESCO, 1975. Reproduced by the permission of UNESCO.

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Department of Water Resources and Irrigation Engineering by Habtamu M.

2 PRECIPITATION
2.1 Introduction

The term precipitation denotes all forms of water that reach the earth from the
atmosphere. The usual forms are rainfall, snowfall, hail, frost and dew. Of all these,
only the first two contribute significant amounts of water. Rainfall being the
predominant form of precipitation causing stream flow, especially the flood flow in a
majority of rivers. The magnitude of precipitation varies with time and space.
Differences in the magnitude of rainfall in various parts of a country at a given time
and variations of rainfall at a place in various seasons of the year are obvious and
need no elaboration. It is this variation that is responsible for many hydrological
problems, such as floods and droughts.

2.2 Formation and types of precipitation

2.2.1 Processes and formation of precipitation

Condensation of water vapors in the air mass causes precipitation. Due to adiabatic
cooling, the rising air mass containing a significant number of water vapors becomes
saturated. Two processes are considered to be capable of supporting the growth of
droplets of sufficient mass(droplets from about500 to 4000 µm in diameter) to
overcome air resistance and consequently fall to the earth as precipitation. These are
known as the ice crystal process (Bergeron Process) and the coalescence process
(Collision – Coalescence Process)

Condensation of water vapors causes clouds to develop. In every cloud, there are
updrafts and downdrafts. The updraft determines cloud growth and height. The
stronger the updraft, the taller the cloud. As the liquid water accumulates, the updraft
weakens and the downdraft strengthens. Thereafter, Precipitation results. While all
clouds contain water, only some generate precipitation. Precipitated moisture from
clouds sometimes evaporates before reaching the earth's surface. Precipitation
happens when cloud droplets or ice crystals grow large enough to overcome
atmospheric updrafts. It signifies that specific processes are at work in a cloud that
produces rain.

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These mechanisms can be explained by two processes:

1. Bergeron Process

The clouds contain ice crystals and super-cooled water droplets. When an ice crystal
collides with super-cooled water, it freezes the water. This method uses two properties
of water.

First property- A cloud's water droplets do not freeze at 0°C but remain liquid until -
40°C termed as Super-cooled water if disturbed, super-cooled water will freeze. It
needs nuclei to freeze on. But freezing nuclei are rare in the atmosphere. Hence, with
an increase in temperature, some water droplets will turn into ice. Encouraging the
formation of all-ice clouds, a single ice crystal is added to a supercooled water droplet
cloud.

Second property- Over ice crystals, the saturation vapor pressure (es) is lower than
over water. Between water and ice crystals, a vapor pressure gradient is created. Ice
crystals are formed at the expense of supercooled water. When these ice crystals get
large enough, they begin to tumble out of the cloud. These ice crystals melt and fall as
rain before reaching the ground.

2. Collision – Coalescence Process

This method is suited to clouds whose base does not exceed the freezing point. Warm
clouds are these. These clouds have several various-sized cloud droplets. Large drops
expand at the expense of smaller ones. So, they crash with the smaller droplets and
form part of it. Updrafts and downdrafts repeatedly lift and lower cloud droplets in a
huge cloud. So, these drops grow swiftly. Raindrops must have a diameter of at least
100µm.Cloud droplets collide to generate the size of a drizzle droplet. More collisions
produce larger drops and rain. Small droplets of uniform size may be present in
clouds that do not produce precipitation. A condition like this could lead to colloidal
stability in the clouds. Because of the small size of the droplets, a collision may not
occur and these cloud droplets can fall slowly and uniformly without colliding. As a
result, any clouds that lack the required size of cloud droplets may fail to produce
precipitation.

For precipitation to form: (i) the atmosphere must have moisture, (ii) there must be
sufficient nuclei present to aid condensation, (iii) weather conditions must be good for

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condensation of water vapor to take place, and (iv) the products of condensation must
reach the earth.

Figure 4: process for formation of precipitation

Under proper weather conditions, the water vapor condenses over nuclei to form tiny
water droplets of sizes less than 0.1 mm in diameter. The nuclei are usually salt
particles or products of combustion and are normally available in plenty. Wind speed
facilitates the movement of clouds while its turbulence retains the water droplets in
suspension. Water droplets in a cloud are somewhat similar to the particles in a
colloidal suspension. Precipitation results when water droplets come together and
coalesce to form larger drops that can drop down. A considerable part of this
precipitation gets evaporated back to the atmosphere. The net precipitation at a place
and its form depends upon a number of meteorological factors, such as the weather
elements like wind, temperature, humidity and pressure in the volume region
enclosing the clouds and the ground surface at the given place. Some of the common
forms of precipitation are rain, snow, drizzle, glaze, sleet and hail.

2.2.2 Forms of precipitation

Some of the common forms of precipitation are rain, snow, drizzle, glaze, sleet and
hail.

1. Rain:

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Rain is a form of precipitation that is in the form of water drops of a size that is larger
than 0.5mm. The maximum raindrop size is about 6mm. Drops of larger size break up
into smaller drops as it falls down on the Earth’s surface. Rainfall is the predominant
form of precipitation and therefore, the term precipitation is used synonymously with
rainfall.

Table 2: Rain type

Type Intensity

1. Light rain Trace to 2.5 mm/h

2. Moderate rain 2.5 mm/h to 7.5 mm/h

3. Heavy rain > 7.5 mm/h

2. Snow

Snow is another important form of precipitation. Snow consists of ice crystals which
usually combine to form flakes. When fresh, snow has an initial density varying from
0.06 to 0.15 g/cm3 and it is usual to assume an average density of 0.1 g/cm3.

3. Drizzle

A fine sprinkle of numerous water droplets of size less than 0.5 mm and intensity less
than 1 mm/h is known as drizzle. In this, the drops are so small that they appear to
float in the air.

4. Glaze

When rain or drizzle comes in contact with cold ground at around 0ºC, the water
drops freeze to form an ice coating called glaze or freezing rain.

5. Sleet

It is frozen raindrops of transparent grains which form when rain falls through air at
subfreezing temperature. In Britain, sleet denotes precipitation of snow and rain
simultaneously.

6. Hail

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It is a showery precipitation in the form of irregular pellets or lumps of ice of size
more than 8 mm. Hails occur in violent thunderstorms in which vertical currents are
very strong.

2.2.3 Types of precipitation

Dynamic or adiabatic cooling is the primary cause of condensation and is responsible

for most rainfall. Thus, it can be seen that vertical transport of air masses is a
requirement for precipitation. Precipitation maybe classified according to the
conditions that generate vertical air motion. In this respect, the three major categories
of precipitation type are convective, orographic, and cyclonic.

1. Convective Precipitation:

Convective precipitation is typical of the tropics and is brought about by heating of

the air at the interface with the ground. This heated air expands with a resultant
reduction in weight. During this period, increasing quantities of water vapor are taken
up; the warm moisture-laden air becomes unstable; and pronounced vertical currents
are developed. Dynamic cooling takes place, causing condensation and precipitation.
Convective precipitation may be in the form of light showers or storms of extremely
high intensity(thunderstorms are a typical example).

2. Orographic Precipitation

Orographic precipitation results from the mechanical lifting of moist horizontal air
currents over natural barriers such as mountain ranges. Factors that are important in
this process include land elevation, local slope, orientation of land slope, and distance
from the moisture source.

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Figure 5: Orographic Precipitation

3. Cyclonic Precipitation

Cyclonic precipitation is associated with the movement of air masses from high
pressure regions to low-pressure regions. These pressure differences are created by
the unequal heating of the earth's surface. Cyclonic precipitation maybe classified as
frontal or non-frontal. Any barometric low can produce non frontal precipitation as air
is lifted through horizontal convergence of the inflow into a low-pressure area.
Frontal precipitation results from the lifting of warm air over cold air at the contact
zone between air masses having different characteristics. If the air masses are moving
so that warm air replaces colder air, the front is known as a warm front; if , on the
other hand, cold air displaces warm air, the front is said to be cold. If the front is not
in motion, it is said to be a stationary front.

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Figure 6: Cyclonic Precipitation

2.2.4 Thunderstorms

An air mass moving from ocean to land results in increase fraction over land. While
moving towards land, these air masses rise gradually resulting in condensation and
rainfall over a limited area. Sometime these storm result in highly intense rainfall.

2.2.5 Characteristics of Precipitation

The characteristics of rainfall are the amount, the intensity, the duration, the frequency
or return period, and the seasonal distribution.

The amount is of course important to the overall hydrologic cycle and replenishment
of the soil water, and the amount is an accumulation or product of the intensity times
the duration. For example, the amount may be the same for a high intensity short
duration rainfall as it is for a low intensity long duration rainfall.

However, the intensity and duration can have a large influence on whether the rainfall
infiltrates or becomes surface runoff. Higher rainfall intensity produces larger size
raindrops which have more impact energy, and thus higher intensity storms can
damage delicate vegetation and bare soil. High intensity storms can literally displace
soil particles, causing soil crusting or starting the soil erosion process. High intensity

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storms may also overwhelm the soils’ ability to infiltrate the rainfall at the same rate,
causing infiltration-excess runoff.

The duration refers to the length of time rainfall occurs. A high intensity rainfall for a
short duration may affect tender seedlings, but it will not likely have much effect on
soil erosion and runoff. Rainfall of longer duration can significantly affect infiltration,
runoff, and soil erosion processes.

The frequency, or more specifically, the return period refers to how often rainfall
occurs at a particular amount or intensity and duration. For example, rainfall return
periods are referred to as 100 year-1 hour rainfall or 100 year-24-hour rainfall to
define the probability that a given amount will fall within a given time period.

The seasonal distribution of rainfall refers to the time of year when various rainfall
amounts occur. The seasonal distribution determines when surface runoff or deep
percolation are most likely to occur or if irrigation is needed. Since the seasonal
distribution of rainfall varies in different parts of the country, practices used or
recommended in one part of the country may not necessarily be appropriate in
another.

2.3 measurement of rain fall

The rainfall data is a prerequisite for the study of water resources and design of water
harvesting structures. Therefore, its correct measurement is essential. Since most
estimates are based on rainfall data, information regarding the depth and intensity of
rainfall is of great importance.

