3.

DAM OUTLET WORKS

3.1 Introduction to Dam out lets
Introduction
Most of the water, which is stored in a reservoir for irrigation water supply or power penetration
purposes, is stored below the spillway crest level. The spillway is provided at normal pool level,
such that the floods are discharged safety above the spillway. But, in order to draw water from
the reservoir as and when needed, for irrigation, water supply, power generation etc it is
absolutely necessary that outlet works are provided either through the body of the dam or
adjacent to it through some hillside at one end of the dam, or adjacent to it through some hillside
at one end of the dam, this water may be discharged to the down stream channel below the dam
or may be transported at distances where required (to some power house, etc) through pipes or
canals. The opening a pipe or tunnel provided for this withdrawal of water is known as a dam
out let.
Spillways and Its Design Principles
It is a structure constructed to pass surplus flood water on the D/S of reservoir and Dam.

Essential requirements of a spillway

 The spillway must have sufficient capacity.

 It must be hydraulically and structurally adequate.
 It must be so located that it provides safe disposal of water i.e., spillway discharge will
not erode or undermine the D/S toe of the dam.
 The bounding surface of spillway must be erosion resistant to withstand high scouring
velocity created by the drop from reservoir surface to tail water.
 Usually some devices are needed for energy dissipation on the D/S side of spillway.

Types of Spillway

Classification based on the time when the spillways come into operation
(a) Main or service spillway
(b) Auxiliary spillway
(c) Emergency spillway

Main or service spillway

Main spillway is the one which comes into operation and is designed to pass the entire spillway
design flood.

Auxiliary spillway
It is provided as a supplement to the main spillway and its crest is so located that it comes into
operation only after the floods for which the main spillway is designed is exceeded. Thus it is
provided in conjunction with the main spillway. Conditions favorable for the provision of
auxiliary spillway are the existence of a saddle or depression along the rim of the reservoir which
leads into a natural water way. On the crest of auxiliary spillway instead of a control gate a fuse
plug (earth dam or dyke) may be provided, which allows the water surface in the reservoir to rise
above the crest of spillway and is so designed

1
That when overtopped it automatically washes out thus releasing excess flood water.
Emergency spillway
It is also provided in addition to main spillway but it comes into operation only during
emergency which may arise at any time which may not have been considered in the normal
design of main spillway. Some of the situations which may lead to emergency are:
(i) an enforced shut down of the outlet works
(ii) A malfunctioning of spillway gates.
(iii) The necessity of bye passing the regular spillway because of damage or failure of
some part of the structure
(iv)Further an emergency may also arise if a recurring flood occurs before a previous flood is
evacuated by the main spillway and outlet works.

Emergency spillways are also provided in the saddles or depressions if available. It is often
provided as breaching section which is a portion of the dam with its crest lower than the main
dam and is so designed that it is washed out when the water in the reservoir reaches a
predetermined elevation. The breaching section is also called fuse plug spillway

Classification according to flow through the spillway

(i) controlled or gated spillway
(ii) un controlled or un-gated spillway

Classification based on the prominent features pertaining to the various component of the
spillway:

The various components of a spillway are

 Control structure,
 Discharge channel
 Terminal structures – energy dissipaters
 Entrance & outlet channels.

With respect to control structures discharge channel etc, the spillway is classified into
following types.

(i) Free over-fall or straight drop spillway

(ii) Over flow or Ogee spillway
(ii) Chute or open channel or trough spillway
(iii) Side channel spillway
(iv) Shaft or morning glory spillway
(v) Conduit or tunnel spillway
(vi) Siphon spillway

I. Free over fall or straight drop spillway

A free over fall spillway is the one for which the control structure is low height narrow crested
weir having its down face vertical or nearly vertical. The over flowing water may be discharged
as in the case of a sharp crested weir. Water, flowing over the crest, drops as a free jet clearly
away from the down stream face of the spillway. Occasionally the crest of this spillway is
extended in the form of an overhanging lip to direct small discharges away from the D/S face.

