Ain Shams Engineering Journal (2013) 4, 625–632

Ain Shams University

Ain Shams Engineering Journal

www.elsevier.com/locate/asej
www.sciencedirect.com

CIVIL ENGINEERING

Accurate gradually varied flow model for water

surface profile in circular channels
a,* b
Ali R. Vatankhah , Said M. Easa

a
Department of Irrigation and Reclamation Engineering, University College of Agriculture and Natural Resources,
University of Tehran, P.O. Box 4111, Karaj 31587-77871, Iran
b
Department of Civil Engineering, Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5B 2K3

Received 12 October 2012; revised 13 January 2013; accepted 24 January 2013

Available online 7 March 2013

KEYWORDS
Gradually varied flow;
Circular channels;
Analytical solution;
Dimensionless variables
Abstract The paper presents an accurate approximation of the Froude number (F) for circular
channels which is part of the gradually varied flow (GVF) equation. The proposed approximation
is developed using optimization technique to minimize the relative error between the exact and esti-
mated values, resulting in a maximum error of 0.6% compared with 14% for the existing approx-
imate method. The approximate F is used in the governing GVF equation to develop an exact
analytical solution of this equation using the concept of simplest partial fractions. A comparison
of the proposed and approximate solutions for backwater length shows that the error of the existing
approximate solution could reach up to 30% for large normal flow depths.
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All rights reserved.

1. Introduction constant hydraulic components. To improve Chow solution,

Accurate estimation of the water surface profile in gradually
varied flows is important in the planning and design of water
works. Numerous studies on gradually varied flow (GVF) have
been conducted for different types of open channels [1–11].
However, analytical and semi-analytical studies of GVF re-
lated to circular open channels are limited. Chow [12] devel-
oped a semi-analytical solution for circular channels using
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +98 02632221119.
E-mail addresses: arvatan@ut.ac.ir (A.R. Vatankhah),
@ryerson.ca (S.M. Easa).
Peer review under responsibility of Ain Shams University.
Production and hosting by Elsevier
Zaghloul [13] derived mathematical expressions for the
hydraulic exponents as functions of the GVF depth using
numerical integration. Keifer and Chu [14] and Nalluri and
Tomlinson [15] used a method that did not include hydraulic
components. Nalluri and Tomlinson [15] modified Keifer and
Chu’s method using the subtended angle at the center instead
of the relative depth. Both solutions used tabulated flow func-
tions and their interpolated values which are not vary accurate.
Zaghloul [16] developed a computer model to compute the
GVF length for circular sections. The results were presented
seasa in a tabular form. Zaghloul and Shahin [17] also developed a
package using the Lotus 1-2-3 to calculate the geometric and
hydraulic properties of an open circular channel. The results
were expressed as dimensionless quantities and were presented
in tabular and graphical forms. Zaghloul [18], using variable
pipe roughness, developed a computer model to calculate the

2090-4479  2013 Ain Shams University. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.asej.2013.01.005
626 A.R. Vatankhah, S.M. Easa