Precipitation is expressed in terms of the depth to which rainfall water would stand on
an area if all the rain were collected on it. Thus, 1 cm of rainfall over a catchment area
of l km2 represents a volume of water equal to 104 m3. In the case of snowfall, an
equivalent depth of water is used as the depth of precipitation. The precipitation is
collected and measured in a rain gauge. Terms such as pluviometer, ombrometer and
hyetometer are also sometimes used to designate a rain gauge.

A rain gauge essentially consists of a cylindrical-vessel assembly kept in the open to

collect rain. The rainfall catch of the rain gauge is affected by its exposure conditions.
To enable the catch of rain gauge to accurately represent the rainfall in the area
surrounding the rain gauge, standard settings are adopted.

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For setting up a rain gauge, the following considerations are important:

The ground must be level and in the open and the instrument must present a
horizontal catch surface.
The gauge must be set as near the ground as possible to reduce wind effects
but it must be sufficiently high to prevent splashing, flooding, etc.
The instrument must be surrounded by an open fenced area of at least 5.5 m *
5.5 m. No object should be nearer to the instrument than 30 m or twice the
height of the obstruction.

Rain gauges can be broadly classified into two categories as (i) nonrecording rain
gauges, and (ii) recording gauges.

1. Nonrecording Gauges

The nonrecording gauge extensively used is the Symons’ gauge. It essentially consists
of a circular collecting area of 12.7 cm (5.0 inch) diameter connected to a funnel. The
rim of the collector is set in a horizontal plane at a height of 30.5 cm above the ground
level. The funnel discharges the rainfall catch into a receiving vessel. The funnel and
receiving vessel are housed in a metallic container. Figure below shows the details of
the installation. Water contained in the receiving vessel is measured by a suitably
graduated measuring glass, with an accuracy up to 0.1 mm.

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Figure 7: Non recording Raingauge
2. Recording Gauges

Recording gauges produce a continuous plot of rainfall against time and provide
valuable data of intensity and duration of rainfall for hydrological analysis of storms.
The following are some of the commonly used recording rain gauges.

(a) Tipping-Bucket Type

This is a 30.5 cm size rain gauge adopted for use by the US Weather Bureau. The
catch from the funnel falls onto one of a pair of small buckets. These buckets are so
balanced that when 0.25 mm of rainfall collects in one bucket, it tips and brings the
other one in position. The water from the tipped bucket is collected in a storage can.
The tipping actuates an electrically driven pen to trace a record on the clockwork-
driven chart. The water collected in the storage can is measured at regular intervals to
provide the total rainfall and also serve as a check. It may be noted that the record
from the tipping bucket gives data on the intensity of rainfall. Further, the instrument
is ideally suited for digitalizing of the output signal.

Figure 8: Tipping bucket type raingauge

(b) Weighing-Bucket Type

In this rain gauge, the catch from the funnel empties into a bucket mounted on a
weighing scale. The weight of the bucket and its contents are recorded on a
clockwork-driven chart. The clockwork mechanism has the capacity to run for as long
as one week. This instrument gives a plot of the accumulated rainfall against the
elapsed time, i.e., the mass curve of rainfall. In some instruments of this type, the

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recording unit is so constructed that the pen reverses its direction at every preset
value, say 7.5 cm (3 in.) so that a continuous plot of storm is obtained.

Figure 9: Weighing-Bucket Type

(c) Natural-Syphon Type

This type of recording rain gauge is also known as float-type gauge. Here, the rainfall
collected by a funnel-shaped collector is led into a float chamber causing a float to
rise. As the float rises, a pen attached to the float through a lever system records the
elevation of the float on a rotating drum driven by a clockwork mechanism. A syphon
arrangement empties the float chamber when the float has reached a preset maximum
level.

A typical chart from this type of rain gauge is shown in Fig. below. This chart shows a
rainfall of 53.8 mm in 30 h. The vertical lines in the pen-trace correspond to the
sudden emptying of the float chamber by syphon action which resets the pen to zero
level. It is obvious that the natural syphon-type recording rain gauge gives a plot of
the mass curve of rainfall.

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Figure 10: Natural syphoned

3. Telemetering Rain gauges

These rain gauges are of the recording type and contain electronic units to transmit the
data on rainfall to a base station both at regular intervals and on interrogation. The
tipping-bucket type rain gauge, being ideally suited, is usually adopted for this
purpose. Any of the other types of recording rain gauges can also be used equally
effectively. Telemetering gauges are of utmost use in gathering rainfall data from
mountainous and generally inaccessible places.

4. Radar Measurement of Rainfall

The meteorological radar is a powerful instrument for measuring the areal extent,
location and movement of rain storms. Further, the amounts of rainfall over large
areas can be determined through the radar with a good degree of accuracy. The radar
emits a regular succession of pulses of electromagnetic radiation in a narrow beam.

2.4 Optimum rain gauge network design

2.4.1 Network Density

Since the catching area of a rain gauge is very small compared to the areal extent of a
storm, it is obvious that to get a representative picture of a storm over a catchment, the
number of rain gauges should be as large as possible, i.e., the catchment area per
gauge should be small. On the other hand, economic considerations to a large extent
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and other considerations, such as topography, accessibility, etc. to some extent, restrict
the number of gauges to be maintained. Hence, one aims at an optimum density of
gauges from which reasonably accurate information about the storms can be obtained.
Towards this, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) recommends the
following densities.

In flat regions of temperate, Mediterranean and tropical zones

 Ideal—1 station for 600–900 km2

 Acceptable—1 station for 900–3000 km2

In mountainous regions of temperate, Mediterranean and topical zones

 Ideal—1 station for 100–250 km2

 Acceptable—1 station for 25–1000 km2

In arid and polar zones: 1 station for 1500–10,000 km2 depending on the

feasibility.

Ten per cent of rain gauge stations should be equipped with self-recording gauges to
know the intensities of rainfall.

2.4.2 Adequacy of Rain gauge Stations

If there are already some rain gauge stations in a catchment, the optimal number of
stations that should exist to have an assigned percentage of error in the estimation of
mean rainfall is obtained by statistical analysis as:
2
Cv
N=( ) 2.1
έ

where N = optimal number of stations, έ = allowable degree of error in the estimate of

the mean rainfall and Cv = coefficient of variation of the rainfall values at the existing
m stations (in per cent). If there are m stations in the catchment each recording rainfall
values P 1, P2,…, Pi,… Pm in a known time, the coefficient of variation Cv is
calculated as:

Cv =( 100*σm -1)/ P
2.2

σ m−1=√ ¿ ¿

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Pi = precipitation magnitude in the ith station

P= 1/m ¿ = mean precipitation 2.3

Consider the existing m raingauge. They have a mean rainfall of P and a coefficient
of variation of Cv. To know the percentage of error (έx) of estimation of mean in the
existing system of m raingauge, Eq. (2.3) can be rewritten (by changing N by m) as
2
Cv
m=( )
εex
2.4

εex =Cv/√ m
2.5

In the above Eq. (2.5), the term εex represents the expected error (in percentage) in
the estimation of the mean, P. It is a measure of the accuracy of estimation of mean
precipitation in the existing system and is called standard error in the estimation of the
mean. In calculating the number of rain gauges N for a given level of error by using
Eq. (2.1) it is usual to take εex as 10%. It is seen that if the value of εex is small, the
number of rain gauges required will be more. According to WMO recommendations,
at least 10% of total rain gauges should be of self-recording type.

2.5 analysis and interpretation of precipitation

Before using the rainfall data in application, it is necessary to first check the data for
continuity and consistency. The continuity of record may be broken with missing data
due to many reasons such as damage or fault in the rain gauge during a period. If the
conditions of installation of a rain gauge undergo a change, the records of the period
before and after the change would be inconsistent. Methods of pre-cleaning the
records for such problems of continuity and consistency are indicated in the following
sections.

2.5.1 Estimation of Missing Data

The point observation from a precipitation gage may have a short break in the record
because of instrument failure or absence of the observer. Thus, it is often necessary to
estimate the missing record using data from the neighboring station. The following
methods are most commonly used for estimating the missing records.

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1. Simple Arithmetic Method
2. Normal Ratio Method
3. Modified normal ratio method
4. Inverse distance method

In the estimation of missing data from a rain gauge station, performance of a group of
neighbouring stations including the one with missing data are considered. A
comparison of the recordings of these stations are made by using their normal rainfall
as standard of comparison. The normal rainfall is the average value of rainfall at a
particular date, month or year over a specified 30-year period. The 30-year normal is
recomputed every decade. Thus, the term normal annual precipitation at a station A
means the average annual precipitation at station A based on a specified 30-year of
record. Insertion of missing data to a station record must be done sparingly. If too
many data are estimated, the quality of the total data set may be diluted due to
interpolation. sometimes, if too many gaps exist in a record, it may be worthwhile to
neglect that station than to have a station record with too much of interpolated data. A
WMO guideline states that not more than 5 to 10% of a record should have
interpolated data. A commonly used procedure for estimating missing data of a station
is given below.

Procedure of Missing Data Estimation

(a) Simple Arithmetic Average: If the normal annual precipitations at various

stations are within about 10% of the normal annual precipitation at station X
then a simple arithmetic average procedure is followed to estimate Px. Thus,

1
Px= [P 1+ P 2+…+ Pm ]
M
2.6

(b) Normal Precipitation: Given the annual precipitation values P1, P2, P3,
…..Pm at neighbouring M stations 1, 2, 3, …, M respectively, it is required to
find the missing annual precipitation Px at a station X not included in the
above M stations. Further, the normal annual precipitations N1, N2, …Ni,…at
each of the above (M+1) stations, including station X, are known.

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Nx P1 P 2 Pm
Px= [ + +…+ ]
m N1 N 2 Nm
2.7

(c) Modified Normal Ratio Method: Normal ratio method is modified to

incorporate the effect of distance in the estimation of missing rainfall.
n 1
r
∑ ib ( rx )r i
D
i=1 i
r x= n

∑ D1i /b
i=1

2.8
Where r is normal rainfall, D is the distance between the index station i and
the gauge station with missing data or ungagged station, n is the number of
index stations and b is the constant by which the distance is weighted
(normally 1.5-2.0) commonly used D0.5.
(d) Inverse Distance Method: The inverse distance method has been expected
to be the most accurate method as compare to other two methods discussed
above.
Amount of rainfall to be estimated at a location is a function of;
I. rainfall measured at the surrounding index stations
II. distance to each index station from the ungauged location
Rainfall rx at station x is given by;
n
r
∑ ( Dib )
i=1 i
r x= n

∑ (D1b )
i=1 i

2.9

b = 2 is commonly used.

