Search results for " Structural"

Water Level Measurement Locations for Coastal Aquifer Management

2003

The coefficient of variation of the optimal cost (CVOC) method is applied to the Acqua dei Corsari coastal aquifer in Sicily's north coast to find the best point for a new water-level measurement location. The purpose of collecting data from the new measurement location is to reduce uncertainty associated with a stochastic management model for salt-water intrusion control. Assuming that uncertainty mainly stems from spatial variability of permeability, the structural parameters of the stochastic spatial permeability field are estimated using data from a nearby aquifer with similar geological properties. It is first shown through sensitivity analysis that the lack of previous information inh…

Exploiting the topographic information in a PDM-based conceptual hydrological model

2014

In this work, a conceptual lumped model was developed to simulate runoff and analyze hydrological processes with the goal of incorporating the morphological information into a probability-distributed model (PDM). PDMs usually describe the process of runoff generation as the result of soil saturation excess caused by precipitation with soil storage capacity represented by a spatially distributed quantity and described by a probability distribution. The proposed model, called topography-based probability distributed model (TOPDM), based on a simple water balance whose components are basin soil moisture storage, precipitation, drainage to groundwater, evapotranspiration, and Dunnian and Horton…

Scour around a Permeable Groin Combined with a Triangular Vane in River Bends

2019

River restoration refers to the environmental and ecological aspect of river engineering and aims to improve the natural habitat of a river system using eco-friendly methods. This paper introduces a new river restoration technique for bank protection and restoration of meander bends by combining a permeable groin with a triangular vane. Nine different combinations of permeable groins with triangular vane including three different effective lengths and three angles of vane were investigated in a 180 degrees mild laboratory flume bend in clear water conditions. Based on experimental tests, scour geometrical patterns were analyzed, classified, and compared with each other. This analysis showed…

Discussion of “Unsteady Stage-Discharge Relationships for Sharp-Crested Weirs” by Firouz Ghasemzadeh, Salah Kouchakzadeh, and Gilles Belaud

2021

I would like to thank the authors for writing this interesting article dealing with unsteady stage-discharge relationships for sharp-crested weirs. The operation of triangular and rectangular sharp-crested weirs in unsteady flow conditions was experimentally investigated. Results indicated the presence of looped rating curves, with transposition of the rising and falling limbs compared to that commonly observed in stream gauge ratings. The authors found that the deviation between steady and unsteady flow rates in the looped rating curves depends on the weir type and the hydrograph gradient (i.e., the temporal depth variation), especially when the latter changes rapidly. Finally, they propos…

Establishing a soil loss threshold for limiting rilling

2015

In this paper a frequency analysis of event soil loss measurements collected in the period 1999–2012 at the microplots and plots of the Sparacia Experimental Area in Sicily, southern Italy, was developed. The analysis was carried out using the annual maximum soil loss measurements normalized by the mean soil loss measured at a given temporal and spatial scale. The empirical frequency distribution of the normalized variable was well fitted by two Gumbel’s theoretical probability distributions discriminated by a value of the normalized variable equal to 2. This last value discriminates between the relatively low and frequent values of the normalized variable and the high and rare ones. The an…

Quick and Slow Components of the Hydrologic Response at the Hillslope Scale

2016

It is widely recognized that the Hortonian mechanism of runoff generation occurs in arid and semi-arid regions, generally characterized by high rainfall intensity on soils exhibiting low infiltrabilities. Differently, in steeply sloping forested watersheds in humid climates, by infiltrating through a highly permeable upper soil horizon, water moves beneath the soil surface determining a slow response. However, in most real cases, for example when in arid regions mountain forested areas take place, both (quick and slow) runoff generation processes coexist and together contribute to the hydrologic hillslope response. In this paper, based on analytical solutions of the hydrologic response, ins…

Flow Velocity Measurements in Vegetated Channels

2002

Understanding of the hydraulics of flow over vegetation is very important to support the management of fluvial processes. In this paper the flow over flexible bottom vegetation is experimentally studied. A two-dimensional-acoustic doppler velocimeter is used to measure the local flow velocities for different vegetation concentrations, discharges, and flume slopes. The influence of vegetation concentration and the depth/vegetation height ratio on the measured velocity profiles is analyzed. All measured velocity distributions are S-shaped and exhibit a three-zone profile. The relationship between the velocity distribution and the turbulence intensity distribution is also analyzed. The charact…

Discussion of “Analytical Equation for Variation of Discharge in Drip Irrigation Laterals” by V. Ravikumar, C. R. Ranganathan, and S. Santhana Bosu

2005

New stage-discharge relationships for radial gates

2013

Calibration of gates under free and submerged flow regimes is a classical hydraulic problem. In this paper dimensional analysis was applied to investigate both free and submerged flow conditions through a radial gate. The original Ferro’s method for submerged flow regime was modified by introducing the maximum allowable tail water depth permitting free flow. Based on Buckingham theorem and applying the Incomplete Self Similarity (ISS) concept different forms of the dimensional equations were proposed. According to the current available experimental data the most accurate dimensionless formula was proposed. The proposed dimensional equation not only is more accurate than the original Ferro’s…

Modifications in Water Resources Availability Under Climate Changes: A Case Study in a Sicilian Basin

2014

Climate variability due to the greenhouse effect has important implications on hydrological processes and water resources systems. Indeed, water availability, quality and streamflow are very sensitive to changes in temperature and precipitation regimes whose effects have to be fully considered in current water management and planning. International literature proposes several models, attempting to assess accurately the available water resources under stationary and changing climatic conditions at different spatial and temporal scales. In order to assess the potential impacts of climate change on surface and groundwater resources water availability in a Southern area of Italy, a conceptual h…