Uncertainty Model for In Situ Quality Control of Stationary ADCP Open-Channel Discharge Measurement
Publication: Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 138, Issue 1
Abstract
This paper presents a relative standard uncertainty (RSU) model for stationary acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) open-channel discharge measurement. The model is a combination of the Type A and Type B evaluation of uncertainty and complies with the latest methodology for evaluating uncertainty in measurements implemented by the International Organization for Standardization. The Type A uncertainty component in the model accounts for the site-specific measurement conditions such as ambient turbulence; ADCP pitch, roll, and heading variations/errors; and the system noise of the ADCP used at the site. It is determined by statistical analysis of ADCP subsection ensemble discharge data. The model provides an in situ tool for quality control of a stationary ADCP discharge measurement.
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Acknowledgments
The writer thanks Jeffrey L. Den Herder of Teledyne RD Instruments, who collected the discharge data from the San Diego River on January 29, 2010, and February 10, 2010, and assisted the writer in the field work for the San Diego River discharge measurement on January 4, 2011. He also thanks Svetlana Titova and John Koch of Teledyne RD Instruments, who collected the discharge data in the irrigation canal at the Ben Hulse Highway site in the Imperial Irrigation District, California, and Mike Baron of Manitoba Hydro, Canada, who kindly offered his data for the under-ice discharge measurement. The writer is also grateful to the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments that helped improve the paper.
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© 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Mar 16, 2010
Accepted: Jul 15, 2011
Published online: Jul 16, 2011
Published in print: Jan 1, 2012
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