Hydraulic Performance of a Steep Single Layer Riprap Drainage Channel
Publication: Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 134, Issue 11
Abstract
Highway drainage channels often approach slopes of 0.5 (50%). Single layer riprap-lined channels at this slope have been constructed for highway drainage and appear to perform satisfactorily, but no quantitative information is available to guide their hydraulic design. A scale laboratory hydraulic model, using a single layer of sized crushed limestone, was constructed to determine the relationship between depth of flow and discharge. The flow range investigated took place at depths near or below the top of the riprap, since riprap instability occurred at greater depths. Standing waves and localized hydraulic jumps dominated the surface of the flow, which held streamwise-averaged Froude numbers in a narrow range near the critical condition for those flow depths for which the channel is designed. This resulted in a simple relationship between unit discharge and depth of flow that applies to the model and prototype channels.
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Acknowledgments
This research was supported by the West Virginia Division of Highways, under the project “Hydraulic Design of Steep Riprap Drainage Channels,” Grant No. UNSPECIFIEDWVDOH RP#168. The writers appreciation is directed at George Hall, Hydraulic Engineer, WVDOH, for proposing the project and assisting in the design of the experiments. Appreciation is also expressed to WVU Professor Hemi J. Siriwardane for his assistance with the geotechnical aspects of the project as a co-principal investigator. Last, but not least, credit is given to two exceptionally talented senior level WVU undergraduate students, Randy Whitescarver and John Weekley, who did virtually all of the experiment construction and conducted the experimental measurements.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 134 • Issue 11 • November 2008
Pages: 1651 - 1655
Copyright
© 2008 ASCE.
History
Received: Sep 12, 2006
Accepted: Feb 24, 2008
Published online: Nov 1, 2008
Published in print: Nov 2008
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