Chapter one

Introduction of surface water hydrology and characteristics of drainage basin/river catchment

lecture-one

Academic year 2020/21,

Debebe Muleta
Semester- Summer Hydraulic Engineering (MSc)

Hydrogeology (MSc)
Introduction of surface water hydrology
1. Hydrological cycle
2. Watershed/catchment
3. Important Watershed characteristics
4. Precipitation, its Temporal and spatial variation
5. Runoff and its Estimation
6. Water balance /Water budget
 Hydrology is the science of occurrence, movement
and distribution of water above/below the land
surface or in the atmosphere.
 Surface water hydrology
 Groundwater hydrology
 Hydrologic cycle
 It describes the distribution and movement of water between the
earth and its atmosphere. The model involves the continual
circulation of water between the oceans, the atmosphere, vegetation
and land.
The basic components of a hydrological cycle
1.Precipitation
2.Runoff
3.Evaporation
4.Condensation
5.Transpiration
6.Evapotranspiration
7.Infiltration
8.Depression Storage
 The basic components of a hydrological cycle

Evaporation:-Heat from the sun starts the hydrologic

cycle causing water into water vapor that is held in the
air of the atmosphere.
Transpiration:- occurs
when plants take in water
through the roots and
release it through the
leaves, a process that
can clean water by
removing contaminants
and pollution.
 The basic components of a hydrological cycle

.Evapotranspiration is water
evaporating from the ground
and transpiration by plants.
Evapotranspiration is also the
way water vapor re-enters the
atmosphere
About 90% of atmospheric water
comes from evaporation, while the
remaining 10% is from
transpiration
Water is evaporated from lakes,
streams, oceans, and plants.
In addition, water is released by
animals' breathing and perspiration
 The basic components of a hydrological cycle

Condensation
 It is the conversion of a vapor or gas to a liquid.
 The water vapour evaporates from the water bodies like ocean, sea
and river.
 These vapors after reaching a height around 20km in the sky
undergo condensation and forms clouds.
 These later precipitate as rain or other forms

.
 The basic components of a hydrological cycle

Condensation- form fog, dew, and clouds

Fog: forms when air near the surface is cold and nearly

saturated with water.

Dew: Dew forms at night when air becomes saturated with

water vapor.
Clouds: When the air containing water vapor is heated by the

sun, it rises into the atmosphere by convection. The water

vapor in the air is then cooled by the colder air higher in the

atmosphere causing the relative humidity to increase..

The basic components of a hydrological cycle

Precipitation
 When the water in the clouds gets too heavy, the
water falls back to the earth.
Interception

Refers to precipitation that does

not reach the soil, but is instead
intercepted by the leaves and
branches of plants and the forest
floor.
 The basic components of a hydrological cycle
.
Infiltration: Some precipitation
seeps into the groundwater and is
stored in layers of rock below the
surface of the Earth.

Groundwater percolation: It is a
part of infiltrated water that
percolates into deeper strata and
become part of ground water.
 The basic components of a hydrological cycle

 Subsurface flow; If the terrain is sloping,

infiltrated water starts to flow under gravity.
– Interflow: Shallow ground water flow-joins
stream within few days of rain
– Base-flow: Deeper ground water flows-becomes
part of ground water
 Subsurface flow incorporates movement of water
within the earth, either within the recharge zone or
aquifers. After infiltrating, subsurface water may
return to the surface or eventually seep in to the
ocean.
 The basic components of a hydrological cycle

Runoff
 The process of water traveling over the ground and
collecting in a body of water is called surface runoff.
 This flows down slopes and hills, eventually stopping in
rivers, lakes, streams, and oceans.
 Some of this water will then evaporate and rejoin the
hydrologic cycle, while other water will remain in the
body of water.

Storage: Natural lakes or man-made reservoirs or ground

water
 2. Watershed/Catchment area
. • The area of land
draining into a stream

as drainage area or

drainage basin or
watershed

 A catchment area is
separated from its
neighboring areas by a
ridge called a divide
 Watershed and watershed divide

Watershed/
catchment
Watershed/
catchment

Wa
ter
she
dd
ivid
e
 Important Watershed characteristics

 Drainage Area (A): -most important for hydrologic

design; reflects volume of water - generated from rainfall.
o assumed as product of rainfall depth & drainage area.
o indicate potential for rainfall to provide a volume of water.
 Watershed length (L):defined as distance measured
along the main channel from the watershed outlet to the
basin divide.
o measure of travel time of water through a watershed.
 Watershed Slope (S): reflects the rate of change of
elevation with respect to distance along the principal flow
path.
 Important Watershed characteristics

