M IS C E L L A N E O U S PAPER H-73-5

SPILLWAY CREST DESIGN

by

T. E. Murphy

December I973
TA
7 Sponsored by Office, Chief of Engineers, U. S. Army
.W34m
H-73-5 Conducted by U. S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station
1973 Hydraulics Laboratory
Vicksburg, Mississippi

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE; DISTRIBUTION UNLIMITED

 ElBRARV

MAR 12 1914
Bureau of Reclamation
Denver, Colorado

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 92062368

?SPILLWAY CREST DESIGN

^by
T. E. Murphy ^
7

j December I973 l /

Sponsored by Office, Chief of Engineers, U. S. Army

rv//
Conducted by U. S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station ^
Hydraulics Laboratory
Vicksburg, Mississippi
A R M Y -M R C V IC K S B U R G . M ISS .

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE; DISTRIBUTION UNLIMITED

 Foreword

This report is essentially a paper prepared by Mr. Thomas E.

Murphy (retired), Chief of the Structures Division, Hydraulics Labora­
tory, U. S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station. It has been
reviewed and approved by the Office, Chief of Engineers, for publication
and distribution under the Engineering Studies Program, ES 801, "General
Spillway Investigations."
Directors of the Waterways Experiment Station during the prepara­
tion and publication of this report were BG E. D. Peixotto, CE, and
COL G. H. Hilt, CE. Technical director was Mr. F. R. Brown.

iii
 Contents
Page
F o r eword.................. iii
Introduction .................................................... 1
Upstream Profile ................................................ 2
Downstream Profile .............................................. 2
Proposed Tests .................................................. 3
Recommendations................................................ 5
Literature Cited ................................................ 6
Table 1
Plates 1-3

v
 SPILLWAY CREST DESIGN

Introduction /bST \V » 4 r\« \ 8 S ^

1. The author long has "been disturbed by the fact that there is
no simple universal procedure for design of overflow spillway crests.
The designer follows one set of rules if the approach depth is deep and
another if the approach depth is shallow. Also, there are different
sets of rules depending on the inclination of the upstream face of the
spillway. The design method presented herein involves one procedure re­
gardless of depth of approach or inclination of the upstream face of the
spillway.
2. Some ideas of the author regarding spillway crest design are
given below:
ei. The curvature of the crest is most critical immediately
upstream from the crest line, in the vicinity of the crest
line, and for a vertical distance of no more than one de­
sign head (%) downstream from the crest line. In this
area, velocities are relatively high and the turbulent
boundary layer is undeveloped. Thus, this portion of the
crest should follow closely the profile of the underside
of a free nappe.
b_. There should not be a discontinuity at the intersection of
the spillway crest and the upstream face of the dam. Un­
fortunately, profiles of flow past a flat plate indicate a
discontinuity at this point due to a local rapid accelera­
tion at the lip of the plate. However, when the spillway
crest is made solid this discontinuity should be eliminated
as it creates boundary turbulence that adversely affects
the discharge coefficient. For high weirs this effect is
minor, although it can be detected in plate 2 of refer­
ence 1. In a series of tests for Proctor Dam Spillway2
in which approach depth was 0 .75% , the discharge coef­
ficient with a discontinuity was 3.88 (a value expected
from data with a flat plate) but was increased to 4.00 by
elimination of the discontinuity.
c_. The need to change the crest profile with various inclina­
tions of the upstream face is due primarily to the charac­
teristics of flow along the upstream face. For instance,
with a vertical upstream face and a deep approach, flow
moves up the face as is desirable; but with a shallow

1
 approach and resulting high approach velocities, an eddy
forms at the upstream face and flow actually moves down
along this face. Thus, with shallow depths in the ap­
proach, a sloping upstream face that eliminates this eddy
usually will result in a more favorable discharge coeffi­
cient. Data obtained with a flat plate reveal that, when
the approach depth is greater than the head on the weir, a
vertical weir results in a more favorable discharge coef­
ficient than does a sloping weir; the opposite is true
when the approach depth is less than the head on the weir.
3. With the above thoughts, the author undertook development of a
design procedure, using basic data in the Bureau of Reclamation report
3
on the Boulder Canyon Project.

