Special Topic:  1.

Compound Channel

 For regular channel cross sections

– Critical flow occurs at minimum E

– There is only one critical depth

 For compound cross sections –

with main channel and floodplains

– There may be more than one critical depth

– Minimum E corresponds to the critical flow
– But the flow may be critical even when E is not minimum

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  Example 1

Symmetric compound cross section

Given:

– Bm = 1 m
– Bf = 3 m
– yf = 1 m
– nm = 0.013
– nf = 0.0144

Determine the critical depths for:

– Q = 1.7 cms
– Q = 2.5 cms
– Q = 3.5 cms 3

 Solution
Q2  K i3   K3 
Plot E-y diagram: E  y   ,    2   2
2 gA2  i Ai  A 
1
Ki  A R 2 / 3 , Ri  Ai / Pi
ni i i

(Q / Bm )2
yc  3
g

For Q = 1.7 cms:

- Critical flow (Fr = 1) only occurs in the main channel
- Critical depth yc = 0.67 m corresponds to minimum E (Point C) 4

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 Solution

(Q / Bm )2
yc 1  3
g

For Q = 2.5
2 5 cms:

- Critical flow occurs at two depths above floodplain level:

yc2 = 1.002 m, and yc3 = 1.12 m correspond to Points C2 and C3

- Critical flow also occurs when the flow is only in the main channel:
yc1 = 0.86 m corresponds Point C1 5

Plot Frc-y diagram:

 Define compound-channel Froude number Frc

V
Frc 
gA  A  
V 2   2   
B  B 
 K i2 
 K2 
   
  ,    d  / dy
 i Ai  A 
B  water surface width
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3
 de St. Venant equations
A  ( AV )
CE:  0 (1)
t x
1 V V 2   V V V 2 1 A  y
ME:   (2   1)  (   1)   ( S0  S f ) (2)
g t g x g x g A x  x

Equations (1) and (2) may be transformed into total differential equations
along the characteristic directions.

The equations of characteristics are given by:

dx gA
A  A  
  V  V 2   2   

dt Convection B  B 

Celerity

gA  A  
 Frc   V V 2   2   
B  B 
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 Solution

For Q = 3.5 cms:

- Critical flow (Frc = 1) only occurs when the flow is over the banks

- Critical depth yc = 1.18 m corresponds to minimum E (Point C)

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4
  Example 2
Given:
Symmetric compound cross section (same as Example 1)
Q = 2.5 cms

Free overfall

Sketch the water surface profiles for four channel bottom slopes:

– S0 = 0.0094
– S0 = 0.0049
– S0 = 0.0029
– S0 = 0.001 9

 Solution

yc3 = 1.12 m
yc2 = 1.002 m
yc1 = 0.86 m

For S0 = 0.0094:

- yn = 0.75 m (determined by Manning’s equation by trial-and-error)

- yn < yc1, Frc > 1
- Flow is supercritical (Upstream control)
- Free overfall at the downstream end does not affect the flow

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5
Water surface profiles

UF RVF

GVF (M2)

UF RVF

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GVF (M2)

 Solution

yc3 = 1.12 m
yc2 = 1.002 m
yc1 = 0.86 m

For S0 = 0.0049:

- yn = 0.97 m (determined by Manning’s equation by trial-and-error)

- yc1 < yn < yc2, Frc < 1
- Flow is subcritical (Downstream free overfall control)
- GVF: M2 curve

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6
 Solution

yc3 = 1.12 m
yc2 = 1.002 m
yc1 = 0.86 m

For S0 = 0.0029:

- yn = 1.07 m (determined by Manning’s equation by trial-and-error)

- yc2 < yn < yc3, Frc > 1
- Flow is supercritical (Upstream control)
- Free overfall at the downstream end does not affect the flow

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 Solution

yc3 = 1.12 m
yc2 = 1.002 m
yc1 = 0.86 m

For S0 = 0.001:

- yn = 1.2 m (determined by Manning’s equation by trial-and-error)

- yn > yc3, Frc < 1
- Flow is subcritical (Downstream free overfall control)
- GVF: M2 curve

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