FLOW IN OPEN CHANNELS

An open channel is a flow system in which the surface

the superior part of the fluid is exposed to the atmosphere, that is to say it must have
a free surface.

This type of channels or systems are present in various

areas from the gutters that are used to drain the water from
rain even to the fluid channels in the industry and even the
an easier example to remember, a river or stream.

The channels have a cross section that can have

any geometric shape, when this section does not change to the
The length of the channel is referred to as a prismatic channel.
Types of flow
Types of flow:
According to the change in flow depth with respect to
in time
Permanent flow: The flow depth does not change during the
considered time interval.
Non-permanent flow: The depth changes over time.
Almost always, permanent flow channels are studied; however,
in studies of avenues or floods, the flow level changes and is
it is necessary to consider non-permanent flow for its study.
For any flow, the flow rate Q that passes through a section is: Q = VA.

V:velocidad media y A: el área de la sección

In a permanent continuous flow, the flow rate is constant throughout the

segment and the flow is equal in the different sections: Q = V1A1 = V2A2 =
V3A3= ...

In the case of spatially varied or discontinuous flow, that is, when

the flow rate of a permanent flow is not uniform throughout the channel,
this last invalid equation (spatially varied flow or
discontinuous: ditches along the roads, channel landfills
lateral, main irrigation canals, etc.)
According to the change in flow depth with
regarding space:

Uniform flow: The depth of the flow is the same at each

channel section. It can be permanent or non-permanent,
depending on whether the depth changes over time.
The condition of steady uniform flow is fundamental.
for the study of channels.
The term 'uniform flow' will be used to refer to flow
permanent uniform.

Varied flow: The flow depth changes along the

channel. It can be permanent or non-permanent.
The term 'Non-permanent flow' is used to refer to the
varied non-permanent flow.
The varied flow can be:
Quickly varied: The depth changes at distances
short (hydraulic jump and fall, it is a local phenomenon)
Gradually varied: The depth changes not so
abruptly at long distances
Flow status
El estado o comportamiento del flujo en un canal abierto es
governed by viscosity and the gravity relative to the forces of
inertia.
Effects of viscosity: The flow can be laminar, turbulent
or transition

Laminar flow:
When the velocity gradient is low, the inertial force is
greater than that of friction, the particles move but do not rotate,
or they do it but with very little energy, the final result is a
movement in which particles follow defined trajectories, and
all the particles passing through a point in the flow field
they follow the same trajectory.
The particles move in layers or sheets.

Turbulent flow:
As the velocity gradient increases, friction increases.
between neighboring particles in the fluid and acquire an energy of
appreciable rotation; the viscosity loses its effect and due to the
rotation the particles change trajectory the particles collide
between each other and change direction erratically.
The Reynolds number allows to establish the type of flow

Reynolds number
.
=

V: it is the flow velocity (m/s)

L: it is the characteristic length (equal to the hydraulic radius Rh of
conduit (m)
kinematic viscosity of water. (m2/s)

Reynolds Number Ranges for Open Channels:

Laminar Flow Re < 500
Turbulent flow Re > 2000
Transitional Flow 500 < Re < 2000

Hydraulic radio
It is the characteristic dimension of open channels, and it is the
relationship between the area
net transversal of a flow and the wetted perimeter of a
channel section

= =
í
 Effect of gravity:

The effect of gravity on the state of

flow is represented by the relationship between the
inertial forces and gravitational forces

Froude Number

=
.

Where V: is the average flow velocity

g: the acceleration of gravity
L: the characteristic length.

In open channels, L is equal to the hydraulic depth D, defined

like the area of the cross section of the water perpendicular to the
flow direction in the channel, divided by the width of the free surface.

For rectangular channels, L is equal to the depth of the section.

flow
 Critical condition
If F = 1; = .
Subcritical state
If F < 1; < .
Supercritical state
If F > 1; > .

When subcritical flow occurs, the role of the

gravitational forces is more dominant: the flow
it has a low speed, it is calm and the current
is slow.

