Review of Unsteady Flow in Open Channels by Jurjen Battjes and Robert Jan Labeur

The topic of unsteady flow in open channels poses numerous challenges of interest to hydraulic engineers and scientists. This new book is relatively brief and covers 288 pages. The authors emphasize the link between analytical approaches and numerical modeling. The reader will study the governing equations and solve them with a variety of analytical and numerical methods. The field applications include the propagation of flood waves in rivers as well as solutions to unsteady flow problems in harbors and coastal areas.

The book is intended for students and professionals working in the field of environmental water systems in areas such as coasts, rivers, harbors, and drainage and irrigation canals. The authors display years of hard-earned expertise gathered in the Netherlands and shared with the students of the Delft University of Technology. The book is directly available at the Cambridge University Press web site.

The book is organized as follows:

The most interesting aspect of this book is the detailed descriptions of the governing equations and the solutions from the use of complex variables and the method of characteristics. The book provides a useful presentation of classical methods to solve the equations for the propagation of waves in rivers and estuaries. The authors also present some well-accepted and perhaps more traditional numerical methods on wave propagation. A few Python programs are made available, and a range of online resources, including problem sets and computer codes, are also provided. The book clearly emphasizes analytical solutions and one-dimensional formulations. It does not cover much on multidimensional problems. The approach reflects very well the Dutch expertise on the Rhine River as well as vast estuary and coastal areas. The book contains solved problems and examples and can serve as a textbook for a graduate-level class. The material is fairly well illustrated and is presented in a way that is logical and interesting. Appendix B presents a nice digest of main formulas from each chapter.

The copy editor provided a clear presentation of the text, graphics, equations, tables, and figures. The book is handy and is relatively light. The price is affordable to graduate students as well as professionals.

Suggestions for improvement include the following: (1) Appendix A, on closed conduits, seems out of place in a book that definitely focuses on open channels; (2) there could be additional material on multidimensional problems; and (3) resistance to flow in rivers typically follows Manning’s relationship rather than the Darcy-Weisbach formula that is proposed. Fortunately, readers should find sufficient information to make desirable adjustments for their own applications.

In summary, Unsteady Flow in Open Channels is truly an excellent addition to the library. It provides a thorough mathematical treatment of wave propagation for a broad range of engineering problems. It is highly instructive and well-presented. The book is affordable to everyone, and its handy format makes it a most desirable classroom companion. It will be treasured by those who want to understand the main concepts of unsteady flow with a solid level of technical detail.