 S =∆E/L; where ∆E is difference in elevation (between the end

points of the principal flow path); L- hydrologic length of the
flow path.
o Flood magnitudes reflect the momentum of the runoff. Slope is
an important factor in the momentum.
 Watershed shape: Watersheds have an infinite variety of
shapes, and the shape supposedly reflects the way that runoff
will “bunch up” at the outlet.
 A dimensionless circularity ratio (Cr) – defined as the ratio of
the basin area to the area of a circle having the same perimeter
as the basin; the values range from 0.2 to 0.8.
 Sinuosity index (SI): explains it as a factor to define a river
deviation from the expected straight path.
 is the ratio of actual length along a meandering river to the straight
distance between the end points.
 Important Watershed characteristics

• Bifurcation ratio (Rb):Bifurcation ratio is related to the

branching pattern of a drainage network
• It is the ratio between the total numbers of stream segments of
one order to that of the next higher-order in a drainage basin
• the bifurcation ratio ranging between 3 and 5 indicate the
natural drainage system within a homogenous rock.
• The lower value of bifurcation ratio are characteristics of the
watershed which have flat or rolling watersheds
• The higher values of bifurcation ratio indicate strong
structural control on the drainage pattern and have well-
dissected drainage basins.
• The higher bifurcation ratio leads to less chances of risk of
flooding
 Important Watershed characteristics

 Elongation ratio(Er): defined as the ratio of the diameter of a

circle of the same area as the basin to the maximum basin
length; the values range from 0.4 to 1.0.
 Form factor, I.e. A = Wb*Lb

where Wb = axial width of basin, Lb is axial length of the basin,

i.e., the distance from the measuring point (mp) to the most
remote point on the basin.
• Compactness coefficient, Cc = , where Pb is the perimeter
of the basin; is circumference of circular area, which equals the
area of the basin.
• If R is the radius of an equivalent circular area,
• The compactness coefficient is independent of the size of the
catchment and is dependent only on the shape.
 Important Watershed characteristics

produces greater flood intensity since

all the tributaries are nearly of the
same length
the time of
concentration is nearly
the same and is less

Causes intense flood

concentration
point or
measuring point the time of concentration is more
and the discharge is distributed
over a long period

Causes less intense flood

The stream outflow is usually measured at
concentration point or measuring point
 Important Watershed characteristics

Other characteristics of drainage

 The stream density is expressed as the number of streams
per square kilometer.
Where Ns = number of streams
A = area of the basin
 Drainage density is expressed as the total length of all
stream channels (perennial and intermittent) per unit area
of the basin and serves as an index of the areal channel
development of the basin
Where Ls – total length of all stream
channels in the basin.
 varies inversely to the length of overland flow
 A high value indicates a well-developed network
 indicates the drainage efficiency of the basin.
 torrential runoff causing intense floods
 a low value indicates moderate runoff and high permeability
of the terrain.
 Precipitation, its Temporal and spatial variation


Precipitation/Rainfall Rain: is precipitation in the form of water drops

Amount of precipitation/rain (mm or inch); is measure as total depth
of rainfall over an area in one day

Intensity of precipitation/rain (mm/hr or inch/hr); It is the amount of
precipitation at a place per unit time (rain rate). It is expressed as
mm/hr or inch/hr.

The rainfall is classified based on intensity;

 Light rain – if intensity is trace to 2.5 mm/h
Moderate rain 132– if intensity is 2.5 mm/hr to 7.5 mm/hr
Heavy rain – above 7.5 mm/hr Measurement Units
.
 Precipitation, its Temporal and spatial variation

 Rainfall varies greatly both in time and space

With respect to time–Temporal variation
With space–Spatial variation
 The temporal variation may be defined as hourly, daily,
monthly, seasonal variations and annual variation (long-
term variation of precipitation).
 Storm rainfall/precipitation: It is the precipitation of a
particular storm/rainfall event.
 Daily Rainfall: The amount of rainfall accumulated in one
day at a place,

Where Pday is daily rainfall and Pi is hourly storm rainfall during a given
day
 Precipitation, its Temporal and spatial variation

Monthly Rainfall: The amount of rainfall accumulated in one month at a

place,

Where Pmonth is monthly rainfall and Pday is daily precipitation during a given month.

Annual Rainfall: The amount of rainfall accumulated in one year at a place,

Where Pann is annual rainfall and Pday is daily rainfall

Average rainfall for N years: It is the arithmetic average of annual precipitation

for N years over a rain gauging station.