As in inverse distance method the weighting is strictly based on distance, hence

this method is not satisfactory for hilly regions.

2.5.2 Test for Consistency of Record of rainfall

If the conditions relevant to the recording of a raingauge station have undergone a

significant change during the period of record, inconsistency would arise in the
rainfall data of that station. This inconsistency would be felt from the time the
significant

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change took place. Some of the common causes for inconsistency of record are

(i) shifting of a raingauge station to a new location,

(ii) the neighborhood of the station undergoing a marked change,
(iii) change in the ecosystem due to calamities, such as forest fires, landslides, and
(iv) occurrence of observational error from a certain date.

The checking for inconsistency of a record is done by the double-mass curve

technique. This technique is based on the principle that when each recorded data
comes from the same parent population, they are consistent.

A group of 5 to 10 base stations in the neighborhood of the problem station X is

selected. The data of the annual (or monthly or seasonal mean) rainfall of the station
X and also the average rainfall of the group of base stations covering a long period is
arranged in the reverse chronological order (i.e., the latest record as the first entry and
the oldest record as the last entry in the list). The accumulated precipitation of

the station X (i.e., ∑Px) and the accumulated values of the average of the group of
bases

stations (i.e., ∑Pav) are calculated starting from the latest record. Values of ∑Px are
plotted against ∑Pav for various consecutive time periods. A decided break in the
slope of the resulting plot indicates a change in the precipitation regime of station X.
The precipitation values at station X beyond the period of c6

3hange of regime is corrected by using the relation:

Mc
Pcx =P x
Ma
2.10

where Pcx = corrected precipitation at any time period t1 at station X

Px = original recorded precipitation at time period t1 at station X

Mc= corrected slope of the double-mass curve

Ma= original slope of the double-mass curve

In this way, the older records are brought to the new regime of the station. It is
apparent that the more homogeneous the base station records are, the more accurate
will be the corrected values at station X. A change in the slope is normally taken as

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significant only where it persists for more than five years. The double-mass curve is
also helpful in checking systematic arithmetical errors in transferring rainfall data
from one record to another.

2.5.3 Checking for homogeneity test

Homogeneity is an important issue to detect the variability of the data. In general,

when the data is homogeneous, it means that the measurements of the data are taken
at a time with the same instruments and environments. However, it is a hard task
when dealing with rainfall data because it is always caused by changes in
measurement techniques and observational procedures, environment characteristics
and structures, and location of stations.

There are different homogeneity tests used to test the homogeneity of the rainfall data.
Some of them are Standard normal homogeneity test (SNHT), Buishand range (BR)
test, Pettitt test, and von Neumann ratio (VNR) test are selected.

2.6 Estimation of mean areal depth of precipitation

For most hydrologic analyses, it is important to know the areal distribution of

precipitation. Usually, average depths for representative portions of the watershed are
determined and used for this purpose.

Over a large area like watershed (or catchment) of a stream, there will be several such
stations, and the average depth of rainfall over the entire area can be estimated by one
of the following methods:

1. Arithmetic Mean Method:

The most direct approach is to use the arithmetic average of gauged quantities. This
procedure is satisfactory if gauges are uniformly distributed and the topography is
flat.

This is the simplest method in which average depth of rainfall is obtained by

obtaining the sum of the depths of rainfall (say P1, P2, P3, P4…………….Pn)
measured at stations 1, 2, 3……………..nth and dividing the sum by total number of
stations i.e., n.

Thus,

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P 1+ P2+ P 3+…+ Pn 1
P=
n n
∑ Pi
2.11

2. Theissen Polygon Method:

In this method, the rainfall recorded at each station is given a weightage on the basis
of an area closest to the station. The entire area is divided into number of triangular
areas by joining adjacent rain gauge stations with straight lines
n

A 1∗P 1+ A 2∗P 2+…+ An∗Pn

∑ Ai∗Pi n
Pi∗Ai
P= = i
=∑
A 1+ A 2+ …+ An A i=1 A
2.12

The ratio Ai/A is called the weightage factor for each station.

The Thiessen-polygon method of calculating the average precipitation over an area is

superior to the arithmetic-average method as some weightage is given to the various
stations on a rational basis. Further, the raingauge stations outside the catchment are
also used effectively. Once the weightage factors are determined, the calculation of P
is relatively easy for a fixed network of stations.

3. Isohyetal Method:

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An isohyet is a line joining points of equal rainfall magnitude. In the Isohyetal
method, the catchment area is drawn to scale and the raingauge stations are marked.
The recorded values for which areal average P is to be determined are then marked
on the plot at appropriate stations. Neighbouring stations outside the catchment are
also considered. The isohyets of various values are then drawn by considering point
rain-falls as guides and interpolating between them by the eye (Fig. 11). The
procedure is similar to the drawing of elevation contours based on spot levels.

Figure 11: Isohyetal

The area between two adjacent isohyets is then determined with a planimeter. If the
isohyets go out of catchment, the catchment boundary is used as the bounding line.
The average value of the rainfall indicated by two isohyets is assumed to be acting
over the inter-isohyet area. Thus, P1, P2, …, Pn are the values of isohyets and if a1,
a2, …, an-1 are the inter-isohyet areas respectively, then the mean precipitation over the
catchment of area A is given by

( P 1+2 P 2 )+a ∗( P 2+2 P3 )+…+a

Pn−1 + Pn
a n∗ 2 ∗(
n−1 )
2
P=
A
2.13

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The isohyet method is superior to the other two methods especially when the stations
are large in number.

2.7 Graphical representations of rainfall data

The rainfall data measured at a place using a measuring device is known as point (or
station) rainfall data. For small areas of less than 50 km 2 , point rainfall may be taken
as the average depth over the area. In large areas, there will be a network of rain-
gauge stations. Depending upon the need, data can be listed as daily, weekly, monthly,
seasonal or annual values for various periods. The variation of rainfall with respect to
time may be shown graphically by:

a) Hyetographs

A hyetograph is a bar graph/chart showing the intensity of rainfall with respect to

time and is useful in determining the maximum intensities of rainfall during a
particular storm as is required in prediction of flood, estimation of runoff and
derivation of unit hydrograph. The area under hyetograph is the total rainfall
received in that period.

Figure 12: Hyetograph

b) Mass curves

A mass curve of rainfall is a plot of cumulative depth of rainfall against time. From
the mass curve, the total depth of rainfall and intensity of rainfall at any instant of
time can be found.

 The amount of rainfall for any increment of time is the difference between the
ordinates at the beginning and end of the time increments,
 The intensity of rainfall at any time is the slope of the mass curve (i.e., i=
ΔP/Δt) at that time.

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A mass curve of rainfall is always a rising curve and may have some horizontal
sections which indicates periods of no rainfall. The mass curve for the design storm is
generally obtained by maximizing the mass curves of the severe storms in the basin
can determine magnitude and duration of storm. Slope of curve give intensity at
various time.

Figure 13: Mass curve rainfall

2.8 flow duration curves

A flow-duration curve (FDC) represents the relationship between the magnitude and
frequency of daily, weekly, monthly (or some other time interval of) streamflow for a
particular river basin, providing an estimate of the percentage of time a given
streamflow was equaled or exceeded over a historical period. An FDC provides a
simple, yet comprehensive, graphical view of the overall historical variability
associated with streamflow in a river basin.

Figure 14: Frequency Duration Curve

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Simply, it is a graphical representation of runoff. It is denoted by FDC. It relates flow
rate with duration.

Discharge and time are calculated at first. FDC is then plotted which is used to learn
or study floods, evaluate many dependable stream data, design drainage works, etc.

In the FDC:

1. Discharge is plotted on the y-axis( ordinate).

2. Percentage of time duration is plotted on the x-axis ( abscissa)
I. Steps for drawing flow duration curve
1. Calculate the total number of data, say N,
2. Give rank to the data 1,2,3,…,N; say n.
3. Compute frequency (f)

f=total number of data (N/Rank (n)

4. Compute the probability of exceedance (p)

P = 1/f
2.14
P= n/N
2.15
5. Now place the discharge in descending order.
6. Draw the probability of exceedance or % of the time versus discharge,
II. Uses of flow duration curve (FDC)
1. FDC helps to evaluate low-level flows. Flow relating to any % of the time can
be obtained by using FDC.
2. Planning and designing of hydropower project. Firm power is calculated using
flow duration curves in hydropower.
3. The total amount of sediment transported by the river can be found out if IDF
along with sediment rating curve is available.
4. FDC also provides runoff variability of the stream. If the curve has steep slope
throughout; this indicates that the stream has highly variable discharge. This is
the typical condition where the flow is surface runoff.
5. It is used for designing drainage system.
6. It is in flood control studies.

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7. It used in the calculation of the sediment load and dissolve solids load of
stream.
8. It used for comparing stemflow data.
9. It is used for evaluation many dependable flows in water engineering projects.

3 EVAPORATION AND TRANSPIRATION

3.1 Introduction

Evaporation is the process by which water is transferred from the land and water
masses of the earth to the atmosphere. Transpiration is the counterpart for plants. It is
the processes by which soil moisture taken up by vegetation is eventually evaporated
as it exists at plant pores. Evaporation and transpiration combined
(evapotranspiration) generally constitute the largest components of losses in rainfall
runoff sequences. Accordingly, good estimates of evapotranspiration are request for
hydrologic modelling.

3.2 Evaporation

Evaporation is the process during which a liquid change into a gas. The process of
evaporation of water in nature is one of the fundamental components of the
hydrological cycle by which is one of the vapors through absorption of heat energy.
This is the only form of moisture transfer from land and oceans into the atmosphere.

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3.2.1 Factors Affecting the Rate of Evaporation

There are four primary factors that affect the rate of evaporation; temperature, surface
area, wind, and humidity.

I. Effect of Temperature on Evaporation

The wet clothes dry faster on a hot sunny day because of the high temperature. When
the temperature is high, the kinetic energy of the water particles increases, leading to
the quicker conversion of liquid water into its gaseous state. This explains why hot
water evaporates more quickly than cold water.

When the temperature of the liquid (water, in this case) is increased, it results in an
increase in the kinetic energy of the individual molecules that constitute the liquid.
This increase in energy makes it easier for the liquid molecules to overcome the
intermolecular forces of attraction (that holds the liquid together) and escape into the
atmosphere as a gas. It can be noted that the temperature of the surrounding can also
contribute towards faster evaporation since hot environments can transfer their heat to
the liquid.