length of the GVF profile using the step and integration Using an approximate formula for the cross section area, Hag-
methods. er [20] approximated the Froude number as
Hager [19,20] presented approximate expressions for uni-
Q2 4
form and critical flows and obtained a simple form for the F2 ¼ g ; ðHager’s modelÞ ð5Þ
GVF differential equation that can be analytically integrated. gD5
However, he implemented three types of approximations where g = dimensionless flow depth (y/D). The maximum rel-
related to the cross section area, the GVF equation, and the ative error, e, of Eq. (5) is about 14% in the range
integration procedure. This paper presents an accurate approx- 0.1 < g < 0.92 (Fig. 2), where e = 100(Fe  F)/Fe. Clearly,
imation of the Froude number for circular channels along with the approximation of Eq. (4) is inaccurate.
an exact analytical solution of the water surface profile and
compares the results with Hager’s approximate (semi-analyti- 2. Accurate GVF approximation for circular channels
cal) solution.
The basic governing equation of the steady GVF in open The exact formulas for T and A of a circular channel can be
channels is given by [22,23] obtained as
dy S0  Sf T ¼ D sinðh=2Þ ð6Þ
¼ ð1Þ
dx 1  F2 2
A ¼ D ½h  sinðhÞ=8 ð7Þ
where y = depth of flow (m), x = distance along the channel,
h ¼ 2 cos1 ð1  2gÞ ð8Þ
measured positive in the downstream direction (m), dy/
dx = slope of the free surface at any location x, S0 = longitu- where h is the central angle subtended by the end points of the
dinal slope of the channel bottom, Sf = friction slope, and water surface. Substituting for T and A from Eqs. (6) and (7)
F = Froude number. For F < 1 the flow is subcritical, and into Eq. (4) gives
for F > 1 the flow is supercritical. For F = 1 the flow is critical
and dy/dx tends to infinity (provided Sf „ S0) and thus the Q2 sinðh=2Þ
F2e ¼   ðexact modelÞ ð9Þ
water-surface profile approaches the critical-depth line verti- gD5 hsin h 3
8
cally. When Sf = S0, the flow is uniform and dy/dx tends to
To aid the integration of the GVF equation, the exact formula
zero and hence the surface profile approaches the normal-
of Eq. (9) was approximated by
depth line asymptotically. A schematic of the water surface
profile in a circular channel is shown in Fig. 1. Q2
F2 ¼ ðag5 þ bg3 þ cg4 Þ ð10aÞ
The friction slope in a circular open channel has been deter- gD5
mined using experimental observations of Sauerbrey as [20,21]
  2 where a, b, and c are coefficients determined by optimization. Not-
n2 Q2 3 y2 7 y2 ing that h of Eq. (9) is a function of g, different values of g ranging
Sf ¼ 16=3 1  ð2Þ
D 4 D2 12 D2 from 0.1 to 0.92 were used and the coefficients that minimized the
maximum absolute relative error between the exact and approxi-
where Q = discharge of the channel (m3/s), n = Manning mate Froude numbers of Eqs. (9) and (10a), (ŒFe  F)/FeŒ, were
roughness coefficient (m1/3 s), and D = diameter of the chan- determined. The approximate formula is given by
nel. From Eq. (2) the uniform flow depth, yn, can be expressed
as [21] Q2
F2 ¼ ð0:64g5 þ 0:405g3
( sffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi!)1=2 gD5
2 nQ þ 0:834g4 Þ; ðproposed approximate modelÞ ð10bÞ
yn ¼ D 3  9  28 1=2 8=3 ð3Þ
7 S0 D
The maximum relative error of Eq. (10b) is about 0.6% in the
where the subscript ‘‘n’’ denotes the condition of the uniform/ range of 0.1 < y/D < 0.92 (Fig. 2).
normal state of flow. This variable is expressed in dimension- From Eq. (10b) the critical flow depth, gc = yc/D (where
less form as gn = yn/D. F = 1) can be determined by
The exact Froude number is given by Q2  
1¼ 0:64g5c þ 0:405g3 4
c þ 0:834gc ð11Þ
Q2 T gD 5
F2e ¼ ð4Þ
gA3 where the subscript ‘‘c’’ denotes the condition of the critical
where g = gravitational acceleration (m/s2), T = width of state of flow. Substituting for Sf and F from Eqs. (2) and
water surface (m), and A = cross section area of flow (m2). (10b) into Eq. (1) yields

Figure 1 Water surface profile in a circular channel.

Accurate gradually varied flow model for water surface profile in circular channels 627
 
pffiffiffi 2 7 7 pffiffiffi 2
dg 1  g2  1 ¼  dðg  x1 Þðg2  x2 Þ ð18Þ
12 12
 
pffiffiffi 2 7 7 pffiffiffi 2
dg 1  g2 þ 1 ¼  dðg  x3 Þðg2  x4 Þ ð19Þ
12 12
where
sffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi!
6 7
x1 ¼ 1þ 1  pffiffiffi ð20Þ
7 3 d
sffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi!
6 7
x2 ¼ 1  1  pffiffiffi ð21Þ
7 3 d
sffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi!
6 7
x3 ¼ 1 þ 1 þ pffiffiffi ð22Þ
7 3 d
Figure 2 Existing and proposed approximations for square sffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi!
Froude number. 6 7
x4 ¼ 1  1 þ pffiffiffi ð23Þ
n 2
o2 7 3 d
16n2 Q2 y2
dy S0  9D16=3 Dy 2 1  127 D2
¼ ð12Þ Substituting Eqs. (18) and (19) into Eq. (17) yields
dx 1  Q25 ð0:64g5 þ 0:405g3 þ 0:834g4 Þ
gD pffiffiffi ð0:64g9 þ jg4  0:405g  0:834Þð12  7g2 Þ2
168 djdv ¼ dg
Eq. (12) can be written in dimensionless form as ðg2  x1 Þðg2  x2 Þ
 2
ð0:64g9 þ jg4  0:405g  0:834Þ 1  127 g2 ð0:64g9 þ jg4  0:405g  0:834Þð12  7g2 Þ2
jdv ¼   dg ð13Þ  dg
2
dg4 1  127 g2  1 ðg2  x3 Þðg2  x4 Þ