Where Pavg is average rainfall for N years and Pi is annual rainfall for ith year
 Precipitation, its Temporal and spatial variation

 Spatial variation of Rainfall or Spatial Averaging of

Precipitation
Rainfall is expressed in terms of the depth to which
rainwater would stand on an area, if all the rain were
collected on it.
It is the amount of precipitation which can be assumed as
uniform over the given area.
 To convert the point rainfall values measured by various
rain gauge stations into an average value over a catchment,
following methods are used
 Arithmetic Mean
 Method Thiessen Polygon Method
 Isohytel Method
Spatial Averaging of Precipitation

I . Arithmetic Mean
 If there are small variations in the rainfall values measured
by the stations, this method can be used.
If P1, P2, . . . , Pn are the rainfall values obtained from n
rain gauge stations within a catchment, then the average
precipitation is given by

II. Method Thiessen Polygon Method

 If there are number of rain gauge stations in and around the
catchment and if A1,A2, . . . ,Am are the respective influence
areas of Thiessen Polygon, then the average rainfall is given
by;
Spatial Averaging of Precipitation

 In this method, the rainfall recorded at each station is

given a weightage on the basis of an area closest to that
station.

1. Draw the catchment area to a scale 2. Join each station by straight line to
and mark the rain gauge stations on create a triangulated network.
it.
Spatial Averaging of Precipitation

3. Draw perpendicular bisectors 4. The polygons formed by the

on each sides of each triangles. perpendicular bisectors (and
Extend the bisectors to meet the part of catchment boundary) are
other bisectors and the catchment the influence areas of each
boundary stations.
i.

Spatial Averaging of Precipitation

 Isohyet: is a line joining points of equal rainfall magnitude.

If P1, P2, . . . , the values of isohyets and if A1, A2, . . . ,An−1
are the inter-isohyet area respectively, then the mean
precipitation over the catchment is given by

 The isohyet method is superior to the other two methods

especially when the stations are large in number.
Spatial Averaging of Precipitation

• Example
 Find average precipitation in the watershed based
on the rainfall data of six rain gauges according to
the information and data that are described below
i. Arithmetic method,
station Rainfall
(mm)
P1 1100
P2 1200
P3 1050
P4 1225
P5 1300
P6 1120
P7 1180
ii. Thiesen polygon and
station Rainfall
(mm) polygon Area (sq.km)
P1 1100 A1 25
P2 1200 A2 125
P3 1050 A3 80
P4 1225 A4 90
P5 1300 A5 120
P6 1120 A6 115
P7 1180 A7 130
iii. Isohyetal
Isohyetal Area
(mm) (sq.km)
>1200 30
1000-1200 140
800-1000 80
600-800 180
<600 20
 Runoff and its Estimation

Runoff Estimation
 Runoff is that balance of rain water, which flows or runs over the
natural ground surface after losses by evaporation, interception and
infiltration.
 The yield of a catchment (usually means annual yield) is the net
quantity of water available for storage, after all losses, for the
purposes of water resources utilization and planning, like irrigation,
water supply, etc.
 Maximum flood discharge. It is the discharge in times of flooding of
the catchment area, i.e., when the intensity of rainfall is greatest and
the condition of the catchment regarding humidity is also favourable
for an appreciable runoff.
 The runoff from rainfall may be estimated by the following
methods:
(i) Empirical formulae, curves and tables
(ii) Infiltration method
(iii) Rational method
 Runoff and its Estimation

 Concentration time (Tc) - the time required for the rain

falling at the most distant point in the drainage area (i.e.,
on the fringe of the catchment ) to reach the concentration
point is called the concentration time.
 The time of concentration can be estimated by the
formula (Kirpich, 1940)
Tc = 0.0195 K0.77

Where:
– Tc = Time of concentration (minutes)
– K = (L/ √S) and S = H/L
– L = Maximum length of drain (m)
– H = Difference in elevation over drain length (m)
 Runoff and its Estimation

 The peak flood flow due to a rain-fall event on a

catchment, determined from the rational formula,
is expressed (in SI units) as:

where:
 QRF------ is the flood peak in m3/s
 c ; is the runoff coefficient, which is defined as the
proportion of precipitation that contributes to runoff
/rate of peak runoff rate to rainfall intensity,
(dimensionless)); varies as per slope, land use etc.
 i; is the storm rainfall intensity in mm/h
 A is the catchment area in km2. for the 1st and hectare
for 2nd
 Runoff and its Estimation

 Dicken’s formula:

where, Q-Peak rate of surface runoff in m3/s, A-Area in km2;

C-Coefficient e.g. 11.45 for annual rainfall : 610 to 1270
mm rainfall

 Ryve’s formula:

 Same Q and A and C varies from 6.76 to 40.5

depending on location of watershed

 Based on practical experience and long term

observations
 Runoff and its Estimation

 Runoff coefficient: ratio of total stream flow over

total precipitation
Q
C
P
– Runoff coefficient can be assessed annually,
seasonally or monthly depending on purpose
– Should be a characteristic quantity of a watershed
assuming no change in land use
 Water balance /Water budget

Water balance/budget equation

 The hydrologic equation is nearly a statement of the
law of conservation of matter and is given by
Mass inflow – Mass outflow = change in mass storage

Qi  Qo  S
• i.e., during a given time the total inflow to a given area must equal the

total outflow plus the change in storage.