II. Effect of Surface Area on Evaporation

Suppose there is water in a wide shallow bowl, and the same amount of water is also
kept in a narrow glass. In which one of the two situations will the water evaporate
quickly? The water in the bowl will evaporate much faster than in the glass because
the larger surface area gives more space for the water particles to evaporate. You
might have also noticed that the wet clothes dry quickly when they are spread out
properly on the clothesline compared to the clothes that are not spread out properly.
This is again due to the larger surface area of the spread-out wet clothes, leading to
faster water evaporation.

Evaporation is a surface phenomenon, which implies that the process only occurs at
the surface of the liquid. During evaporation, the molecules of the liquid that are
present at its surface overcome the intermolecular forces of attraction to break away
from the liquid and escape into the atmosphere as a gas (or vapor).

Liquids are known to not have any definite shape – they assume the shape of their
container. Therefore, the greater the surface area of the container (or the greater the
surface occupied by the liquid), the greater the number of liquid molecules present at

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the surface. The larger the number of liquid molecules is at the surface, the larger the
number of molecules that will break away from the liquid and become a gas at a given
point of time, which contributes to an increase in the rate of evaporation.

III. Effect of Wind on Evaporation

When the clothes are spread out on a clothesline on a windy day, they will dry up
quicker than on a still day. This is because the water vapor in the surrounding air will
move away from the clothes by the wind, leading to faster water evaporation from wet
clothes.

Evaporation increases the humidity of the atmosphere that immediately surrounds the
liquid. This humid air takes some time to dissipate into the rest of the atmosphere. The
presence of a breeze, a powerful wind, or some other form of air circulation can speed
up this process and make the environment of the liquid less humid. Therefore, by
decreasing the humidity of the liquid’s surrounding, a powerful breeze or wind can
increase the rate at which the liquid evaporates.

IV. Effect of Humidity on Evaporation

Why is it that high humidity makes you feel even hotter on a hot day? Humidity is a
measure of the amount of water vapor in the air. We already sweat on a hot day;
however, if it is windy, we feel cooler because of the evaporation of the sweat.
However, sweat evaporates more slowly in high humidity because there is already a
lot of water vapor in the surrounding air. The slower evaporation rate reduces the
potential for evaporative cooling. This is why the wet clothes will not dry up quickly
when there is high humidity in the surrounding air.

There is a limit to how much water vapor the atmosphere can hold. This limit is
proportional to the temperature (which implies that hot air can hold more water vapor
than cold air). Evaporation can be viewed as an equilibrium process through which
the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere reaches an equilibrium with the amount
of water in the surface of the liquid. Therefore, the greater the amount of water vapor
in the atmosphere over the liquid, the slower the rate of evaporation. Also, it can be
noted that an increase in temperature with constant humidity will contribute to an
increase in the rate of evaporation since hot air can hold a greater amount of water
vapor.

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3.3 Transpiration

Transpiration is the process by which water vapor leaver the living plant body and
enters the atmosphere. It involves continuous movement of water from the soil into
roots, through the stem and cut through the leaves to the atmosphere. The process
includes cuticular transpiration or direct evaporation in to the atmosphere from moist
membranes through the cuticle, and stomatal transpiration or outward diffusion into
the atmosphere through the stomata and lenticels vapor previously evaporated from
imbibed membranes, into intracellular space within the plant.

3.2.1 Factors Affecting the Rate of Transpiration

Plants put down roots into the soil to draw up water and nutrients into its stems and
leaves. Some of this water is returned to the air by transpiration. Transpiration rates
vary widely depending on weather and other conditions, such as

Type of plant: Plants transpire water at different rates. Some plants which grow in
arid regions, such as cacti and succulents, conserve precious water by transpiring less
water than other plants.

Soil type and saturation: Clay particles are small (smaller than 0.002 mm), holding
onto water whereas sand particles which are large (0.05-2 mm) release water readily
(think of how water disappears into the sand quickly at the beach). When moisture is
lacking, plants can begin to senesce (premature aging, which can result in leaf loss)
and transpire less water.

Sunlight availability and intensity

Humidity: As the relative humidity of the air surrounding the plant rises the
transpiration rate falls. It is easier for water to evaporate into dryer air than into more
saturated air.

Temperature: Transpiration rates go up as the temperature goes up, especially during

the growing season, when the air is warmer due to stronger sunlight and warmer air
masses. Higher temperatures cause the plant cells which control the openings (stoma)
where water is released to the atmosphere to open, whereas colder temperatures cause
the openings to close.

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Wind & air movement: Increased movement of the air around a plant will result in a
higher transpiration rate. Wind will move the air around, with the result that the more
saturated air close to the leaf is replaced by drier air.

Surface Area of the Leaves: A leaf having more surface area will show more
transpiration rate than the leaf with a lesser surface area.

3.4 Evapotranspiration (ET)

Evaporation and transpiration occur simultaneously and there is no easy way of

distinguishing between the two processes. Apart from the water availability in the
topsoil, the evaporation from a cropped soil is mainly determined by the fraction of
the solar radiation reaching the soil surface. This fraction decreases over the growing
period as the crop develops and the crop canopy shades more and more of the ground
area. When the crop is small, water is predominately lost by soil evaporation, but once
the crop is well developed and completely covers the soil, transpiration becomes the
main process. In Figure below the partitioning of evapotranspiration into evaporation
and transpiration is plotted in correspondence to leaf area per unit surface of soil
below it. At sowing nearly 100% of ET comes from evaporation, while at full crop
cover more than 90% of ET comes from transpiration.

The evapotranspiration rate is normally expressed in millimeters (mm) per unit time.
The rate expresses the amount of water lost from a cropped surface in units of water
depth. The time unit can be an hour, day, decade, month or even an entire growing
period or year.

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Evapotranspiration is defined as the total losses of water from vegetation – both as
evaporation from the soil and transpiration from the plants. In the cropped area it is
difficult to determine evaporation separately from soil surface and transpiration from
the plants and usually both the processes are combined in a single term called
evapotranspiration.

Evapotranspiration is influenced by the atmospheric conditions, soil, plant and water

factors. Soil factors such as depth of water table, available soil moisture and density
of vegetation have great influence on the evapotranspiration. It is also influenced by
plant morphology, crop geometry, plant cover and root depth.

Availability of water is also very important. When water is adequately available at the
site of evaporation i.e., soil or plant surface, the rate of evaporation is primarily
controlled by meteorological factors like solar radiation, wind, temperature, vapor
pressure deficit etc. constituting evaporative demand of the atmosphere.

3.4.1 Factors affecting evapotranspiration (ET)

Weather parameters, crop characteristics, management and environmental aspects are

factors affecting E, T, and ET. Details of these factors are as follows:

Climatic factors that affecting ET

Radiation

Radiation is the main source of energy for the ET process. It depends on the global
solar radiation flux density and vegetation albedo. A darker vegetation absorbs more
incident solar radiation and evapotranspiration more. A thorough understanding of the
factors controlling the energy balance of a cropped soil enables making accurate
estimates or predictions of ET and irrigation water requirements. It also facilitates
more effective irrigation water management.

Temperature

Over the course of a day, an increase of the air temperature causes an increase on the
saturation deficit triggering a higher evaporative demand in the air, and leading to
high ET rates

Relative humidity (%RH)

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Air relative humidity acts in conjunction with temperature. The higher relative
humidity, the lesser the evaporative demand and, therefore, the lower.

Wind

Advection represents the horizontal transport of energy from a drier area to another
more humid, and such additional energy is utilized in the ET process. Wind also helps
remove water vapor near the plants to other regions.

Crop factors that affecting ET

Crop factors such as crop species, radiation reflection coefficient, leaf area index
(LAI) in different growth stages of the plant, plant height and root depth (depth of the
radicular system) are influenced on the crop ET, which are described details as
follows:

Crop species

This factor is related to the foliar architecture (spatial distribution of the leaves),
internal resistance of the plant to water transport, and other morphological aspects
(number, size, and distribution of stomata, etc.), which exert a direct influence on ET.

Radiation reflection coefficient

Radiation reflection influences directly net radiation availability for the ET process.
The darker the vegetation, the lower the reflection coefficient and the higher net
radiation.

Leaf area index (LAI) in different growth stages of plant

LAI in different growth stages of a plant is directly related to the size of the
transpiring foliar surface, for the larger leaf area the larger the transpiring surface, and
the higher the potential for water use.

Plant height

Plant height also influences the ET. Taller and rougher plants interact more efficiently
with the atmosphere in motion, extracting more energy from the air and, therefore,
increasing ET.

Rooting depth of plant (depth of the radicular system)

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Rooting depth of plant is directly related to the volume of soil explored by the roots,
aiming at meeting the atmospheric hydric demand. A superficial radicular system, for
exploring a smaller soil volume, keeps the crop more susceptible to drying periods.

Crop management and growing environmental conditions also influence the ET

The following crop management and growing environmental conditions are

influenced the crop ET:

Row to row or plant to plant spacing

Usually, intraspecific competition is found between plants/crops of the same

species/types for their essential growth elements. A limited spacing between the plant
to plant or row to row of the same species or different species of plants/crops,
consequences in an intense competition for water, light, nutrient, etc., causing as a
consequence an increase on ET.

Crop orientations

Crops oriented perpendicularly to predominant winds tend to extract more energy

from the air than those oriented in parallel. For regions with constant winds, a solution
to prevent the stomata-closing would be the use of windbreaks. A windbreak reduces
wind velocities and decreases the ET rate of the field directly beyond the barrier.

Soil properties (structure and texture)

Soil texture and soil structure are both unique properties of the soil that will have a
profound effect on the behavior of soils. Both the properties influence the crop ET
through influencing the water holding capacity of the soils. Clay soils have higher
water holding capacity than sandy soils and are proficient of preserving a more
persistent crop ET rate for longer.

Chemical/physical impediments

Inhibitions system limit the growth of the radicular system of a plant, affecting the
root system of plants to explore a wider volume of soil both in dry and rainy seasons.
In the rainy season, soil with any physical obstructions gets soaking wet suffocating
the roots. While in the dry season, the volume of available water is reduced from the
roots of a plant; as a results root system of a plant is deepening into the soil for
searching available water.

