Application of Acoustic Doppler Velocimeters for Streamflow Measurements
Publication: Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 133, Issue 12
Abstract
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) principally has used Price AA and Price pygmy mechanical current meters for measurement of discharge. New technologies have resulted in the introduction of alternatives to the Price meters. One alternative, the FlowTracker acoustic Doppler velocimeter, was designed by SonTek/YSI to make streamflow measurements in wadeable conditions. The device measures a point velocity and can be used with standard midsection method algorithms to compute streamflow. The USGS collected 55 quality-assurance measurements with the FlowTracker at 43 different USGS streamflow-gaging stations across the United States, with mean depths from , mean velocities from , and discharges from . These measurements were compared with Price mechanical current meter measurements. Analysis of the comparisons shows that the FlowTracker discharges were not statistically different from the Price meter discharges at a 95% confidence level.
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Acknowledgments
The USGS and Environment Canada provided financial support for this work. The writer gratefully acknowledges the assistance of many USGS field personnel for their efforts to collect and summarize the comparison measurements used in this paper.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 133 • Issue 12 • December 2007
Pages: 1433 - 1438
Copyright
© 2007 ASCE.
History
Received: May 2, 2006
Accepted: Aug 13, 2007
Published online: Dec 1, 2007
Published in print: Dec 2007
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