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II. Over flow or Ogee spillway
Overflowing water in this case is guided smoothly over the crest of the spillway and is made to
glide over the downstream face of the spillway.
The profile of the ogee weir is generally confined to the lower nappe that would be obtained for
maximum head over spillway. The control structure is a weir which is ogee or S shaped.
The shape of such a profile depends upon the
Head
The inclination of U/S face of the overflow section and
The height of the overflow section above the floor of the entrance channel.

The ogee profile should provide maximum possible hydraulic efficiency, structural stability and
economy and also avoid the formation of objectionable sub-atmospheric pressure at the crest.
The ogee profile may be categorized into three groups:

(i) Overflow dams with vertical U/S face

The following equation as given by U.S. corps of engineers may be used for finding coordinates
(X , Y) for the D/S profile

x1.85 = 2 (Hd) 0.85 y

Where X & Y are coordinates as shown in the figure and Hd is the design head.
For U/S profile following coordinates with origin at crest are recommended

(ii) Over flow dams with sloping U/S face

The D/S profile may conform to the following equation:

xn = K (Hd)n-1 y

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Where: n., K are variable parameters which depends on the inclination of U/S face of the dam.
Hd is the design head. These are called standard “WES standard spillway shapes”
Values of constant K,n , R1,R2, a and b
Shape of K N R1/Hd R2/Hd a/Hd B/Hd
U/S face
Vertical 2.000 1.850 0.5 0.20 0.175 0.282
3V: 1H 1.936 1.836 0.68 0.21 0.139 0.237
3V: 2 H 1.939 1.810 0.48 0.22 0.115 0.240
3V: 3H 1.873 1.776 0.45 0.00 0.119 0.000

The curved profile of the crest section is continued till it meets tangentially the straight sloping
portion of the overflow dam section (spillway).The slope of the d/s face of the overflow dam
usually varies in the range of 0.7(H):1(V) to 0.8:1 and is basically decided on the basis of
stability requirements. The location of the point of tangent depends upon the slope of the d/s
face, where the value of dy/dx for the curved profile and the straight segment must be equal at
the end of the sloping surface of the spillway. At the end of the sloping surface a curved circular
surface called BUCKET is provided to create a smooth transition of flow from spillway surface
to river.
The BUCKET is also useful for dissipation of energy and prevention of scour.
Radius R of the bucket may be obtained approximately by the following empirical formula.
(V+6.4H+4.88)/(3.6H+19.52)
R = 0.305x10
Alternatively, R = P/4
Velocity of flow may be approximated from the relationship (Neglecting the friction losses on
the spillway surface.
V= [2g(Z+Ha-y)]1/2
Where, Z= P+Hd is the total fall from u/s water level to the floor level at the d/s toe
Ha = Head due to velocity of approach.
y = tail water depth
Alternatively USBR formula, V= [2g(Z- 0.5 Hd)]1/2 can be used.
U/S profile of the Weir Crest
(a) Vertical U/S face: The u/s profile should be tangential to the vertical face and should
have zero slope at the crest axis to ensure that there is no discontinuity along the surface
of the flow. The u/s profile should conform to the following equation:
y = {0.724 (x+ 0.270 Hd)1.85/(Hd )0.85 }+ 0.126 Hd - 0.4315(Hd)0.375(x + 0.270 Hd)0.625
Alternatively the u/s slope may be considered to consist of compound circular curve with values
of R1= 0.50 Hd and R2 = 0.20 Hd
The chord length up to R1 , and R2 is given as a = 0.175 Hd and b = 0.282 Hd