where v = dimensionless distance along the channel, ð24Þ

d = function of channel geometric and flow parameters, Breaking the right-hand side of Eq. (24) into simplest partial
j = function of dimensionless critical depth and g = dimen- fractions, then
sionless flow depth (g = y/D and gc = yc/D). The v,d and j
variables are given by ð0:64g9 þ jg4  0:405g  0:834Þð12  7g2 Þ2
ðg2  x1 Þðg2  x2 Þ
16n2 Q2 x
v¼ ð14Þ
9D19=3 ð0:64g9 þ jg4  0:405g  0:834Þð12  7g2 Þ2

9S0 D16=3 ðg2  x3 Þðg2  x4 Þ
d¼ ð15Þ
16n2 Q2  
ðjx21 þ 0:834Þð7x01  12Þ2 1
j ¼ 0:64g5c þ 0:405g3 4
c þ 0:834gc ð16Þ ¼
x1  x2 g2  x1
Eq. (13) is a first-order ordinary differential equation based on  
ðjx22 þ 0:834Þð7x02  12Þ2 1
Manning roughness coefficient that is generally used in þ
x1  x2 g2  x2
hydraulic engineering practice. According to Eq. (13), the
 
dimensionless water surface profile, g, depends on three inde- ðjx23 þ 0:834Þð7x3  12Þ2 1
pendent dimensionless parameters, namely, v, gc, and d. As þ
x3  x4 g2  x3
noted, Eq. (13) which gathers all the variables of the gradu-  
ally-varied-flow equation into four dimensionless parameters ðjx24 þ 0:834Þð7x4  12Þ2 1

(v, gc, d, and g) is suitable for analytical integration. x3  x4 g2  x4
 
ð0:64x41  0:405Þð7x1  12Þ2 g
3. Exact analytical solution for water surface profile þ
x1  x2 g2  x1
Consider a circular open channel with a positive slope (d > 0).  
ð0:64x42  0:405Þð7x2  12Þ2 g
Then, Eq. (13) can be analytically integrated if its right-hand 
x1  x2 g2  x2
side (integrand) could be broken into simplest partial fractions.  
This integrand can be broken as ð0:64x43  0:405Þð7x3  12Þ2 g

 2 x3  x4 g2  x3
ð0:64g9 þ jg4  0:405g  0:834Þ 1  127 g2
2jdv ¼ p ffiffi
ffi   dg  
dg2 1  127 g2  1 ð0:64x44  0:405Þð7x4  12Þ2 g
þ
 2 x3  x4 g2  x4
ð0:64g9 þ jg4  0:405g  0:834Þ 1  127 g2
 pffiffiffi   dg ð17Þ j 107:52
dg2 1  127 g2 þ 1  168 pffiffiffi  pffiffiffi g5 ð25Þ
d d
Since the denominators of the integrand are polynomials of de-
gree 4, the two denominators can be factorized, respectively, as Substituting Eq. (25) into Eq. (24) and integrating yields
628 A.R. Vatankhah, S.M. Easa
 pffiffiffiffiffi
pffiffiffi ðjx21 þ 0:834Þð7x01  12Þ2 ðjx21 þ 0:834Þð7x01  12Þ2 g  x1 
168 djv ¼  I1 ðgÞ ¼  pffiffiffiffiffi ln  pffiffiffiffiffi
x1  x2 2ðx1  x2 Þ x1 g þ x1 
Z  pffiffiffiffiffi
1 ðjx22 þ 0:834Þð7x02  12Þ2 g  x2 
 dg þ pffiffiffiffiffi ln  pffiffiffiffiffi
g2  x1 2ðx1  x2 Þ x2 g þ x2 
ðjx22 þ 0:834Þð7x02  12Þ2  pffiffiffiffiffi
þ ðjx23 þ 0:834Þð7x3  12Þ2 g  x3 
x1  x2 þ pffiffiffiffiffi ln  pffiffiffiffiffi
Z 2ðx3  x4 Þ x3 g þ x3 
1  
 dg ðjx24 þ 0:834Þð7x4  12Þ2 g
g2  x2  pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi tan 1
pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
ðx3  x4 Þ x4 x4
ðjx23 þ 0:834Þð7x3  12Þ2
þ ð0:64x41  0:405Þð7x1  12Þ2  2 
x3  x4 þ ln g  x1 
Z 2ðx1  x2 Þ
1
 dg
g2  x3 ð0:64x42  0:405Þð7x2  12Þ2  2 
 ln g  x2 
ðjx24 þ 0:834Þð7x4  12Þ 2 2ðx1  x2 Þ