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3.5 evaporation and transpiration process

Table 3: Difference between evaporation and transpiration processes

Transpiration Evaporation
It is biological process It is a physical process.
Transpiration is slow process Comparatively a fast process.
Occurs in living tissue Involves non-living matter.
In the process of transpiration water is lost In this process, water is lost from the surface
from plant cells of plant parts
Occurs through stomata, It occurs from the entire outer
cuticle or lenticel. surface
Occurs during the daytime. Occurs during day as well as night
It is regulated by temperature, light, There is no such regulations or control over
concentration, pH, hormones and carbon the Evaporation.
dioxide.
Surface remains wet Surface becomes dry
It helps in the uptake of minerals and It is not associated with minerals or nutrients
nutrients. uptake
Transpiration is controlled by osmotic Evaporation is independent of these
potential and water potential. processes
Transpiration makes the surface of leaves Evaporation provides dryness to the free
and young stems wet and protects them surface.
from sunburn.

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Figure 15: Evapotranspiration process

3.6 Measurement of evaporation and transpiration

3.6.1 Measurement of evaporation

This is done by the following methods:

Using evaporimeters
Using empirical equations
By analytical methods
1. Using evaporimeters
Types of Evaporators
Evaporimeter
These are pans containing water which are exposed to the atmosphere. Loss of water
by evaporation from these pans are measured at regular intervals (daily).
Meteorological data such as humidity, wind velocity, air and water temperatures, and
precipitation are also measured and noted along with evaporation.

(1) USWB Class A Evaporation Pan

 A pan of diameter 1210mm and depth 255mm
 Depth of water is maintained between 18 and 20cm
 The pan is made of unpainted GI sheet

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 The pan is placed on a wooden platform of height 15cm above ground
level to allow free air circulation below the pan
 Evaporation is measured by measuring the depth of water in a stilling well
with a hook gauge

Figure 16: Class A evaporation pan

(2) ISI Standard Pan
Specified by IS:5973 and known as the modified Class A Pan
 A pan of diameter 1220mm and depth 255mm
 The pan is made of copper sheet 0.9mm thick, tinned inside and painted white
outside
 The pan is placed on a square wooden platform of width 1225mm and height
100mm above ground level to allow free air circulation below the pan
 A fixed-point gauge indicates the level of water
 Water is added to or removed from the pan to maintain the water level at a
fixed mark using a calibrated cylindrical measure
 The top of the pan is covered with a hexagonal wire net of GI to protect water
in the pan from birds
 Presence of the wire mesh makes the temperature of water more uniform
during the day and night
 Evaporation from this pan is about 14% lower as compared to that from an
unscreened pan

Figure 17: ISI Standard pan

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(3) Colorado Sunken Pan
 920mm square pan made of unpainted GI sheet, 460mm deep, and buried into the
ground within 100mm of the top
 Main advantage of this pan – its aerodynamic and radiation characteristics are
similar to that of a lake
 Disadvantages – difficult to detect leaks, expensive to install, extra care is needed
to keep the surrounding area free from tall grass, dust etc

Figure 18: Colorado sunken pan

(4) USGS Floating Pan
 A square pan of 900mm sides and 450mm deep
 Supported by drum floats in the middle of a raft of size 4.25m x 4.87m, it is set
afloat in a lake with a view to simulate the characteristics of a large body of water
 Water level in the pan is maintained at the same level as that in the lake, leaving a
rim of 75mm
 Diagonal baffles are provided in the pan to reduce surging in the pan due to wave
action
 Disadvantages – High cost of installation and maintenance, difficulty in making
measurements
Pan Coefficient

Evaporation pans are not exact models of large reservoirs. Their major drawbacks are
the following: – They differ from reservoirs in the heat storage capacity and heat
transfer characteristics from the sides and the bottom (sunken and floating pans aim to
minimize this problem). Hence evaporation from a pan depends to some extent on its
size (Evaporation from a pan of about 3m dia is almost the same as that from a large
lake whereas that from a pan of about 1m dia is about 20% in excess of this). – The
height of the rim in an evaporation pan affects wind action over the water surface in
the pan. Also, it casts a shadow of varying size on the water surface. – The heat
transfer characteristics of the pan material is different from that of a reservoir. Hence
evaporation measured from a pan has to be corrected to get the evaporation from a

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large lake under identical climatic and exposure conditions. Lake Evaporation = Pan
Coefficient (Cp) *Pan Evaporation.

Table 4: Pan coefficient

Sl. No. Types of Pans Average Value Range

1 Class A Land Pan 0.70 0.60 – 0.80

2 ISI Pan (Modified Class A) 0.80 0.65 – 1.10

3 Colorado Sunken Pan 0.78 0.75 – 0.86

4 USGS Floating Pan 0.80 0.70 – 0.82

Evaporation pans are normally located at stations where other hydro-meteorological

data are collected.

A typical hydro-meteorological station has the following:

 Recording rain gauge and non-recording rain gauge

 Stevenson box with maximum, minimum, wet, and dry bulb thermometers
 Wind anemometer and wind vane
 Pan evaporimeter
 Sunshine Recorder etc.
2. Empirical Equations
Most of the available empirical equations for estimating lake evaporation are a Dalton
type equation of the general form

(1) Meyer’s Formula

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(2) Rohwer’s Formula

Accounts for the effect of pressure in addition to the wind speed effect

Wind Velocity

In the lower part of the atmosphere, up to a height of about 500m above the
ground level, wind velocity follows the one-seventh power law as

3. Analytical Methods of Evaporation Estimation

I. Water Budget Method
II. Energy Budget Method
III. Mass Transfer Method
I. Water Budget Method

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can only be measured. can only be

estimated. If the unit of time is kept very large, estimates of evaporation will be more
accurate. It is the simplest of all the methods, but the least reliable.

II. Energy Budget Method

It involves application of the law of conservation of energy
Energy available for evaporation is determined by considering the incoming
energy, outgoing energy, and the energy stored in the water body over a known
time interval
Estimation of evaporation from a lake by this method has been found to give
satisfactory results, with errors of the order of 5%, when applied to periods
less than a week

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3.6.2 Measurements of Transpiration

Transpiration can be measured by an instrument called a potometer. The diagram

below shows the apparatus set up for a potometer. Vaseline is applied around the
rubber bungs to ensure an airtight seal, thus the only water loss from the apparatus is
via transpiration. The function of the reservoir is to allow the air bubble to travel back
to the start of the measuring scale on repeating the experiment. As water moves up
through the plant the air bubble moves along the scale giving a measure of water
absorbed by the plant over time and hence the transpiration rate.

Figure 19: potometer

3.6.3 Measurement of Evapotranspiration

The principal methods for direct measurement of evapotranspiration are:

1) Direct (Lysimeter experiment)
2) Indirect methods (Empirical)
1 Direct (Lysimeter)
A lysimeter is a special watertight tank containing a block of soil and set in a field of
growing plants. The plants grown in the lysimeter are the same as in the surrounding
field. Evapotranspiration is estimated in terms of the amount of water required to
maintain constant moisture conditions within the tank measured either volumetrically
or gravimetrically through an arrangement made in the lysimeter. Lysimeters should
be designed to accurately reproduce the soil conditions, moisture content, type and
size of the vegetation of the surrounding area. They should be so hurried that the soil
is at the same level inside and outside the container. Lysimeter studies are time-
consuming and expensive.
2) Indirect methods (Empirical)

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Owing to the difficulty in obtaining accurate direct measurement of pan evaporation
under field conditions, evaporation is often predicted on the basis of climatological
data. The approaches followed are to relate the magnitude and variation of
evapotranspiration to one or more climatic factors (temperature, day length, humidity,
wind, sunshine etc.). The more commonly used empirical formulae in estimating
evapotranspiration are:
a) Blaney-Criddle Method
b) Thornthwaite Method
c) Hargreaves’ Method
The Blaney-Criddle method is recommended for periods of one month or longer.
a. Blaney-Criddle Method
This method requires the use of only two factors, temperature and information of day
light hours which is a factor based purely on the latitude of the place. Using Blaney-
Criddle approach, potential evapotranspiration can be expressed as follows, in metric
unit:

(3.1)
Where, PET = potential evapotranspiration, mm of water per day (mean value over
the month)
P= monthly percent of total day time hours of the year
T= mean monthly temp. In °C (Average of daily max and minvalues)
b. Thornthwaite Method
Thornthwaite method is based on the assumption of an exponential relationship
between mean monthly temperature and mean monthly consumptive use.

3.2
Where, e = unadjusted PET (cm per month)
t = mean air temperature (°C)
I = annual or seasonal heat index, the summation of 12 values of monthly
heat indices (i) when, i = ( t / 5 )1.514

3.3
c. Hargreaves’ Method
Hargreaves based on his work on data from grass lysimeter, proposed the following
relationship to estimate ET,

3.4
Where, PET = reference crop potential consumptive use

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t = mean daily temperature (°C)
Rs= incident solar radiation in lang lay/day, it can be calculated using the
following relationship,

(13.7)
3.5
Where, S is the percent possible sunshine hour and R so is the clear daysolar radiation
in langlay/day.
d. FAO Penman-Monteith Method
The FAO Penman-Monteith method is used to estimate reference evapotranspiration.
The equation is:

3.6
Where, ET0 = reference evapotranspiration [mm day-1]
Rn = net radiation at the crop surface [MJ m-2 day-1]
T = mean daily air temperature at 2 m height [°C]
u2 = wind speed at 2 m height [m/s]
es = saturation vapour pressure [kPa]
ea = actual vapour pressure [kPa]
es - ea = saturation vapour pressure deficit [kPa]
Δ = slope of vapour pressure curve [kPa°C-1]
Υ = psychometric constant [kPa°C-1]
The reference evapotranspiration, ET0, provides a standard to which:
a) Evapotranspiration at different periods of the year or in another region can be
compared.
b) Evapotranspiration of other crops can be related.

4 INFILTRATION
4.1 Introduction

Infiltration is that process by which precipitation moves down ward through the
surface of the earth and replenishes soil moisture, recharges aquifers, and ultimately
supports streamflow during dry periods. Along with interception, depression storage,
and storm period evaporation, it determines the availability, if any, of the precipitation
input for generating over land flows. Furthermore, infiltration rates influence the

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timing of over land flow inputs to channelized systems. Accordingly, infiltration is an
important component of any hydrologic model.