Discharge Computation of over ogee crest

The discharge over ogee spillway is computed from the basic equation of weir given below:
Q = Cd L H1.5
Where, Q = Discharge in cumec
Cd = coefficient of discharge
L = effective length of overflow crest in meters
H = Head of over flow in meters including velocity of approach head.
H = Hd + Ha
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The discharge coefficient is influenced by a number of factors:
(i) Height of spillway above stream bed or depth of approach
(ii) relation of the actual crest shape to the ideal nappe shape
(iii) upstream face slope
(iv) downstream apron interference, and
(v) down stream submergence
(vi) Ratio of actual total head to the design head
(vii) effect of head due to velocity of approach

The effect of these factors is discussed below:

Height of spillway or Effect depth of approach
The height of spillway above stream bed or approach channel affects the velocity of approach
which in turn affects the coefficient of discharge. With increase in height of spillway the velocity
of approach decreases and the coefficient of discharge increases.
Model tests indicate that the coefficient of discharge becomes fairly constant when height of
spillway > 3.0 Hd, where Hd is the design head including the head due to velocity of approach.
Various text books give a plot of Cd versus Hd which is reproduced here in the form of a table
P/Hd Cd P/Hd Cd P/Hd Cd
0.0 1.7 0.1 1.875 0.2 1.97
0.3 2.025 0.4 2.06 0.5 2.09
0.6 2.12 0.7 2.135 0.8 2.15
0.9 2.16 1.0 2.17 1.5 2.185
2.0 2.195 2.5 2.2 3.0 2.205
4.0 2.210
In the table P is the height of spillway.
When u/s face is inclined the above Cd values gets multiplied by a factor from 0.995 (for P/ H d =
1.5) to 1.04 (for P/ Hd = 0.2)

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Negative Pressure over spillway surface

(i) H> Hd the pressure on the crest will be negative (sub atmospheric) may lead to cavitation.
Model tests show that till H < 1.25 Hd there is no harmful cavitation effect.
(ii)H< Hd the pressure on the crest is positive. Lower nappe of the jet attaches itself to the
boundary. Also when H > H d lower nappe may leave the boundary for some distance on d/s face
and may attach again as the air mass in between the boundary and the lower nappe gets sucked
out. This may lead to the vibration of the structure.

Avoid negative pressure as:

(i) It increases overturning moment at the crest
(ii) It increases the force required for lifting of the gates
(iii) It causes decrease in the capability for automatic control

6
 (iv) It causes vibration which extends all over the structure. The vibration also causes
cracks in the mortar of stone lining of the crest
Problem:
Design ogee spillway for the following data:
(i) Height of the spillway crest = 100.0 m
(ii) Number of spans = 10
(iii) Length of each span (clear) = 12.5
(iv) Thickness of each pier = 3 m
(v) D/s slope of spillway = 0.8(H): 1(V)
(vi) Rock condition = good
(vii) Design discharge = 8500 m3/s

Design (i) Head over crest & coefficient of discharge

(a) Clear Water Way = 10x12.5 = 125
Let us assume Cd =2.21 maximum value
(b) Effective length of spillway = Le = L - 2[N Kp+ Ka]Hd
Cut water (90o) nosed piers are supposed to be used with rounded abutments.
Kp = 0.01 and Ka = 0.1 and hence Q= 2.21[125 - 2(9x0.01 + 0.1) Hd] Hd3/2
(c) By trial and error Head over the crest Hd =10.024
(d) P/ Hd = 100/ 10.024 = 9.976 > 4.0 Hence Cd =2.21
There is no effect of depth of approach or height of spillway
The effect of various other factors as given previously may be studied, reference may be made to
standard texts on the subject. The effect has been found to be negligible and hence the value of
Cd assumed remains unchanged.