x3  x4 ð0:64x43  0:405Þð7x3  12Þ2  2 
Z  ln g  x3 
1 2ðx3  x4 Þ
 dg
g2  x4 ð0:64x44  0:405Þð7x4  12Þ2
2 þ ln jg2  x4 j  168
ð0:64x41  0:405Þð7x1  12Þ 2ðx3  x4 Þ
þ
x1  x2 j 17:92
Z  pffiffiffi g  pffiffiffi g6 ð31Þ
g d d
 dg
g2  x1
Considering the boundary condition for the control section
ð0:64x42  0:405Þð7x2  12Þ2 where g = g0 at v = v0, the integration constant is eliminated

x1  x2 as follows
Z
g
 dg v  v0 ¼ I1 ðgÞ  I1 ðg0 Þ ð32Þ
g2  x2
Using Eq. (32), the gradually varied flow profiles of a circular
ð0:64x43  0:405Þð7x3  12Þ2
 channel can be determined analytically for a given boundary
x3  x4 condition. The uniform flow is usually considered established
Z
g if the flow depth g deviates by 1% from the uniform flow depth
 dg
g2  x3 gn. That is, g0 = 1.01gn for backwater curves and g0 = 0.99gn
ð0:64x44  0:405Þð7x4  12Þ2 for drawdown curves. Since the nominal uniform flow condi-
þ tion g0 = gn occurs only as x fi ±1, it is assumed for practi-
x3  x4
Z cal purposes that g0 = gn ± 0.01 [21].
g j 17:92
 dg  168 pffiffiffi g  pffiffiffi g6 ð26Þ For the special case of a horizontal circular open channel
g2  x4 d d with a longitudinal slope of zero (S0 = 0), Eq. (15) yields
Note that for positive values of x d = 0 and Eq. (13) reduces to
Z  pffiffiffi  2
1 1 g  x 7
dg ¼ p ffiffiffi ln  pffiffiffi ð27Þ jdv ¼ ð0:64g9 þ jg4  0:405g  0:834Þ 1  g2 dg ð33Þ
g2  x 2 x g þ x 12

For negative values of x, one gets which can be analytically integrated as follow,
Z   jv ¼ I2 ðgÞ þ constant ð34Þ
1 1 1 g
dg ¼ p ffiffiffiffiffiffi
ffi tan p ffiffiffiffiffiffi
ffi ð28Þ
g2  x x x where the flow function I2(g) is given by
1 7 14 14 12 8 10 49 1
where tan denotes inverse tangent.
I2 ðgÞ ¼  g þ g  g  jg9 þ jg7
To complete the integration procedure, the signs of x1, x2, 450 225 125 1296 6
 