During the rain infiltration loss occurs quickly almost exclusively from the water that
has reached the ground surface. The water infiltrating into the soil moves downward
through larger soil pores under the force of gravity. The smaller surface pores take in
water by capillarity. The downward moving water is also sucked in by capillary pores.

The gravitational water moves towards the ground water following the path of least
resistance. When the capillary pores at the surface are filled and intake capacity
reduced infiltration rate decreases. As a trend the rate of infiltration is high in the
beginning. It decreases rapidly in the initial stages and then slowly till it approaches a
nearly constant rate in about 30 to 90 minutes depending upon the type of soil.

The typical infiltration curves for soils with different land uses viz. bare soil, soil with
grass cover and soil covered with grain crop are shown in fig below.

Figure 20: Infiltration rate

This trend of infiltration process is observed not only because of filling up surface
capillary pores with water but also due to changes in the soil such as dispersion of
aggregates, puddling of the surface layer, impact of the rain drops, swelling of
colloids, closing of soil cracks, type of vegetal cover etc.

4.2 Factor affecting infiltration

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The process of infiltration is affected by many different factors. Important factors are
the following:

(i) Soil Texture and Structure:

It is already made clear that the water cannot continue to enter soil more rapidly than
it is transmitted downward. The conditions at the surface, therefore, cannot increase
infiltration unless the transmission capacity of the soil profile is adequate.

The continuity of non-capillary or large pores provides easy paths for percolating
water. If the subsoil formation has coarse texture the water may infiltrate into the soil
so quickly that no water will be left for runoff even if rainfall is quite heavy. On the
contrary clayey soils after soaking some water in the initial stages of the rainfall may
swell considerably. It makes the soil almost watertight and infiltration may get
reduced to practically negligible extent.

(ii) Conditions at Soil Surface:

Even if the subsoil has excellent under drainage but at the surface soil pores are sealed
due to turbid water or by in wash of fine soil particles it may prevent entry of water
into the soil and infiltration rate will be low.

(iii) Soil-Moisture Content:

When the soil is fairly dry the rate of infiltration into the soil is quite high. The
infiltration rate diminishes as the soil-moisture storage capacity is exhausted. After
this infiltration rate equals transmission rate. The rate of infiltration in early phases of
a rainfall will be less if the soil pores are still filled from previous rain storm.

(iv) Type of Vegetative Cover:

Vegetative cover affects surface entry of water significantly. The vegetation or

mulches protect the soil surface from impact of rain drops. The lengthy and extensive
root system penetrate the soil and increases its porosity. Organic matter from crops
promotes a crumbly by structure and improves soil permeability. Forest canopy
protects soil surface whereas row crops provide less protection to soil.

(v) Soil Temperature:

If saturated soil mass gets frozen due to severe low temperature it becomes nearly
impermeable. It affects the infiltration.

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(vi) Human Activities on Soil Surface:

If the soil surface gets compacted due to construction of roads, operation of

tractors and other farm implements and machinery the porosity of the soil is
decreased. As a result, bigger pores are almost eliminated making soil
impermeable. It reduces the infiltration rates appreciably.

4.3 Measurement and estimation of infiltration process

4.3.1 Measurement of infiltration process
Infiltration characteristics of a soil at a given location can be estimated by
 Using flooding-type infiltrometers
 Measurement of subsidence of free water in a large basin or pond
 Rainfall simulator
 Hydrograph analysis
Flooding-Type Infiltrometer
Flooding-type infiltrometers are experimental devices used to obtain data relating to
variation of infiltration capacity with time. Two types of flooding-type infiltrometers
are in common use. They are (a) Tube-type (or Simple) infiltrometer, and (b) Double
ring infiltrometer.
a. Simple (Tube Type) Infiltrometer
This is a simple instrument consisting essentially of a metal cylinder, 30 cm diameter
and 60 cm long, open at both ends. The cylinder is driven into the ground to a depth
of 50 cm (Fig. below). Water is poured into the top part to a depth of 5 cm and a
pointer is set to mark the water level. As infiltration proceeds, the volume is made
up by adding water from a burette to keep the water level at the tip of the pointer.
Knowing the volume of water added during different time intervals, the plot of the
infiltration capacity vs time is obtained. The experiments are continued till a uniform
rate of infiltration is obtained and this may take 2–3 hours. The surface of the soil is
usually protected by a perforated disc to prevent formation of turbidity and its settling
on the soil surface.
A major objection to the simple infiltrometer as above is that the infiltered
water spreads at the outlet from the tube (as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 3.12(a))
and as such the tube area is not representative of the area in which infiltration is
taking place.

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Figure 21: single infiltrometer

b. Double-ring Infiltrometer
This most commonly used infiltrometer is designed to overcome the basic objection
of the tube infiltrometer, viz. the tube area is not representative of the infiltrating area.
In this, two sets of concentrating rings with diameters of 30 cm and 60 cm and of a
minimum length of 25 cm, as shown in Fig. below, are used. The two rings are
inserted into the ground and water is applied into both the rings to maintain a constant
depth of about 5.0 cm. The outer ring provides water jacket to the infiltering water
from the inner ring and hence prevents the spreading out of the infiltering water of the
inner ring. The water depths in the inner and outer rings are kept the same during the
observation period. The measurement of the water volume is done on the inner ring
only. The experiment is carried out till a constant infiltration rate is obtained. A
perforated disc to prevent formation of turbidity and settling of fines on the soil
surface is provided on the surface of the soil in the inner ring as well as in the annular
space.
As the flooding-type infiltrometer measures the infiltration characteristics at a spot
only, a large number of pre-planned experiments are necessary to obtain
representative infiltration characteristics for an entire watershed. Some of the chief
disadvantages of flooding-type infiltrometers are
1. the raindrop impact effect is not simulated;
2. the driving of the tube or rings disturbs the soil structure; and
3. the results of the infiltrometers depend to some extent on their size with the
larger meters giving less rates than the smaller ones; this is due to the border
effect.

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Figure 22: Double ring infiltrometer

Rainfall Simulator
In this, a small plot of land, of about 2 m * 4 m size, is provided with a series of
nozzles on the longer side with arrangements to collect and measure the surface
runoff rate. The specially designed nozzles produce raindrops falling from a
height of 2 m and are capable of producing various intensities of rainfall.
Experiments are conducted under controlled conditions with various combinations
of intensities and durations and the surface runoff rates and volumes are measured
in each case. Using the water-budget equation involving the volume of rainfall,
infiltration and runoff, the infiltration rate and its variation with time are
estimated. If the rainfall intensity is higher than the infiltration rate, infiltration
capacity values are obtained. Rainfall-simulator-type infiltrometers give lower
values than flooding-type infiltrometers. This is due to effect of the rainfall impact
and turbidity of the surface water present in the former.
Hydrograph Analysis
Reasonable estimation of the infiltration capacity of a small watershed can be
obtained by analyzing measured runoff hydrographs and corresponding rainfall
records. If sufficiently good rainfall records and runoff hydrographs
corresponding to isolated storms in a small watershed with fairly homogeneous
soils are available, the water-budget equation can be applied to estimate the
abstraction by infiltration. In this, the evapotranspiration losses are estimated by
knowing the land cover/use of the watershed.
4.3.2 Infiltration Capacity
The maximum rate at which a given soil at a given time can absorb water is defined
as the infiltration capacity. It is designated as fp and is expressed in units of cm/h.
The actual rate of infiltration f can be expressed as
f = fp when i ≥ fp and
f = i when i < fp
where i = intensity of rainfall. The infiltration capacity of a soil is high at the
beginning
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of a storm and has an exponential decay as the time elapses.
The infiltration capacity of an area is dependent on a large number of factors,
chief of them is:
Characteristics of the soil (Texture, porosity and hydraulic conductivity)
Condition of the soil surface
Current moisture content
Vegetative cover and
Soil temperature
A few important factors affecting fp are described below:
Characteristics of Soil
The type of soil, with sand, silt or clay, its texture, structure, permeability and
underdrainage are the important characteristics under this category. A loose,
permeable, sandy soil will have a larger infiltration capacity than a tight, clayey soil.
A soil with good underdrainage, i.e., the facility to transmit the infiltered water
downward to a groundwater storage would obviously have a higher infiltration
capacity. When the soils occur in layers, the transmission capacity of the layers
determines the overall infiltration rate.

Also, a dry soil can absorb more water than one whose pores are already full (Fig.
above). The land use has a significant influence on fp. For example, a forest soil rich
in organic matter will have a much higher value of f p under identical conditions than
the same soil in an urban area where it is subjected to compaction.
Surface of Entry
At the soil surface, the impact of raindrops causes the fines in the soil to be displaced
and these in turn can clog the pore spaces in the upper layers of the soil. This is an
important factor affecting the infiltration capacity. Thus, a surface covered with grass
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and other vegetation which can reduce this process has a pronounced influence on the
value of fp.
Fluid Characteristics
Water infiltrating into the soil will have many impurities, both in solution and in
suspension. The turbidity of the water, especially the clay and colloid content, is an
important factor and such suspended particles block the fine pores in the soil and
reduce its infiltration capacity. The temperature of the water is a factor in the sense
that it affects the viscosity of the water which in turn affects the infiltration rate.
Contamination of the water by dissolved salts can affect the soil structure and in turn
affect the infiltration rate.
4.3.2.1 Modelling Infiltration capacity

Figure 23: modelling infiltration capacity

Figure above shows a typical variation of infiltration capacity f p with time.
Cumulative infiltration capacity Fp(t) is defined as the accumulation of infiltration
volume over a time period since the start of the process and is given by
t
F p=∫ f p ( t ) dt
0

4.1

Thus, the curve Fp(t) vs time in Fig. above is the mass curve of infiltration. It may be

noted that from Eq. above, it follows that

df p (t)
f p (t)=
dt
4.2
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Many equations have been proposed to express the curves f p(t) or Fp(t) for use in
hydrological analysis. In this section four such equations will be described.

1. Horton’s Equation

Horton defined infiltration capacity as “the maximum rate at which a given soil can
absorb rainfall when the soil is in a specified condition. Based on observations of
infiltration in the field, he deduced that the decrease in infiltration capacity over time
during an infiltration event was due to flow-restricting changes occurring in a thin
layer at the soil surface. He believed the key changes included: 1) packing of the soil
surface by raindrop impact, 2) swelling of the soil, and 3) plugging of surface pores
with fine materials.