(e) D/S profile

The profile recommended is X1.85 = 2 (Hd)0.85Y = 2(10.024)0.85Y = 14.188 Y
or, Y = X1.85 /14.188
The calculated coordinates of d/s profile are

Xm Ym Xm Ym
1.0 0.0705 7.0 2.5793
2.0 0.2540 9.0 4.1061
3.0 0.5380 11.0 5.9519
4.0 0.9159 13.0 8.1072
5.0 1.3841 14.28 9.6455

The slope of d/s glacis = 0.8(H):1(V)

Differential equation of d/s profile dy/dx = 1/0.8 = 1.25
d/dx [ X1.85 /14.188] = (1.85/14.188) X0.85 = 1.25
so, X= 14.28 and Y = 9.6455

(f) U/S profile R1 = 0.5 Hd = 0.5x 10.024= 5.012

and R2= 0.2 Hd = 0.2x10.024= 2.00048
b= 0.282 Hd = 2.827 a = 0.175 Hd = 1.754
Alternatively calculate the profile from the given equation.
Equation for u/s profile
0.27 Hd = 2.706 Hd 0.85 = 7.09 Hd0.375 = 2.373
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0.126 Hd = 1.264 0.4315 Hd0.375 = 1.024
y = [{0.725 (x+2.706 ) }/ 7.09] + 1.264 - 1.024 (x + 2.706)0.625
1.85

Calculation of Radius of Bucket

Total length of Water Way = Clear length + Thickness of Piers = 125 + 27 = 152 m
VY = 8500/152 = 55.92 m2/s
Hence, V = 55.92/Y = [2g(110.024 - Y)]1/2
Solving by trial Y = 1.21 m and V = 46.21 m

Then (V+6.4Hd+4.88)/(3.6Hd+19.52)
R = 0.305x10
Substitute values of V and Hd in the above equation R= 0.305 x 102.072 = 36.04 m
Negative pressure on crest
The maximum negative pressure on the crest is just on the d/s of gate and are less than 0.15 H d=
0.15x 10.024 = 1.50 m which is less than permitted negative of 4.3 m of water.
Aeration To control negative pressure and consequently cavitation damage, aeration pipe 25 mm
dia @ 3 m c/c along the spillway below the gate lip would be provided. These pipes would be
connected to the bigger size header pipe.

Height of Side Wall

Coordinates of Upper Nappe profile over a sharp crested weir are given in any book on fluid
mechanics which can be plotted over the spillway profile. Side walls should be higher than the
Upper Nappe by a margin of Free Board .

ENERGY DISSIPATERS
In hydraulic engineering numerous devices like stilling basins, baffled aprons, and vortex shaft
etc., are known under the collective term ENERGY DISSIPATERS. Their purpose is to dissipate
hydraulic energy (convert to heat). These are also called downstream protection works and
occupies a vital place in design of spillways, weirs and barrages. The problem of designing
energy dissipaters is one essentially of reducing the high velocity flow to a velocity low enough
to erosion, abrasion of hydraulic structures, generation of tail water waves or scouring. There are
several methods of dissipating the energy of shooting flow of water. They can be classified as
below:
Hydraulic Jump type Stilling Basin
(i) Horizontal apron type
(ii) Sloping apron type
Jet Diffusion & free jet stilling basin
(i) Jet diffusion basin
(ii) Interacting jet diffusion basin
(iii) Free jet stilling basin
(iv) Hump stilling basin
(v) Impact stilling basin
Bucket type energy dissipaters
(i) Solid roller bucket type
(ii) Slotted roller bucket type
(iii) Sky jump Bucket type (trajectory or shooting or flip)
Energy dissipation process can be achieved in five separate stages some of which may be
combined or may be absent
(i) On the spillway surface
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 (ii) In a free falling jet
(iii) At impact into a Down stream pool
(iv) In the stilling basin
(v) At he out flow into a river