Upstream Profile

k. First, the profile between the upstream face of the dam and
the crest line was studied. Plots were made of Bureau data in table 12
of reference 3 that define lower nappe profiles from a vertical flat
plate for various approach velocities. These data, by use of other
tables and figures in reference 3 9 can be converted to values for depths
of approach (table l). Studies indicated that quadrants of ellipses in
which the axes systematically varied with depth of approach would fit
the measured data except that the ellipse quadrants would extend up­
stream of the position of the flat plate to become tangent to the verti­
cal. The developed ellipses superimposed on basic data for a range of
approach depths are shown in plates la-le. Plots of ellipse axes versus
approach depths, all as ratios of design head, are shown in plate 2.
5. If a sloping upstream face of the spillway is desirable then
an ellipse the same as that for a vertical face is used and the sloping
face is attached tangent to the ellipse. In plates If and lg, the pro­
posed upstream profiles with a 1-on-l sloping face are superimposed over
basic data which define lower nappe profiles from flat plates sloping
1 on 1 (from table 15 of reference 3).
Downstream Profile

6. With flow at the design head, the downstream profile should

result in zero pressure on the spillway crest for a vertical distance of

2
about 1H downstream from the crest line. For high spillways, the
a _ q Qs
equation X * = 2H* i has been found to give the desired results.
As the depth of approach is decreased, approach velocities increase and
the spillway profile should become flatter. Consideration was given to
maintaining the basic equation, X11 = KH^ ^"Y , and determining values
for n and K which would result in profiles that would match basic
data for various depths of approach. It was found that the data from
reference 3 for a vertical plate could be matched closely by maintaining
n at a value of 1.85 for all depths of approach and varying K with
depth of approach as shown in plate 2. Profiles for a deep and a shal­
low approach together with pertinent basic data are plotted in plate 3.
7. Some inconsistencies were noted when basic data with a flat
plate sloped 1 on 1 (table 15 of reference 3) were plotted. For in­
stance, some profiles exhibited a curvature near the crest line sharper
than that obtained with the vertical plate; but farther downstream, a
curvature less sharp than that obtained with a vertical plate was ob­
served. In other words, the profiles crossed. This seems unreasonable
and probably is due to difficulties in making the basic measurements.
However, in general, the basic data with a flat plate sloped 1 on 1 fell
within the limits of the profiles computed from the basic equation with
an n value of 1.85 and K values as shown in plate 2. Thus, like the
portion of the spillway upstream from the crest line, the profile down­
stream from the crest line developed from data obtained with a vertical
plate also should be used for spillways with sloping upstream faces.

Proposed Tests

8. The proposed design procedure has been verified for high spill­
ways (type 2 crest in reference l). To verify the procedure for low
crests, it is suggested that an initial series of tests be conducted on
a crest designed for a P/H_ of 0.50. The model crest would be con-
d
structed of machined plastic, allowing accurate measurement of pressures
and discharge coefficients, but would be tested in a 1-ft-wide* flume

* Multiply feet by 0.30^8 to obtain meters.

3
and thus a study of pier effects would not he possible. The crest would
he designed for a head of 0.8 ft and would he tested oyer a range of
heads from 0.2 (0.25IO to 1.2 ft (l.5H^). Ten tests would he conducted
d d
with variations in upstream face and outlet chute as given helow:

Shape of
Test Upstream
E/Ha
No. Face R

1 Vertical >2.0 —

2 3V on 2H >2.0 —

3 IV on 1H >2.0 —

k 2V on 3H >2.0 —
*
5
*
1.0
V
6 0.75 0.5Hd
* 1. OH
7 0.75
d
8 * !.5Hd
0.75
* 2. OH,
9 0.75
d
10 * 0.50
Hd

Note: E = vertical distance from crest

line to horizontal chute floor.
R = radius connecting crest to
chute floor.
* Upstream face that results in
most favorable coefficient of
discharge.