Horton expressed the decay of infiltration capacity with time as an exponential decay
given by
−k h t
f p=f c +(f 0−f c )e for 0 ≥ t ≤ tc 4.3

where fp = infiltration capacity at any time t from the start of the rainfall

f0 = initial infiltration capacity at t = 0

fc = final steady-state infiltration capacity occurring at t = tc. Also, fc is

sometimes known as constant rate or ultimate infiltration capacity.

Kh= Horton’s decay coefficient which depends upon soil characteristics and

vegetation cover

The difficulty of determining the variation of the three parameters f 0, fc and kh with
soil characteristics and antecedent moisture conditions preclude the general use of Eq
4.3.

Philip’s Equation (1957)

Philip’s two-term model relates Fp(t) as

1
F P=st 2 + Kt
4.4

where s = a function of soil suction potential called sorptivity K = Darcy’s hydraulic

conductivity

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infiltration capacity could be expressed as
−1
1
f p= st 2 + K 4.5
2

Kostiakov Equation (1932)

The Kostiakov model expresses cumulative infiltration capacity as

b
F P=at
4.6

where a and b are local parameters with a > 0 and 0 < b < 1. The infiltration capacity
would now be expressed by Eq. (3.6) as
( b −1 )
f p=( ab ) t
4.7

Green–Ampt Equation (1911)

Green and Ampt proposed a model for infiltration capacity based on Darcy’s law as

η SC
f p=K (1+ )
Fp
4.8

where η = porosity of the soil

Sc = capillary suction at the wetting front

K = Darcy’s hydraulic conductivity

n
f p=m+
Fp
4.9

where m and n are Green–Ampt parameters of the infiltration model.

4.4 Infiltration Indices

Infiltration indices are the parameters for measuring the various infiltration losses that
occur through various means. The process of water entering the soil is called
infiltration. The infiltration occurs on the ground surface. Below the surface, the
penetration further is called percolation. Whatever rainfall occurs on the surface of the
earth, some quantities infiltrate.

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Types of Infiltration Indices

The average infiltration rate is called infiltration index and two types of indices are in
commonly used:

1. ф Index:

The ф index is that portion of average rate of rainfall during any storm which gets
lost by the processes of interception, depression storage and infiltration taken
together. It can, therefore, be defined as that rate of average rainfall during any
storm beyond which the volume of remaining rainfall equals the volume of direct
surface runoff. The index can be calculated from a hyetograph (time versus
intensity of rainfall graph) of the storm in such a way that the rainfall volume in
excess of this rate will equal the volume of the storm runoff Fig. 24.

If the rainfall intensity throughout the storm remains equal to or more than ф
index then the ф index represents basin recharge because ф index represents sum
total of infiltration, interception and depression storage.

Ф =1/t (P-R)
4.10

Where

𝝋 = The infiltration index.

t = Time duration which rainfall intensity exceeds infiltration capacity.

P = Precipitation (rainfall).

R = Surface runoff

The amount of rainfall in excess of the 𝝋 index is called rainfall excess.

2. W Index:
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This index gives the average rate of infiltration for that time period of the storm
rainfall during which rainfall intensity is greater than W. Thus, it can be said to be
refinement over ф index which apart from infiltration also includes interception
and depression storage.

The W index can be obtained from the following equation:

W = (P-Q-S)/t

Where W is average rate of infiltration

P is total storm rainfall corresponding to t

Q is total storm run-off.

t is time during which rainfall intensity is more than W and
S is effective surface retention
W = ф average rate of retention

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5 RUNOFF
5.1 Introduction

Runoff means the draining or flowing off of precipitation from a catchment area
through a surface channel. It thus represents the output from the catchment in a given
unit of time.
Consider a catchment area receiving precipitation. For a given precipitation, the
evapotranspiration, initial loss, infiltration and detention storage requirements will
have to be first satisfied before the commencement of runoff. When these are
satisfied, the excess precipitation moves over the land surfaces to reach smaller
channels. This portion of the runoff is called overland flow and involves building up
of a storage over the surface and draining off of the same. Usually, the lengths and
depths of overland flow are small and the flow is in the laminar regime. Flows from
several small channels join bigger channels and flows from these in turn combine to
form a larger stream, and
so on, till the flow reaches the catchment outlet. The flow in this mode, where it
travels all the time over the surface as overland flow and through the channels as
open-channel flow and reaches the catchment outlet is called surface runoff. A part of
the precipitation that infilters moves laterally through upper crusts of the soil and
returns to the surface at some location away from the point of entry into the soil.
5.2 Components of runoff

The component of runoff is known variously as

interflow,
through flow,
storm seepage,
subsurface
storm flow or quick return flow

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The amount of interflow depends on the geological conditions of the catchment. A
fairly pervious soil overlying a hard impermeable surface is conducive to large
interflows. Depending upon the time delay between the infiltration and the outflow,
the interflow is sometimes classified into prompt interflow, i.e., the interflow with the
least time lag and delayed interflow.
Another route for the infiltered water is to undergo deep percolation and reach the
groundwater storage in the soil. The groundwater follows a complicated and long path
of travel and ultimately reaches the surface. The time lag, i.e., the difference in time
between the entry into the soil and outflows from it is very large, being of the order of
months and years. This part of runoff is called groundwater runoff or groundwater
flow. Groundwater flow provides the dry-weather flow in perennial streams.
Based on the time delay between the precipitation and the runoff, the runoff is
classified into two categories; as

1. Direct runoff, and

2. Base flow
Direct Runoff
It is that part of the runoff which enters the stream immediately after the rainfall. It
includes surface runoff, prompt interflow and rainfall on the surface of the stream. In
the case of snow-melt, the resulting flow entering the stream is also a direct runoff.
Sometimes terms such as direct storm runoff and storm runoff are used to designate
direct runoff.
Base Flow
The delayed flow that reaches a stream essentially as groundwater flow is called base
flow. Many times, delayed interflow is also included under this category. In the annual
hydrograph of a perennial stream ,the base flow is easily recognized as
the slowly decreasing flow of the stream in rainless periods.
Natural Flow
Runoff representing the response of a catchment to precipitation reflects the integrated
effects of a wide range of catchment, climate and rainfall characteristics. True runoff
is therefore stream flow in its natural condition, i.e. without human intervention. Such
a stream flow unaffected by works of man, such as reservoirs and diversion structures
on a stream, is called natural flow or virgin flow. When there exists storage or
diversion
works on a stream, the flow on the downstream channel is affected by the operational
and hydraulic characteristics of these structures and hence does not represent the true
runoff, unless corrected for the diversion of flow and return flow.
The natural flow (virgin flow) volume in time Δt at the terminal point of a catchment

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is expressed by water balance equation as
RN = (Ro – Vr) + Vd + E + EX + ΔS
5.1
where RN = natural flow volume in time Δt
Ro = observed flow volume in time Δt at the terminal site
Vr= volume of return flow from irrigation, domestic water supply and
industrial use
Vd = volume diverted out of the stream for irrigation, domestic water supply
and industrial use
E = net evaporation losses from reservoirs on the stream
EX = net export of water from the basin
ΔS = change in the storage volumes of water storage bodies on the stream
Factors affecting runoff
The main factors affecting the runoff from a catchment area are:
i. Precipitation characteristics
ii. Shape and size of catchment
iii. Topography
iv. Geologic characteristics
v. Meteorological characteristics
vi. Storage characteristics of a catchment
Precipitation Characteristics
Precipitation is the most important factor, which affects runoff. The important
characteristics of precipitation are duration, intensity and areal distribution.
Duration: Total runoff depends on the duration of rainstorm. For a given rainfall
intensity and other conditions, a longer duration rainfall event will result in more
runoff.
Intensity: Rainfall intensity influences both rate and volume of runoff. The runoff
volume and also runoff rate will be greater for an intense rainfall event than for less
intense event.
Areal Distribution: It also influences both the rate and volume of runoff. Generally,
the maximum rate and volume of runoff occurs when the entire watershed contributes.
Shape and Size of Catchment
The runoff from a catchment depends upon the size, shape and location of the
catchment. The following are the general observations:
a) More intense rainfall events are generally distributed over a relatively smaller area,
i.e., larger the area lower will be the intensity of rainfall.

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b) The peak normally decreases as the area of the basin increase. (Peak flow per unit
area)
c) larger basins give a more constant minimum flow than the smaller ones. (Effect of
local rains and greater capacity of the ground-water reservoir)
d) Fan shaped catchments give greater runoff because tributaries are nearly of same
size and hence time of concentration of runoff is nearly same. On the contrary,
discharges over fern leaf arrangement of tributaries are distributed over long period
because of the different lengths of tributaries.

Fig. a. Fan shaped catchment. Fig. b. Leaf shaped catchment

Topography
The runoff depends upon surface condition, slope and land features. Runoff will be
more from a smooth surface than from rugged surface. Also, if the surface slope is
steep, water will flow quickly and adsorption and evaporation losses will be less,
resulting in greater runoff. On the other hand, if the catchment is mountainous, the
rainfall intensity will be high and hence runoff will be more.
Geologic Characteristics
Geologic characteristics include surface and sub-surface soil type, rocks and their
permeability. Geologic characteristics influence infiltration and percolation rates.
The runoff will be more for low infiltration capacity soil (clay) than for high
infiltration capacity soil (sand).
Meteorological Characteristics
Temperature, wind speed, and humidity are the major meteorological factors, which
affect runoff. Temperature, wind speed and humidity affect evaporation and
transpiration rates, thus soil moisture regime and infiltration rate, and finally runoff
volume.
Storage Characteristics of a Catchment
Presence of artificial storage such as dams, weirs etc. and natural storage such as lakes
and ponds etc. tend to reduce the peak flow. These structures also give rise to greater
evaporation.
5.3 Runoff characteristics of stream

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A study of the annual hydrographs of streams enables one to classify the streams in
to three classes as (i) perennial, (ii) intermittent, and (iii) ephemeral.
A perennial stream is one that always carries some flow in it (Fig. 24). There is
considerable amount of groundwater flow throughout the year. Even during the dry
seasons, the water table will be above the bed of the stream

Figure 24: perennial stream

The intermittent stream has limited contribution from the groundwater. During
the wet season, the water table is above the streambed and there is contribution of
the base flow to the stream flow. However, during dry seasons the water table drops
to a level lower than that of the streambed and the stream dries up. Excepting for an
occasional storm that can produce a short-duration flow, the stream remains dry for
the most part of the dry months (Fig. 25).