Factors affecting the design of energy dissipaters

(i) Nature of foundation
(ii) Magnitude of flood & their occurrence
(iii) Velocity of flow
(iv) Orientation of flow
(v) Depth discharge and its relationship at the site of structure
Last factor is most important. A thorough knowledge of its implications on the design of energy
dissipaters is a pre-requisite for the most efficient and cheapest type of structure.
For example the relationship of tail water depth and tail water depth play a crucial rule in
efficient energy dissipation.
¿
If the jump begins at the end of sloping section then Y 2 = yt type A jump governed by eq.
y2 1
y1 2 √
= [ 1+8 F21 −1 ]
(3.24)

ii) If the end of jump concides with the intersection of the sloping and horizontal beds, a
type C jump occurs

iii) If Yt < than that required for a type C jump but Yt > Y2, the toe of the jump is out the
slope and rnd on horizontal bed, the situation is terms a type B Jump
iv) If Yt > than that required for a type C jump, then a type d jump occurs completely on
sloping section.
v) Type E jump occur on sloping beds which have no break in slope
vi) Type F rare type F jump occurs only in stilling basins normally found below drop
structures

Relationship of tail water curve(TWC) to Jump height curve(JHC)

The JHC may be related to TWC in five different ways:
Jump height curve (JHC) always above the tail-water curve(TWC)
This means that the depth of flow in the river in particular section is in sufficient for all
discharges for formation of jump at the toe of structure. The jump will try to sweep across the
apron at a high velocity and attack the bed down stream. The energy dissipation can be achieved
in any of the following ways:

(a) Lowering the floor level D/S of the spillway so as to make the tail water depth in the stilling
basin equal to jump height curve for all discharges. This may lead to three cases:
(i) Horizontal floor but depressed below the river bed level
(ii) A depressed floor but rising towards the Downstream end
(iii) A depressed floor but sloping away from the toe of spillway
(b) Stilling basin with baffles or sills at river bed level
(c) Stilling basin with a low subsidiary dam downstream.

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(d) Bucket type structure---- If under the conditions of low tail water depth there is a bed of solid
rock which can withstand the impact of water, Ski Jump bucket energy dissipater may be
adopted. Such a device will throw the high velocity flow passing over the spillway upwards so it
travels some distance from the toe of the spillway before it falls back and strikes the river bed.
Here the energy is dissipated by the aeration of the jet and impact of the water on the river
bottom. Though some scour takes place, it is too small or too far from the dam to endanger it.

2. Jump height curve always below the tail water rating curve
with higher depth of tail water, the tendency of high velocity flow is to drive under the water and
travel a long distance along the bottom and forming only a very imperfect jump. The energy
dissipater can be done in the following ways:
(i) Providing a sloping apron
(ii) Roller bucket type energy dissipater

3. Jump height curve above tail water rating curve at low discharges and below it at
higher discharges.
A horizontal apron in river level in this case provides an insufficient depth at low discharges and
extra depth for high discharges to form a suitable Hydraulic Jump. The solution therefore, lies in
creating artificially enough water depth to make the jump form on apron at low discharges.
The following may be adopted:
(a) Stilling basin with a low secondary dam
(b) Stilling basin with baffle piers or some form of dentated sill

4. Jump height curve below the tail water curve at low discharges and above it at higher
discharges
The main condition to be met in this case is the provision of sufficient depth of tail water for
formation of jump in high flows.
Construction of a secondary dam or a sloping will serve the purpose.

5. Jump height curve corresponds to post jump depth for all discharges
Provide a horizontal concrete apron and stilling basin

USBR TYPE STILLING BASINS

(1) stilling basins for Froude's number between 1.7 and 2.5.
For this case
only a horizontal apron needs to be provided. As the flow in this case does not have much
turbulence usually no accessories are required to be provided. However, the apron should be
sufficiently long to contain the entire jump over it.
Length of apron = Length of jump = 5 Y2, where Y2 is the sequent depth.

(2) Stilling basins for Froudes number between 2.5 and 4.5
For this range of Froudes number Type I stilling basin has been found to be effective for
dissipating the energy of flow. The basin is provided with chute blocks. The length L of the
stilling basin may be obtained for different values of F1 from the following table:
F1 2 3 4 5
L/Y2 4.3 5.3 5.8 6

10
In this case due to oscillating jump being developed, wave action is produced which cnnot be
entirely dampened. However in order to suppress the wave action the floor of the basin should be
so set that the tail water depth in the basin is 10 % greater than the sequent depth Y 2. this will
also check the tendency of the jump to sweep out of the basin.