x3 and x4 should be determined. For this, the normal flow 147 6 1 6811 5 189 4
depth of Eq. (3) is rewritten in terms of d as þ g  j g  g
6400 5 24000 1600
( sffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi!)1=2 973 3 81 2 417
6 7 pffiffiffiffiffi  g þ g þ g ð35Þ
yn ¼ D 1  1  pffiffiffi ¼ D x2 ð29Þ 3000 400 500
7 3 d
The integration constant can be eliminated similarly as shown
This relationship is valid for 0 6 1  7/(3d1/2) or in Eq. (32).
5.444 6 d(gn = yn/D 6 0.926). For 5.444 6 d, x1, x2 and x3 To illustrate the implementation of the proposed solution
are always positive and x4 is always negative. Thus, Eq. (26) of Eq. (32), the characteristics of the water surface profile were
becomes established for different values of gn, as shown in Fig. 3. The
1 figure shows the profile curves for different values of gc. Divid-
v¼ pffiffiffi  I1 ðgÞ þ constant ð30Þ ing curves for subcritical and supercritical flow regimes (i.e.
168j d critical flow depth curve g = gc) and for hydraulically mild
where I1(g) is the flow function which is given by and steep slopes (critical slope curve gn = gc) are shown. The
Accurate gradually varied flow model for water surface profile in circular channels 629

Figure 3 Dimensionless water surface profiles for different gn.

horizontal dashed line represents the uniform flow depth. The

Table 1 Three cases used for comparison with the existing
water surface curves are tangents to the vertical as they inter-
approximate method.
sect with the critical flow depth curve and approach the uni-
form flow depth asymptotically. Case Channel variables
gn D n Q So gc
4. Comparison with existing approximate method 1 0.7014 1.25 0.0111 0.96 0.0005 0.4189
2 0.7500 1.25 0.0111 1.05 0.000515 0.4381
The existing approximate solution for backwater curves is gi- 3 0.8022 1.25 0.0111 1.1 0.0005 0.4484
ven by [19,20]
630 A.R. Vatankhah, S.M. Easa
  
1 Y þ 1 Yr  1
X  Xr ¼ Y  Yr  ð1  Y4c Þ ln 
4 Y  1 Yr þ 1
þ 2ðarctan Y  arctan Yr Þ ð36Þ

X ¼ ð1  1:1y2N Þ1=2 X; yN < 0:9 ð37Þ
where
  Y = y/yn, Yc = yc/yn, yN = yn/D, X = Sox/yn, and
Xr ; Yr = boundary conditions which equal (0, 1.01) for back-
water curves and (0, 0.99) for drawdown curves. Note that
some dimensionless variables are defined differently from
those of the proposed solution.
For comparison, the backwater length was calculated for
different values of g for three cases with gn = 0.70, 0.75, and Figure 6 Profile length for different number of segments of the
0.80 using the proposed accurate solution of Eq. (32) and direct step method.
the approximate solution of Eq. (36). The corresponding val-
ues of the other variables are shown in Table 1. The percentage
difference in backwater lengths of the proposed and approxi- numerical integration of Eq. (13) as 2954.00 m which is identi-
mate solutions is shown in Fig. 4. As noted, the error of the cal to the value of the proposed solution. The backwater
approximate method increases as the value of gn increases curves for g = 0.85 are also shown in Fig. 5. As noted, the er-
and could reach up to about 30%, where the existing approx- ror in the estimated backwater length decreases for smaller
imate solution underestimates the backwater length. The error control flow depths.
also increases as the control flow depth g increases. For exam- For g = 0.90, the steps of applying the proposed accurate
ple, for gn = 0.75 the error ranges from 17% to 22%. For this solution are as follows: (a) yn = 0.9375 m from Eq. (3), thus
case, for g = 0.90 for example, the lengths of the proposed gn = 0.9375/1.25 = 0.7500, (b) j = 27.4541 from Eq. (16),
accurate approximate solutions are 2954.00 m and (c) d = 7.0013 from Eq. (15), (d) g0 = 1.01 · 0.7500 =
2339.21 m, respectively, representing a difference of 20.8%. 0.7575, (e) I1(0.90) = 864.12 and I1(0.7575) = 1258.75 from
The respective backwater profiles are shown in Fig. 5. For ver- Eq. (31), and (f) v = 0.0708 and v0 = 0.1031 from Eq. (30),
ification, the exact backwater length was calculated using thus, v  v0 = 0.17395 and from Eq. (14), x = 2954.00 m.