Figure 25: intermittent stream

An ephemeral stream is one that does not have any base-flow contribution. The
annual hydrograph of such a stream shows a series of short-duration spikes marking
flash flows in response to storms (Fig. 26). The stream becomes dry soon after the end
of the storm flow. Typically, an ephemeral stream does not have a well-defined
channel. Most of the rivers in arid zones are of the ephemeral kind.
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Figure 26: Ephemeral flow

5.4 Catchment Characteristics

A catchment, also known as drainage basin, drainage area and watershed, is the basic
hydrologic unit in the analysis of runoff phenomenon. Physical characteristics of the
catchment such as area, shape, slope, and drainage channel pattern in the catchment
are some of the major static characteristics that affect the volume of the surface runoff
and shape of the runoff hydrograph from a catchment due to a storm. Study of the
catchment characteristics forms an important component of the subject of
geomorphology and is studied under the topic head of quantitative geomorphology.
Some of the important geometrical parameters of the catchment as related to runoff
process are briefly described below.

1. Area

Area is probably the most used parameter to represent the characteristics of a

catchment. The area of the catchment is defined as the area of the closed curve
forming the horizontal projection of the catchment boundary. The usual units are
hectare (ha) for small catchments and square kilometer (km2) for larger drainage
areas.

2. Stream Order

It is a classification reflecting the pattern of branches that unite to form the trunk
stream leaving the catchment. The smallest stream at the start of the network is
designated as of ‘order 1’. Two channels of order 1 when joined produce a stream of
‘order 2’.Two channels of order 2 when joined produce a stream of order 3, and so on.
Note that when a lower order stream (say order 2) meets a higher order stream (say
order 3) the order of the resulting stream is still the higher order stream entering the

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confluence with, order 3 in this case. The trunk stream discharging out of the drainage
basin has the highest order. Fig. 27 shows schematically a drainage basin with a
stream system of order 4.

Figure 27: Stream order

3. Stream Density, Sd

The ratio of the number of streams (Ns) of all orders to the area of the basin (A) is

Ns
known as stream density (Sd) of the basin. Thus, Sd = .
A
5.2

Stream density represents the number of streams per unit area and is indicative of the
pattern of drainage channels

in the catchment.

4. Drainage Density, Dd

Drainage density is the ratio of the total length of streams of all orders within a basin

to its area. Thus, if L = length of a stream in a basin, then Dd =

∑L .
A
5.3

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The drainage density is a measure of how well the drainage basin is drained by the
stream network.

The drainage density is called coarse, medium or fine depending on the value of Dd

as follows: Coarse if Dd 5 km/km2 ; Medium if Dd = 5 – 10 km/km2 and Fine if

Dd > 5 km/km2.

Drainage density depends upon the climate and physical characteristics and geology
of the catchment. Generally, impermeable soil material in the catchment, thin land
cover and steep slope cause more channels to move the runoff rapidly. Hence, a high
drainage density may indicate one or more of the following:

Existence of a mature, and well-developed channel system

Surface runoff moves rapidly from the edge of the catchment
Thin/ deforested land cover
Low infiltration soil or impervious geology
5. Relief

Maximum basin relief is the elevation difference (in meters) between the catchment
outlet and the highest point on the basin perimeter.

6. Slope

Usually, a slope profile prepared along the main stream is used to characterize the
slope of the catchment. For a given stretch of the stream, the ratio of horizontal
distance between the two end parts of the stretch to the difference in elevation
between these two points gives the slope of the stretch. As a rule, the catchment slope
is the highest at the beginning of the stream and gradually decreases as one moves
along the stream to the basin outlet. Slope is an important parameter in many
watershed simulation models.

7. Length, L

The length of the catchment is defined as the length of the main stream measured
from the basin outlet to the remotest point on the basin boundary. The main stream is
identified by starting from the basin outlet and moving up the catchment. At any
branching point the largest order branch is taken. If there is a branch of two streams of
the same order, the one with the largest catchment area is taken as the main steam.

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8. Shape

There are a number of ways of designating and quantifying the shape of a catchment.
Some of the commonly used shape parameters are shown in Table 5 along with their
definitions. In this table A = catchment area, L = catchment length and P = perimeter
of the catchment.

Table 5: Shape parameters

9. Hypsometric Curve

It is a plot of horizontal cross-sectional drainage basin area to elevation. It is usual to

plot the curve in a non-dimensional form as relative height h/H plotted against relative
area a/A as shown in Fig. 28. In this h = height of a given contour, H = basin height
(relief), a = basin area at contour h and A = total basin area.

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Figure 28: Hypsometric Curve

5.5 rainfall-Runoff correlation

The relationship between rainfall in a period and the corresponding runoff is quite
complex and is influenced by a host of factors relating to the catchment and climate.
Further, there is the problem of paucity of data which forces one to adopt simple
correlations for adequate estimation of runoff. One of the most common methods is to
correlate seasonal or annual measured runoff values (R) with corresponding rainfall
(P) values. A commonly adopted method is to fit a linear regression line between R
and P and to accept the result if the correlation coefficient is nearer unity. The
equation of the straight-line regression between runoff R and rainfall P is

R = Ap+b
5.6

and the values of the coefficient a and b are given by

a=N ¿ ¿
5.7

And b=∑ R−a ¿ ¿ ¿

5.8

in which N = number of observations sets R and P. The coefficient of correlation r can

be calculated as

r =N ¿ ¿ 5.9

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The value of r lies between 0 and 1 as R can have only positive correlation with P.
The value of 0.6 < r < 1.0 indicates good correlation. Further, it should be noted that R
≥ 0. The term r2 is known as the coefficient of determination.

5.6 Runoff estimation

I. Rational Method
Rational formula is the simplest and widely used method for the estimation of peak
runoff. The rational method applies to small watersheds «1300 ha) which is divided
into a number of sub-areas with the known times of concentration for different
subareas and the runoff contribution from each area is determined. The choice of the
value of the runoff coefficient C for the different sub-areas is an important factor in
the runoff computation by this method.
The rational method of estimating peak flow on small watershed is based, on the
criterion that for storms of uniform intensity, distributed evenly over the basin, the
maximum rate of runoff equal to a certain percentage of the rainfall intensity occurs
when the entire basin area is contributing at the outlet. This condition is met after the
elapsed time, the time of concentration (usually taken as the time for water to flow
from the most remote part of the watershed to the outlet point).
Rational Equation: Qp = 0.0278 C x I x A
5.10
Where,
Qp = Peak runoff rate, m/s ;
C = Runoff coefficient;
I = Rainfall intensity of a storm, mm/h over the entire area of the
watershed for duration equal to the time of concentration;
A = area of watershed, ha.
Assumptions: The rational method for estimating peak runoff rate is developed
from the assumptions that:
(1) rainfall occurs at uniform intensity for duration at least equal to the time of
concentration of the watershed, and
(2) rainfall occurs at a uniform intensity over the entire area of the watershed.
In case of watershed comprising of different variable soil type, slope and vegetative
cover, the weighted average value of C is computed as follows:

C 1∗A 1+C 2∗A 2+C 3∗A 3+…+Cn∗An

C=
A 1+ A 2+ A 3+…+ An
5.11
Where

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AI' A2, A3 ••· An are areas of n sub-parts of the watershed having runoff coefficients
Cl' C2 ' C3 ..Cn,
II. Curve Number Method
The curve number is an empirical parameter used in hydrology for predicting direct
runoff or infiltration from rainfall excess. The curve number method was developed
by the U.S. Soil Conservation Service or SCS. The number is still popularly known
as a "SCS runoff curve number" .The SCS Runoff Curve Number (CN) method is
described as follows, the SCS runoff equation is:
2
(P−0.2 S )
Q=
P+0.8 S
5.12

2
(P−Ia)
Q=
( P−Ia ) +S
5.13
Where,
Q = Runoff, mm;
P = Rainfall, mm;
S = Potential maximum retention after runoff begins, mm; and
Ia = Initial abstraction, mm.
Ia = O.2S
S is related to the soil and cover conditions of the watershed through the CN by the
following relation:
25400
S= −254
CN
5.14
The value of CN ranges from 0 for most permeable surface and 100 for the
impervious (concrete) surface. For paved surface, S will be zero inducing runoff equal
to rainfall. The major factors that determine CN are the hydrologic soil group, cover
type, treatment, hydrologic condition, and antecedent runoff condition. The runoff
depth as a function of rainfall depth and CN is shown in Fig. 29.

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Figure 29: Curve number (CN)

Hydrological soil groups
Soil properties based on infiltration rate have considerable impact on amount of
runoff. Hydrological soil groups are defined as follows:
Group A Soils such as deep and well drained sands or gravels having high infiltration
rates even when thoroughly wetted;
Group B Soils such as moderately deep and well drained soils with moderately fine
to coarse texture having moderate infiltration rates even when thoroughly wetted;
Group C Soils such moderately fine to fine texture having low infiltration rates even
when thoroughly wetted; and
Group D Soils with a clay layer having very low infiltration rates even when
thoroughly wetted.
The values of CN for different land use conditions and hydrological soil groups are
given in Table 6.

Table 6: Curve number

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III. Time area method

The time-area method of hydrologic catchment routing transforms an effective
storm hyetograph into a runoff hydrograph. The method accounts for translation
only and does not include storage.

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Time-area method is based on the concept of time-area histogram, i.e., a
histogram of contributing catchment subareas (segmentations of the catchment).
To develop a time-area histogram, the catchment's time of concentration is divided
into a number of time intervals based on the hydrology time step. Cumulative time
at the end of each time interval is used to divide the catchment into segments
delimited by isochrones lines, i.e., the loci of points of equal travel time to the
catchment outlet. Based on the end times of each time interval and the area of the
corresponding segment the time-area histogram table can be built and used in the
hydrologic routing, as shown in the following figure.
As stated above, the method assumes that the hydrology computation has time
intervals (time segments) within the time of concentration of the catchment, and
based on these time segments the total area is also divided into corresponding sub-
areas (area segments). In general, a minimum of 2 time/area segments are needed
for good results, therefore the hydrology time step should be less than half of the
time of concentration. If user specifies a larger time step the model will give a
warning and results are less reliable.

Figure 30: Time area method

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