11
(3) Stilling basins for Froudes number higher than 4.5
For this case depending upon the velocity of incoming flow, two types of of stilling basin have
been developed as indicated below.

(a) When the velocity of incoming flow is less than 15m/s, Type II stilling basin have been
adopted. This basin utilizes CHUTE BLOCKS, BAFFLE BLOCK and an ENDSILL. The size,
spacing and location of the chute and baffles blocks are shown in figure. The length L of the
stilling basin and the heights h3 and h4 of the baffle blocks and end sill respectively may be
obtained for different values of F1 from the following table:

F1 5 6 8 10 12 14 16
L/Y2 2.3 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.8 2.8
h3 /y 1 1.5 1.7 2.0 2.3 2.7 3.0 3.3
h4 /Y 1 1.2 1.3 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9

Where Y1 and Y3 are initial and sequent depths

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By providing the baffle blocks the length of the stilling basin is considerably reduced because the
dissipation of energy is accomplished by the hydraulic jump as well as by the impinging action
of the incoming flow against these blocks. However, the baffle blocks will be subjected to large
impact forces due to impingement of incoming flow. Moreover on the downstream face of the
baffle blocks usually suction or negative pressure will be developed which will further increase
the forces acting on these blocks. Hence, baffle blocks should be properly anchored at the base.
Further the floor of the basin will also be subjected to additional load due to the dynamic forces
created against the upstream face of the baffle blocks, which should be considered in the design
of the floor of the basin.

(b) When the velocity of the incoming velocity exceeds 15 m/s, TYPE III STILLING BASIN
may be adopted. In this basin only chute blocks are provided and instead of a solid end sill a
dentate sill is provide. In this basin baffle blocks are not provided because
(i) Due to high velocity of incoming flows these blocks will be subjected to excessive
large impact forces and
(ii) There is a possibility of cavitation along the downstream face of theses blocks and
adjacent floor of the basin due to large negative pressure developed in the region.
However, due to baffle blocks being eliminated in this case the dissipation of the energy is
primarily accomplished by hydraulic jump and hence the length of the basin will be greater than
that indicated for the TYPE II BASIN. The length of TYPE III stilling basin may be obtained for
different values of F1 from the following table:

F1 5 6 8 10 12 14
L/Y2 3.85 4.0 4.2 4.3 4.3 4.3
Again in this case also in order to check the tendency of the jump to sweep out of the basin the
floor of the basin is so set that the tail water depth in the basin is 5% greater than the sequent
depth.

Bucket type energy dissipaters

A bucket type energy dissipaters consists of an upturned bucket provided at the toe of the
spillway. The bucket type energy dissipaters may be used only for overflow type spillways. This
type of energy dissipation becomes more economical than the method of stilling basins when the
Froude number F1 of the incoming flow exceeds 10, because in such cases the difference between
initial and sequent depths being large a long and stilling basin would be required. Moreover the
bucket type energy dissipaters may be used with any tail water condition. However, this type of
energy dissipater may be used only when the river bed is composed of stiff rock. The bucket type
energy dissipaters are of the following three types:
(i) Solid roller Bucket
(ii) Slotted roller Bucket
(iii) Ski jump ( or flip or trajectory bucket)
The solid or slotted roller bucket may be used where the tail water depths are too large as
compared to the sequent depths required for the formation of the hydraulic jump. Both these
buckets remain submerged in tail water and hence these are also termed as submerged bucket
type energy dissipaters. The solid and slotted roller buckets are discussed as under:
(i) Solid roller Bucket
A solid roller bucket consists of a bucket like apron with a concave circular profile of large
radius and a deflector lip as shown. When the water flows over the bucket the entire sheet of
water leaving the bucket is deflected upward by the bucket lip and two elliptical rollers are
developed as shown in the figure. One of the roller which moves in the counter clock wise
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direction is developed on the surface of the bucket and is contained within the region above the
bucket. This is known as bucket roller ( or surface roller). The other roller moving in the clock
wise direction is developed on the ground surface immediately downstream of the bucket, which
is known as ground roller, the movement of the rollers, along with the intermingling of the
incoming flows causes the dissipation of the energy.

