Spillways

• A spillways is a structure constructed near the dam site to

dispose of surplus water from the reservoir to the channel
downstream.
• Spillways are provided for all dams as a safety measure against
overtopping and the consequent damages and failure.
• A spillways acts as a safety valve for the dam, because as soon as
the water level in the reservoir rises above a predetermined
level, excess water I discharged safety to the downstream
channel, and the dam is not damaged.
 Types of spillway based on utility :
 Main spillways :
A main spillway is the one which is the to come into operation and is designed to
pass the entire spillway design flood. This spillway is necessary for all dams and
in most of the dams , it is the only spillway.

 Auxiliary spillway :
In some cases, where site condition are favourable it may be economical to
provide an auxiliary spillway in conjunction with a smaller main spillway. The
total capacity is then equal to the sum of the capacities of the main and the
auxiliary spillways.

 Emergency spillway :
An emergency spillway is one which is provided in addition to the main spillway
but it comes into operation only during emergency which may arise at any time
and the same might not have been considered in the normal design of the main
spillway.
Types of spillway based on most prominent features

Free overflow spillway

Overflow spillway
Side channel spillway
Open channel spillway
Tunnel spillway
Shaft spillway
Siphon spillway
Free overflow spillway
A free overflow spillway is a type of spillway in which the control
structure consists of a low- height, narrow crested weir and less
vertical.
The overflowing water may discharge as a free jet clearly away
from the d/s face crest of the spillway.
If no artificial protection is
provided on the down
stream side of the overflow
section.
 Overflow spillway
An overflow spillway is the most commonly used spillway. It is
widely used with gravity dams, arch dams and buttress dams.
An overflow spillway is an improvement upon the free overflow
spillway.
The profile of the spillway is ‘ogee’ or ‘s’. The overflowing water is
guided smoothly over the crest and profile of the spillway so that
overflow
water does not break
contact with the spillway
surface.
Side channel spillway
A side channel spillway is the one in which the flow, after
passing over a weir, is carried away by the channel running
essentially parallel to the crest.
The side channel spillway is usually constructed in a narrow
canyon where sufficient space is not available for an overflow
spillway.
Side channel spillway is also the best choice where a long
overflow crest is
desired in order to limit
the surcharge head and
the abutment are steep.
 Open channel spillway
Open channel spillway is provided in the following situation :
(a) when it is not possible to provide overflow spillway.
(b) when valley is narrow.
(c) when separate site for spillway is not available.
Generally this type of spillway is provided on earth or rock fill dam, and is isolated
from the main dam.
The open channel is sometimes of constant width , but usually narrowed for
economy.
Tunnel spillway
A tunnel spillway is the one in which a closed channel is used
to convey the discharge around or near a dam.
The control structure for this spillway may be in the form of an
overflow crest, vertical or inclined orifice entrance and side
channel crest.
The tunnel is designed to flow partly full and it is not allowed
to flow full because siphonic action may develop due to
negative pressure being developed in the tunnel.
Shaft spillway
Shaft spillway is the one which has horizontally positioned lip
through which water enters and then drops through a vertical
shaft and then to a horizontal tunnel which convey water past
the dam.
A shaft spillway consists of three main elements :
(a) overflow control weir
(b) vertical control
(c) closed discharge channel
The vertical shaft of large structures Is usually made of
reinforced concrete and the horizontal tunnel is tunnelled in
rock.
There are two general types of shaft spillway :
(a) standard crest type
(b) flat crest type
Stilling Basin
 Stilling basins are used to dissipate the energy of water exiting the spillway
of a dam
 Their purpose is to prevent scouring that occurs when high-velocity water
enters
the downstream reach of the dam
 This scouring can damage the foundation of the dam, leading to
overtopping, and also causes severe erosion downstream
 The primary method of dissipating energy is to generate a hydraulic jump to
transition flow from supercritical to subcritical
 Stilling basins are placed at the ends of dam spillways and at the ends of
steeps loped canal sections where elevation change has generated high
kinetic energy
 Stilling come in a variety of types and can either contain a straight drop to
a lower elevation or an inclined chute
 Inclined chutes are the most common design for stilling basins and the
most used inclined chutes are:
• ○ USBR Stilling Basins Type II-IV
• ○ SAF Stilling Basins
 The designs are selected based off of the Froude Number of the flow and
the Downstream view of a hydraulic jump in a stilling basin flow velocity
 Stilling Basin Elements
Chute blocks - concrete blocks built into the inclined sections of the
spillway. These features are commonly placed at the head of the stilling
basin to create turbulence prior to the hydraulic jump
 Baffle blocks - freestanding concrete blocks built in the main basin. These
blocks are only used for flows <20m/s due to the high force they are
subjected to and the potential for cavitation
 End sills - a built-up lip at the tail of the basin, with or without blocks. The
sill height has the most significant impact on energy dissipation and taller
sills are used to reduce the overall length of the stilling basin
Assignment : Derive the expression energy loss in hydraulic jump as

Where symbols have usual meaning .

Stilling Basin Selection Criteria
S.N Stilling Basin Fr. Velocity (m/s)

1 USBR TYPE I Less than 1.7 Less than 15

2 USBR TYPE II Greater than Less than 15

or equals to
4.5
3 USBR TYPE III Greater than More than 15
or equals to
4.5

4 USBR TYPE IV Range 2.5 to Less than 15

4.5
Type I
Type II
Type III
Type IV