• Location of critical depth in

STEADY FLOW IN OPEN CHANNELS open channels

• Slopes in open channel
• Velocity profiles
LOCATION OF CRITICAL DEPTH IN OPEN CHANNELS

Location of critical section may be one of the following:

1. Flow changes from super critical  sub critical
•D/S of sluice gate (sluice gate is a vertically moving gate)
2. Flow changes from sub critical  super critical
•Over the crest of spillway/wier
•Flow over a fall structure in a canal with sub critical flow
•Change of slope of canal from mild to steep
SLOPES
•S0 ( Slope of channel bed)
•Sw (Slope of water surface)
•S (Energy line slope)
VELOCITY DISTRIBUTION
•Owing to presence of free surface and to
the friction along the channel wall,
velocities in channel are not uniformly
distributed in channel section.
•Measured maximum velocity in ordinary yo
channels usually appears below the free
surface at a distance of 0.05 to 0.25 of the
depth. y

•Velocity distribution depends on factors

such as unusual shape of channel,
roughness of channel and presence of
bends.
 VELOCITY DISTRIBUTION
For wide open channel, (a rectangular channel whose width is
greater than 10 times the depth of flow), the following equation will
give velocity profile:

1 𝑦
𝑢=𝑣+ 𝑔𝑦𝑜𝑠(1 + 2.3 log( ))
𝑘 𝑦𝑜

u=velocity of flow at any point

V = Average velocity (velocity which yield discharge by a flow area)
yo = total channel depth
y = channel depth at any height
k= Von Kármán constant (0.4 for clean water, 0.2 for sediment
laden water)
VELOCITY DISTRIBUTION
ASSIGNMENT PROBLEM
Draw velocity profile:
V=1.2 m/s
Yo= 0.8m
S=0.0007
K=0.4

(hint: take different values of y from 0.1 to 0.8)