5. Comparison with the Direct Step Method

To show the accuracy and efficiency (substantially reduced

computational effort) of the proposed method, a comparison
between the lengths of the water surface profile computed
using the direct step method and the proposed semi-exact
method is performed as shown in the example below.
For g = 0.90, the proposed accurate solution gives
x = 2954.00 m, as described earlier. For the direct step meth-
od, the computations start with a known depth, yb, at the con-
trol structure and proceed in the upstream direction. By
considering the location at the control structure as xb = 0,
the computed values of x will be negative. Using the boundary
Figure 4 Difference between backwater lengths of proposed
condition y(xb) = yb, prescribed water depth, the direct step
(exact) and existing (approximate) solutions for gn = 0.70, 0.75,
method will be as follows [21,22]
and 0.80.
E2  Eb
x2 ¼ xb þ ð38Þ
S0  12 ðSf2 þ Sfb Þ
in which
Z
D 
E ¼ y  F2 dy ¼ Dg þ 0:106667g6 þ 0:2025g2 þ 0:278g3 ð39Þ
j
  2
n2 Q2 3 7
Sf ¼ 16=3 g2 1  g2 ð40Þ
D 4 12
where E is specific energy and (Sf2 + Sfb)/2 is mean friction
slope. Note that for a correct comparison, the specific energy
and friction slope are considered according to this study. Thus,
given a specified flow depth, y2, the location of Section 2, x2,
can be determined using Eqs. (38)–(40). This is the starting va-
lue for the next step and thus the total length of the water sur-
face profile can be calculated.
Figure 5 Backwater lengths of proposed and approximate Substituting Eqs. (39) and (40) into Eq. (38), yields a
solutions for two flow depths (g = 0.85 and 0.90) for gn = 0.75. dimensionless form as
Accurate gradually varied flow model for water surface profile in circular channels
(  )
0:106667g62 þ 0:2025g2 3
2 þ 0:278g2
g2  gb þ j1  
 0:106667g6b þ 0:2025g2 b þ 0:278gb
3
v2 ¼ vb þ n   2 3 2  2 o
d  329 34 g22 1  127 g22 þ 4 gb 1  127 g2b
ð41Þ
In this example, equal decrements of the dimensionless flow
depth are used, where the decrement size equals the difference
between the starting and ending depths divided by the number
of segments per profile J, that is (0.9  0.7575)/J. Increasing J
will increase the accuracy of the profile calculation, but will in-
crease the calculation time. Fig. 6 shows variation of the total
length of the backwater curve with the number of segments.
The results show that the near exact solution x = 2954.00 re-
quires 500 segments, clearly representing a huge computational
effort.
6. Conclusions
A very accurate approximation of the Froude number of cir-
cular channels having an error in the order of less than 1%
is presented in this paper. The Froude number was used in
the governing GFV equation to develop an exact analytical
solution of the water surface profile. The proposed solution
has substantially improved the accuracy of estimating the
water surface profile compared with the existing approxi-
mate method which underestimates the backwater length.
The characteristics of the water surface profile based on
the proposed solution have been illustrated using sample
analysis graphs that may be useful for practical purposes.
The optimization concept underlying the proposed approxi-
mation of the Froude number may be used for other types
of open channels.
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Ali R. Vatankhah earned his M.Eng. (1999)
and Ph.D. (2008) from University of Tehran.
He is currently an assistant professor in the
Department of Irrigation and Reclamation
Engineering, University of Tehran, Tehran,
Iran. He has authored more than 60 inter-
national refereed journal articles. He received
the best-discussion award for ‘‘Discussion of
’Applying Particle Swarm Optimization to
Parameter Estimation of the Nonlinear
Muskingum Model’, Journal of Hydrologic
Engineering (ASCE), 15(11), 949–952, 2010.’’ His research interests
include investigation of hydraulic behavior of irrigation structures and
their optimum design, and mathematical modeling in open channel
hydraulics.
Said M. Easa earned his B.Sc. (1972) from
Cairo University, M.Eng. (1976) from
McMaster University, and Ph.D. (1982) from
University of California at Berkeley. He is
currently professor of civil engineering,
Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada. He is
Associate Editor of the Canadian Journal of
Civil Engineering. He has published more
than 210 refereed journal articles. His work
received national and international lifetime
and best paper awards, including 2001 Frank
M. Masters Transportation Engineering Award and 2005 Arthur M.
632 A.R. Vatankhah, S.M. Easa

Wellington Prize from American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), Fellow of Canadian Academy of Engineering, Engineering Institute of
2010 James A. Vance Award and 2003 Sandford Fleming Award from Canada, and CSCE. His research interests include highway drainage
Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE), and 2010 Award of and transportation management.
Academic Merit from Transportation Association of Canada. He is