When the flow is supercritical, the inertial forces

they become dominant: the flow has a high
speed and is described as fast, ultra-fast and
torrential.
Flow regimes: Effect of viscosity and the
gravedad
Subcritical-laminar
Supercritical-laminar
Supercritical-turbulent
Subcritical-turbulent

The first two are not common in hydraulics of

channels; however, they occur in flows with
small depths and they are important in the
flow study on the land and the control of the
erosion in that flow.
Properties of open channels

An open channel is a conduit in which water flows with a

free surface
.
Natural canal. They are all those that exist naturally in the
land: streams, brooks, rivers, tidal estuaries, among others.
The hydraulic properties of a natural channel are very complex,
Reasonable assumptions are made for their study to deal with them.
the principles of theoretical hydraulics. They are studied by Hydraulics
Fluvial.

Artificial canal. They are all built through effort.

Navigation channels, central channels
hydroelectric plants, irrigation channels and ditches, drainage ditches,
landfills, overflow channels, road ditches, channels of
laboratory, etc.

The hydraulic properties of these channels can be

controlled up to a desired level or designed to meet
specified requirements.

The artificial canal is a long channel with a gentle slope, built

about the soil, which can be uncoated or uncoated with rock,
concrete, wood or bituminous materials, among others.
In this course, prismatic channels will be studied, which are constructed
with an unchanging cross-section and a bottom slope
constant.
Prismatic channel geometry Channel section
It is the cross-section of a channel taken in a perpendicular manner.
in the direction of the flow.

Vertical section of the channel. It is the vertical section that goes through
from the lowest point of the channel section.
Artificial channels are designed with cross-sections of shapes.
regular geometric shapes.

The trapezoidal channel is one of the most commonly constructed due to its
construction advantages.

Geometric elements of a channel section

These elements are very important for the flow calculation. In a
artificial canals are defined in terms of flow depth and the
dimensions of the section; in natural channels they are determined
curves that represent the relationship between the elements and the
depth of flow.

Area (A). It is the wet area or the cross-sectional area of the flow.
perpendicular to the direction of flow.

Wet perimeter (P). It is the length of the intersection line of the

wet canal surface and a cross section perpendicular to
the flow direction.
Hydraulic radius (R). It is the ratio of the wetted area to
regarding its wet perimeter

Surface width (T). It is the width of the section of the

canal on the free surface.

Hydraulic depth (D). It is the relationship between the area

wet and the width on the surface

Section factor (Z). It is used for critical flow calculation.

It is the product of the wet area and the square root of the
hydraulic depth

= =
Flow depth (y). It is the vertical distance from the point
lower than a section of the channel to the free surface.

Level. It is the elevation or vertical distance from a level of

reference up to the free surface.

Section factor for the calculation of uniform flow (AR2/3).

It is the product of the wetted area and the hydraulic radius raised to the
power (2/3).
Distribution of velocity in an open channel
The speed in a channel is neither constant nor the same everywhere.
point of a section of the channel. The viscosity, the roughness and the
the shape of the channel, among other factors, affects the flow

The average speed in the section is determined by measuring the

speed at 0.6 of the depth in each strip in which it is divided
section, or else, the average of the speeds taken is calculated at
0.2 and 0.8 of the depth.
Specific Energy
Consider the flow of a liquid in a channel in a section
transversal where the flow depth is y, the velocity
average flow V, and the relative elevation of the channel bottom to
some reference level given z.
Where 'z' is the lift load, P/ρg= and it is the load of
gauge pressure and V2/2g is the dynamic or of
speed.

Total energy is not a realistic representation of the

true energy of a fluid that flows since the level of
reference that was chosen for the elevation and therefore the value
the lift load 'z' is somewhat arbitrary.

The intrinsic energy of the fluid through the section

transversal can be expressed with greater reality if taken
as a reference point the bottom of the channel and of that
way Z = 0.

The sum of the pressure load and the dynamic load of a

liquid in an open channel is called specific energy Es, and
is expressed as:
Consider the flow in an open channel with a constant width b.
It is observed that if the flow rate is Q = Ac.V = ybV.
The average flow velocity can be expressed as:

=
.