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13 views4 pages

L15 Streamflow

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Coffee And tea
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Lecture 15: Streamflow (October 9th, 2024)

Learning Objectives

After this session, students should be able to:

• Define the concept of streamflow.

• Calculate streamflow given values of average velocity and cross-sectional


area.

• Recognize the effect of scale on the frequency of streamflow fluctuations.

• Describe measurement techniques to determine streamflow.

• Define the concept of the rating curve.

Streamflow definitions

Streamflow, or channel runoff, is the flow of water in streams, rivers, and other
channels, and is a major element of the water cycle. It is one component of the
runoff of water from the land to waterbodies, the other component being surface
runoff. Water flowing in channels comes from surface runoff from adjacent
hillslopes, from groundwater flow out of the ground, and from water discharged
from pipes. The discharge of water flowing in a channel is measured using stream
gauges or can be estimated using rating curves. The record of flow over time is called
a hydrograph. Flooding occurs when the volume of water exceeds the capacity of the
channel.
Streamflow hydrograph

A hydrograph is a graph showing the rate of flow (discharge) versus time past a
specific point in a river, or other channel or conduit carrying flow. The rate of flow is
typically expressed in cubic meters or cubic feet per second (cms or cfs).

It can also refer to a graph showing the volume of water reaching a particular
outfall, or location in a sewerage network. Graphs are commonly used in the design
of sewerage, more specifically, the design of surface water sewerage systems and
combined sewers.

The discharge is measured at a specific point in a river and is typically time variant.

• Rising limb: The rising limb of hydro graph, also known as concentration
curve, reflects a prolonged increase in discharge from a catchment area,
typically in response to a rainfall event
• Recession (or falling) limb: The recession limb extends from the peak flow
rate onward. The end of stormflow (a.k.a. quickflow or direct runoff) and the
return to groundwater-derived flow (base flow) is often taken as the point of
inflection of the recession limb. The recession limb represents the
withdrawal of water from the storage built up in the basin during the earlier
phases of the hydrograph.
• Peak discharge: the highest point on the hydro graph when the rate of
discharge is greatest
• Lag time: the time interval from the center of mass of rainfall excess to the
peak of the resulting hydrograph
• Time to peak: time interval from the start of the resulting hydro graph
Streamflow Measurement

Streamflow is measured as an amount of water passing through a specific point over


time. The units used in the United States are cubic feet per second, while in majority
of other countries cubic meters per second are utilized. One cubic foot is equal to
0.028 cubic meters. There are a variety of ways to measure the discharge of a
stream or canal. A stream gauge provides continuous flow over time at one location
for water resource and environmental management or other purposes. Streamflow
values are better indicators than gage height of conditions along the whole river.
Measurements of streamflow are made about every six weeks by United States
Geological Survey (USGS) personnel. They wade into the stream to make the
measurement or do so from a boat, bridge, or cableway over the stream. For each
stream gaging station, a relation between gage height and streamflow is determined
by simultaneous measurements of gage height and streamflow over the natural
range of flows (from very low flows to floods). This relation provides the current
condition streamflow data from that station. For purposes that do not require a
continuous measurement of stream flow over time, current meters or acoustic
Doppler velocity profilers can be used. For small streams — a few meters wide or
smaller — weirs may be installed.

Rating curve

In hydrology, a rating curve is a graph of discharge versus stage for a given point on
a stream, usually at gauging stations, where the stream discharge is measured
across the stream channel with a flow meter.[1] Numerous measurements of stream
discharge are made over a range of stream stages. The rating curve is usually plotted
as discharge on x-axis versus stage (surface elevation) on y-axis.
The development of a rating curve involves two steps. In the first step the
relationship between stage and discharge is established by measuring the stage and
corresponding discharge in the river. And in the second part, stage of river is
measured and discharge is calculated by using the relationship established in the
first part. Stage is measured by reading a gauge installed in the river. If the stage-
discharge relationship does not change with time, it is called permanent control. If
the relationship does change, it is called shifting control. Shifting control is usually
due to erosion or deposition of sediment at the stage measurement site. Bedrock-
bottomed parts of rivers or concrete/metal weirs or structures are often, though not
always, permanent controls.

If G represents stage for discharge Q, then the relationship between G and Q can
possibly be approximated with an equation:

Q=Cr(G-a)b

where Cr and b are rating curve constants, and a is a constant which represents the
gauge reading corresponding to zero discharge. The constant a can be measured
when a stream is flowing under "section control" as the surveyed gauge height of
the lowest point of the section control feature. When a stream is flowing under
"channel control" conditions, the parameter a does not have a physical analogue and
must be estimated by following standard methods given in literature. The
parameter b is typically in the range of 2.0 to 3.0 when a stream is flowing under
section control, and in the range of 1.0 to 2.0 when a stream is flowing under
channel control.

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