DESIGN OF ALLUVIAL CHANNEL/CANAL

-TRACTIVE FORCE METHOD

Content of the PPT

❑ Concept of Tractive Force

❑ Unit Tractive Force

❑ Distribution of Tractive Force

❑ Tractive Force Ratio

❑ Permissible Tractive Force

❑ The Design Procedure

What is a Tractive Force ?

❑ Tractive Force: Tractive Force is the

force exerted by the flowing liquid on
the bed and side of the channel in the
direction of flow .

❑ The particles of the wetted perimeters

will experience some sort of force due
to the water in the direction of flow

❑ The water in the channel try to pulls

the bed and side material
 What is a Tractive Force ?

In uniform flow, tractive force is equal to the component of the gravity in the direction of flow

Let us consider any Arbitrary cross section:

❑ Let say that the bed slope is 𝜃

❑ Consider the two section as control

volume. The weight of water in the CV
will act vertically downward W (Weight
of water = unit weight x volume)

❑ Hence the component of weight in the 𝜃

𝑊 = ρ𝑔 𝐴 𝐿
direction of flow is 𝝆𝒈𝑨 𝑳 𝑺𝒊𝒏𝜽 =
𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞
What is a Tractive Force ?

❑ Hence the component of weight in the direction of flow is F=𝝆𝒈𝑨 𝑳 𝑺𝒊𝒏𝜽 = 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞

❑ Since most of this type of canal are design in Plain area, and For plain area , 𝜃 is small.

❑ For hilly areas: we design as non alluvial canal

In Uniform flow,
𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑠𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝜃, 𝑆𝑖𝑛𝜃 = 𝜃 = So = 𝑏𝑒𝑑 𝑠𝑙𝑜𝑝𝑒

Tractive Force = ρ𝑔 𝐴 𝐿 So
 What is Unit Tractive Force ?
❑ Unit Tractive Force : Average value of tractive
force per unit Wetted area

ρ𝑔𝐴 𝐿 So
τ0 =
𝑃𝐿

𝝉𝟎 = 𝝆𝒈𝑹 𝑺𝟎

❑ In a wide rectangular channel, where the

width is significantly larger than the depth
Wetted area = P L
of flow, the hydraulic radius (R) can indeed be
approximated as the same as the depth (y).

𝝉𝟎 = 𝝆𝒈𝒚 𝑺𝟎

❑ If the width is wide , but B/Y ratio is less, that

that is not a wide channel. For very wide
channels (B/D > 10)
 Distribution of Tractive Force
❑ Although Unit Tractive Force is Average value of tractive force per unit area, the tractive force exerted by
the fluid on the bed and side slope of the channel will not be uniform all over the bed and side slope of the
channel

❑ This will vary for different type of channel and different B/Y ratio.

For example Tractive Force For Trapezoidal channel when B= 4y and side slope is 1.5 : 1

Olsen and Florey (1952)

United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) provide these graphs where Unit Tractive Force can be found based
on b/y ratio
Tractive Force Ratio

As these are non- lined channels, the soil particles on

the bed and side slope can get eroded from its
locations due to two reasons:

1. Tractive force in the direction of flow

2. Component of soil’s gravity of the submerged

particles
 For soil particle on the side slope of flowing channel

Two forces causes the motion of the particles

1. Tractive force in the direction of flow = 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 × 𝜏0𝑠

𝜏0𝑠 = 𝑈𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑠𝑙𝑜𝑝𝑒
2. Component of soil’s gravity force = 𝑊𝑠 sin ∅
∅ 𝑊𝑠 sin ∅

𝑊𝑠 = 𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑚𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑑 𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙 𝑊𝑠

𝑊𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑏𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑑𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦

If Ae is the effective area of the particle, then

1. Tractive force on the particle = 𝐴𝑒 × 𝜏0𝑠

2. Component of soil’s gravity force = 𝑊𝑠 sin ∅

Both 𝐴𝑒 𝜏0𝑠 and 𝑊𝑠 sin ∅ are perpendicular to

each other

Hence the resultant that can cause motion of particle in Side slope =

2 1/2
𝑊𝑠 𝑆𝑖𝑛2 ∅ + 2
𝐴𝑒 𝜏0𝑠 2
When the motion of the particle is about to begin from rest , then

Resistance to motion on the soil particle= Resultant force tending to cause the motion

Resistance to motion on the soil particle ( Frictional Force, 𝐹𝑓𝑠 )=

Ffs = Coeeficient of friction × (component of gravity force trying to push the particle
into the slope)

𝐅𝐟𝐬 = 𝝁𝒔 × 𝑾𝒔 𝐜𝐨𝐬 ∅

𝑾𝒔 𝐜𝐨𝐬 ∅
∅
𝑾𝒔
 𝐅𝐟𝐬 = 𝝁𝒔 × 𝑾𝒔 𝐜𝐨𝐬 ∅

Angle of repose is a soil properties. Different soil have different angle of repose (𝜃𝑟 )

From the principle of Mechanic

Coeeficient of friction is related to angle of repose of the soil used in the canal

Thus, From the concept of Mechanic,

𝝁𝒔 = 𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝜽𝒓

𝐅𝐟𝐬 = 𝑾𝒔 𝐜𝐨𝐬 ∅ 𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝜽𝒓

Resistance to motion on the soil particle= Resultant force tending to cause the motion

𝟐 𝟏/𝟐
𝑾𝒔 𝐜𝐨𝐬 ∅ 𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝜽𝒓 = 𝑾𝒔 𝑺𝒊𝒏𝟐 ∅ + 𝟐
𝑨𝒆 𝝉𝟎𝒔 𝟐