The upward deflection of water by the bucket lip creates a high boil on the water surface and a
violent ground roller. This ground roller continuously pulls the loose bed material backwards and
deposits the same against the lip of the bucket. Some of the materials may move into the bucket,
which may get trapped there and damage the surface of the bucket by abrasion. Moreover due to
severe surface boil the turbulent flow persists for a considerable distance on downstream side
thus resulting in the erosion of the river banks. These drawbacks of the solid roller bucket are
removed in slotted roller bucket.
__________
Radius of the Bucket: R= 0.6 H/ *Hd
Where H/ = fall from crest of spillway to bucket invert in meter.
And Hd =Head over crest in meters
Vente Chow’s Formula R = 0.306 *10k
Where k = (v1+6.4 Hd +4.88)/(3.6 Hd + 19.5)
V1 = velocity of flow at the toe of spillway in m/s

Slotted Roller Bucket

A slotted roller bucket also consists of a bucket like apron with a concave circular profile of
large radius but it has a slotted (or dentated) deflector lip. In general the hydraulic action of the
slotted bucket has the same characteristics as that of a solid bucket. Thus in the case of the
slotted bucket also the same two rollers are developed. However in this case the water leaves the
lip of the bucket at a flatter angle and only a part of it is deflected upwards. Thus surface boil is
considerably reduced, and less violent ground rollers occurs which results in a smoother flow on
the downstream side. Moreover in this case the bed material is neither deposited nor carried
away from the bucket lip, also any debris which might get into the bucket is immediately washed
out through the slots. However the performance of the slotted bucket is considerably affected by
tail water depth. At low tail water depths the bucket roller will be swept out of bucket and will
produce high velocity flow on the downstream side which will scour the river bed. On the other
hand when the tail water depths becomes excessively large the jet water leaving the bucket will
get depressed and drive to the river bed which will scour the river bed at the point of
impingement. Thus the slotted roller buckets are suitable only for alimited range of tail water
depths

SKI JUMP BUCKET

A ski jump bucket may be used where the tail water depth, is less than sequent depth required for
the formation of hydraulic jump and the river bed is composed of stiff rock. The lip of the bucket
is so shaped that the entire sheet of the water flowing over the bucket is deflected as a free jet
which falls back into the river channel at a safe distance away from the spillway. Thus in this
case energy is dissipated by air resistance, breaking of the jet into bubbles and the impact of the
falling jet against the river bed and tail water.
BUCKET INVERT level is decided mainly from the structural point of view. If the power house
is situated below the ski jump bucket, then the invert should be fixed higher than the roof top of
power house. In some cases bucket is lower than the tail water the bucket invert then is so

14
decided so as to provide a concrete cover of 1.5m to 3.0m over the bed of rock. The pure ski
jump or flip as it is often called is provided such that bucket lip is always higher than the
maximum tail water depth.
Bucket Radius has the same formula as the solid roller bucket.
Entrance and exit slope:
For the entrance slope, the steepest spillway slope that should be used is 4 vertical to 1
horizontal. The exit angle  is an important factor in determining the length of the trajectory.
Theoretically if friction, air retardation etc., are neglected, the formula to be used to evaluate the
horizontal component of the jet trajectory

X= (Vo2/g) sin 2
Jet trajectory height is given by Y = h sin2 = (Vo2/2g) sin2
A judicious selection of exit angle is necessary, an exit angle of 30 o to 35o is a good choice.
When the maximum tail water is lower than the bucket lip shape of the lip is kept flatter for ease
of construction. High sub atmospheric pressure at downstream lip has to be avoided by aeration
or provide a curved or sloping lip.

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