Qi - Inflow volume in to the catchment, Qo - Outflow volume from the

catchment and ∆S - change in the water volume

Water Budget Equation…
 Therefore, the water/balance budget of a
catchment for a time interval ∆t is written as:
 P – R – G – E – T = ∆S
P = Precipitation, R = Surface runoff, G = net ground water flow out of the
catchment, E = Evaporation, T = Transpiration, and ∆S = change in storage

 The above equation is called the water budget

equation for a catchment

NOTE: All the terms in the equation have the dimension of

volume and these terms can be expressed as depth over the
catchment area.
 Examples

1. A basin has an area of 26560 km2, perimeter 965 km and length of

the thalweg 230 km. Determine:
(i) form factor, (ii) compactness coefficient,(I ii) elongation ratio,
and (iv) circularity ratio.
 Water Budget Equation
2. Water at a constant rate of 370 cumecs was observed to be entering into a
Reservoir in a certain season.

If outflow from the reservoir including infiltration and evaporation losses is 280
cumecs, find out the change in storage of the reservoir for 10 such days.
Solution
I = 370 cumec
O = 280 cumec
ΔS = ?
According to the hydrologic equation,
I - O = ΔS / Δt
370 – 280 = ΔS / Δt =90 cumec
Δt=10 x 24 = 240 hours = 240 x 60 x 60 = 864x10³ sec
Total change in storage = ΔS = (ΔS / Δt) x Δt
=90 x 864x10³ = 777.6x104 m3
 Example 2
– A part of catchment area of a River measuring 78
km² received 100 mm of rainfall in 3 hours due to a
storm.
– A drainage stream joins this part of catchment to the
River.
– The stream was dry before rainfall and there was
flow in the stream for a period of 2.5 days with an
average discharge of 10 cumecs.
– After the storm runoff, the stream again became dry.
– Find the losses, direct runoff and total runoff in
volume units.
 Water Budget Equation
Solution
According to hydrologic equation,
Area of catchment A = 78 km2 =78x106 m2
P = 100 mm =0.1 m
Q = 10 m3/sec
t = 2.5 days = 2.5 *24x60x60 sec
Total Volume = PxA = ( 0.1 ) x 78 x 106 = 7.8x106m3
= 7.8x106 m3
DRO = 10x2.5x24x60x60=2.16x106 m3

L = P - R = 7.8x106 - 2.16x106 = 5.64x106m3

 Assignment # 1
1. Assume that a Reservoir has surface area of 39 sq. km in the beginning of

a certain month and the water depth is 76.20 m for this whole surface of

the lake. Further assume that sides of reservoir are nearly vertical. Now in

that month the reservoir received an average inflow of 226.50 cumec as a

direct runoff, and direct precipitation of 125 mm. The outflow from the

reservoir was 170 cumec and evaporation and seepage losses were

estimated to be 113 mm during that month. Find out depth of reservoir at

the end of that month and total increase or decrease in the storage.
2. A lake had a water surface elevation of 103.2 m above datum at the

beginning of a certain month. In that month the lake received an average

inflow of 6.0 m3/s from surface runoff sources. In the same period the outflow

from the lake had an average value of 6.5 m3/s. Further, in that month, the

lake received a rainfall of 145 mm and the evaporation from the lake surface

was estimated as 6.10 cm. Write the water budget equation for the lake and

calculate the water surface elevation of the lake at the end of the month. The

average lake surface area can be taken as 5000 ha. Assume that there is no

contribution to or from the ground water storage.

3. A small catchment of area 150 ha received a rainfall of 10.5 cm in 90
minutes due to a storm. At the outlet of catchment, the stream draining the
catchment was dry before the storm and experienced a runoff lasting for 10
hours with an average discharge value of 2.0 m3/sec. the stream was again dry
after the runoff event.

A) what is the amount of water which was not available to runoff due to
combined effect of infiltration , evaporation and transpiration?

B) What is the ratio of runoff to precipitation?

4. In a given year, a catchment with an area of 2500km2 received 130cm of
precipitation. The average flowrate measured in a river draining it was
30m3/s.
A) how much runoff reached the river in a year (in m3)

B) estimate the total amount of water lost due to the combined effect of
evapotranspiration and infiltration (in m3)

C)How much precipitation is converted to runoff?

THE END!