9. If the above series of tests yields favorable results, then

four additional crests designed for P/H^ values of 0.25, 0.75, 1.0,
and 2.0 should he tested in the 1-ft-wide flume. However, these crests
would he constructed of sheet metal (relatively inexpensive) and would
yield good data only on discharge coefficients; piezometers would not he
installed. Variations in the upstream face and outlet chute to he in­
vestigated should he determined from consideration of results on the
P/lL = 0.50 crest,
d
10. Finally, two or three crests should he tested in a larger
flume in which design data could he obtained including water-surface

b
profiles and pier contraction coefficients as veil as pressures and dis­
charge coefficients.

Recommendations

11. Good design data are not available for other methods that
eliminate the discontinuity at the upstream face of the dam, and obvi­
ously this is desirable. Therefore, it is recommended that the proce­
dure proposed herein for design of spillway crests be adopted immedi­
ately. Certainly the tests proposed in paragraphs 8-10 should be
expedited in order to provide design data.

Literature Cited

1. Melsheimer, E. S. and Murphy, T. E. , investigations of Various

Shapes of the Upstream Quadrant of the Crest of a High Spillway;
Hydraulic Laboratory Investigation,” Research Report H-70-1, Jan
1970, U. S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, CE, Vicks­
burg, Miss.
2. __________ , ”Spillway for Proctor Dam, Leon River, Texas; Hydraulic
Model Investigation,” Technical Report Wo. 2-6^5, Mar 196i+, U. S.
Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, CE, Vicksburg, Miss.
3. Bureau of Reclamation, U. S. Department of the Interior, "Boulder
Canyon Project, Hydraulic Investigations; Studies of Crests for
Overfall Dams," Part VI, Bulletin 3, 19^8, Denver, Colo.

5
 Table 1

Summary of Data for Weir -with Vertical Upstream Face

Symbols from Reference 3________ ______WES Symbols

H
0 P + E Hd P
h /H E/H H /P + E F/Hd
a s s ft O ft C ft ft

0.002 0.114 0.886 0.110 8 .0 6 3.97 0.886'' 8 .0 6 9.10

0.010 0.110 0 .8 9 0 0 .2 7 0 3.30 3.96 0.890 3.30 3.71
0.020 0 .1 0 6 0 .891+ 0.1+35 2.05 3.91* O.89 I+ 2.05 2.30
0.030 0.101 0 .8 9 9 0.590 1.525 3.93 0.899 1.525 1.70
O.Ol+O 0 .0 9 6 0 .901+ 0.750 1.205 3.91 0.901+’' 1.205 1.335

0.050 0 .0 9 2 0 .9 0 8 0.910 0.998 3.8 9 0.908 0.998 1.105

0 .0 6 0 0 .0 8 7 0 .9 1 3 1 .0 8 0 0.81+6 3.87 0.913 0.81+6 0 .9 2 8
0 .0 7 0 0 .0 8 3 0 .9 1 7 1.270 0.722 3.86 0.917 0.722 0 .7 8 7
0.080 0 .0 7 9 0 .9 2 1 1 .1+80 0 .6 2 2 3.81+ 0.921' 0 .6 2 2 0.675
0.090 0 .0 7 5 0 .9 2 5 1.690 0.5^7 3.83 0.925 0.51*7 0.591