Re arranging the term

𝑾𝒔 𝟏/𝟐
𝝉𝟎𝒔 = 𝑪𝒐𝒔𝟐 ∅ 𝒕𝒂𝒏𝟐 𝜽𝒓 − 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝟐 ∅
𝑨𝒆

𝝉𝟎𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝑺𝒊𝒅𝒆 𝒔𝒍𝒐𝒑𝒆

Similarly Unit tractive force in the Channel Bed

𝑻𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 = 𝑨𝒆 𝝉𝑶𝑳

𝝉𝑶𝑳 𝒊𝒔 𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒍 𝒃𝒆𝒅 𝒐𝒓 𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒅𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏

𝑭𝒓𝒄𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 = 𝝁𝒔 × 𝑾𝒔 = 𝑾𝑺 𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝜽𝒓

𝑾𝒔
𝑨𝒆 𝝉𝑶𝑳 = 𝑾𝑺 𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝜽𝒓

𝑾𝒔
𝝉𝑶𝑳 = 𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝜽𝒓
𝑨𝒆
 Tractive Force Ratio

𝑾𝒔 𝟐 𝟐 𝟐 𝟏/𝟐
𝝉𝟎𝒔 𝑪𝒐𝒔 ∅ 𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝜽 𝒓 − 𝒔𝒊𝒏 ∅
𝑨𝒆
𝐾= =
𝝉𝑶𝑳 𝑾𝒔
𝑨𝒆 𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝜽𝒓
𝟏/𝟐
𝑪𝒐𝒔𝟐 ∅ 𝒕𝒂𝒏𝟐 𝜽𝒓 − 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝟐 ∅
𝐾=
𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝜽𝒓

Tractive force Ratio simply contains information about the side slope ∅ and the material of the soil
𝜽𝒓 . It does not contain any other quantities related to force or weight .

Thus it is easy to use for design of the channel

∅ is a fraction , thus 𝝉𝟎𝒔 is K (which is fraction) 𝝉𝑶𝑳 , thus tractive force at side is always less than bottom
Critical and Permissible Tractive Force

❑ Critical Tractive Force: Tractive force at which the particle are just in incipient motion condition

❑ Permissible Tractive Force: The maximum Unit Tractive Force that will not cause erosion of the
Material. This Permissible tractive force have to used in the design of the channel. It is kept below
the critical tractive force

❑ It Depend on particle size. It is determined in the laboratory experiment or based on experience

❑ Design curve of Particle size versus permissible tractive force are available

❑ United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) has given an expression for permissible force as

𝑙𝑏
𝜏𝑝 = 0.4× 𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟 (𝑖𝑛𝑐ℎ)
𝑓𝑡 2
𝑙𝑏 𝑘𝑔
1𝑓𝑡 2 = 4.882 𝑚2
 Permissible Tractive Force can also be taken as 0.9 of critical Tractive force 𝝉𝒄

𝑲𝑵
𝝉𝒄 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒅𝒊𝒂𝒎𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒅 𝒎 𝒃𝒚 𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈
𝒎𝟐

Shield’s Equation, 𝜏𝑐 = 0.06 𝜌𝑔 𝐺 − 1 𝑑 = 0.98 𝑑

White’s Equation, 𝜏𝑐 = 0.801 𝑑

Lane’s Equation, 𝜏𝑐 = 0.78 𝑑

Shield’s Equation can be use with experience and will lead to smaller dimension, but if you want to be
conservative use Lane or White which will lead to bigger Dimension
Design Procedure

1. Assume B/y ratio based on the availability of space or based on experience what should be the
approximate Y for the given discharge

2. Assume side slope based on the material of the channel and then ∅ can be obtained

3. Angle of Repose 𝜽𝒓 can be obtained from particle size

4. Tractive Force K is calculated

𝟏/𝟐
𝑪𝒐𝒔𝟐 ∅ 𝒕𝒂𝒏𝟐 𝜽𝒓 − 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝟐 ∅
𝐾=
𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝜽𝒓
Design Procedure

5. Calculate the maximum unit tractive force at the side in term of 𝜌𝑔𝑦𝑆0 or use Shield, White, Lane
Equation or from standard table based on the given material

6. Calculate the permissible tractive force at the side

𝜏𝑂𝑠 = 𝐾 𝑜𝑏𝑡𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑝 4 × 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑜𝑏𝑡𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑝 5

7. Equate the value of 𝜏𝑂𝑠 obtained from the assume B/y ( i.e. from step 6) with the value of 𝜏𝑂𝑠 which
𝐵
is 𝑋 𝜌𝑔𝑦𝑆0 𝑋 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑑𝑒𝑝𝑒𝑛𝑑 𝑢𝑝𝑜𝑛 to get the value of B and y
𝑦

8. Safety against bottom tractive stress is checked

Design Procedure

9. Carrying capacity of the channel is checked by computing Discharge Q using Manning’s equation
and considering the bed slope as average slope of the terrain

10. If the carrying capacity is just sufficient to carry the required discharge , design is considered ok.

11. If the carrying capacity is less than the required discharge, then the procedure is repeated with an
increase B/Y ratio or slight changes of side slope

12. Procedure is repeated till a sufficient section is obtained

13. A free board is added

Free Board

Freeboard Recommended in India ( Central Board of Irrigation and Power CBIP) are as given
Below:

Discharge <0.75 0.75 to 1.5 1.5 to 85 > 85

(m3/s)
Free Board (m) 0.45 0.60 0.75 0.90