0.100 0 .0 7 2 0 .9 2 8 1 .9 2 0 0.1+83 3.8l 0.928 0.1+83 0 .5 2 0

0.120 0 .0 6 6 0 .931+ 2.1+50 0 .3 8 1 3.76 0.931+1' 0 .3 8 1 0.1+08
O.ll+O 0 .0 6 0 0 .91+0 3.100 0.303 3.70 0 .9 I+0 0.303 0.322
0 .1 6 0 0 .0 5 3 0 .91+7 3.900 0.21+3 3.67 0.91*7 0.21+3 O .2 5 6 5
0.180 0.01+7 0.953 1+.850 0 .1 9 6 5 3.57 0.9531 0.1965 0.2065
0.200 o.ol+l 0.959 6 .1 0 0 0.157 3.1+6 0.959 0.157 0.161+

Notes: h^ =
velocity head of approach flow
Hs =
total head above sharp crest of plate
E =
maximum distance lower nappe rises above plate
Hq =
total head above high point on lower nappe
P =
height of plate
3/2
C = Q/LHo where Q = discharge, L = length of weir
WES symbols: = H0 (design head)
P = P + E (depth of approach)
a. VERTICAL FACE, Hd =0.886 FT

c. VERTICAL FACE, Hd =0.921 FT

LEGEND
DATA FROM REFERENCE 3
WES E LLIP S E

g. SLOPING FACE, Hd =0.953 FT

WEIR PRO FILES
UPSTREAM FROM CREST LIN E

PLATE 1
PLATE 2

0.21 0.23 0.25 0.27 0.29 0.12 0.14 0.16 1.90 2.10 2.30
A /H d B /H d K

SPILLWAY CREST
DESIGN CURVES
PLATE 3

WEIR PROFILES
DOWNSTREAM FROM CREST LINE
 Unclassified
^ ecun t^jC lass^icatioi^

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1. O R I G I N A T I N G a c t i v i t y (Corporate author) 1 2a. R E P O R T S E C U R I T Y CLASSIFICATION

Unclassified
U. S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station
2b. G R O U P
Vicksburg, Mississippi
3. R E P O R T TITLE

SPILLWAY CREST DESIGN

4. D E S C R I P T I V E N O T E S (Type o t report and in c lu siv e dates)

Final report
8- A U T H O R ( S ) ( F irst name, middle in itia l, la at name)

Thomas E. Murphy

6. R E P O R T DATE 7a. T O T A L NO. O F P A G E S 7b. N O . O F REFS

December 1973
8a. C O N T R A C T O R G R A N T NO. 8«. O R I G I N A T O R ’ S R E P O R T N U M B E R ( S )

b. P R O J E C T N O . Miscellaneous Paper H-73-5

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this report)

10. D I S T R I B U T I O N S T A T E M E N T

Approved for public release; distribution unlimited.

II. S U P P L E M E N T A R Y NOTES 12. S P O N S O R I N G M I L I T A R Y ACTIVITY

Office, Chief of Engineers, U. S. Army

Washington, D. C.
13. A B S T R A C T

The paper presents a method for design of the weir crest for any depth of approach
or inclination of the upstream face of the spillway.

DD FORM
I MOV *s !
A

d
J
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R E P L A C E S D O F O R M 147S. 1 J A N
O B S O L E T E FO R ARMY U SE.
84. W H I C H IS

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14. L IN K A LIN K B LIN K C
KEY WORDS
R O L E WT R O L E WT R O L E WT

Spillway crest design

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 In accordance with ER 70-2 -3, paragraph 6c(l)(b),
dated 15 February 1973> a facsimile catalog card
in Library of Congress format is reproduced below.

Murphy, Thomas E
Spillway crest design, by T. E. Murphy. Vicksburg,
U. S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, 1973.
1 v. (various pagings) illus. 27 cm. (U. S.
Waterways Experiment Station. Miscellaneous paper
H-73-5)
Sponsored by Office, Chief of Engineers, U. S. Army.
Includes bibliography.

1. Spillway crest design. I. U. S. Army. Corps

of Engineers. (Series: U. S. Waterways Experiment
Station, Vicksburg, Miss. Miscellaneous paper H-73- 5)
TA7.W34m no.H-73-5