Hydraulic radius is used in various engineering applications, particularly in the calculation of pipe and channel flow. It is defined as the flow area divided by the wetted perimeter. $latex r_h = \frac{Flow Area}{Wetted Perimeter}&s=2$ Flow Area This is the cross-sectional flow area of the channel or pipe. When a pipe is flowing under pressure, […]
Archives for October 2013
How to calculate Tailwater
October 3, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Tailwater is defined as the depth of flow in a channel immediately downstream of a drainage facility. Since a drainage structure can create a constriction, the tailwater is usually a starting point, from which the resulting headwater is calculated. Early in my career I was confused by this, because it would seem that building a […]
How to Calculate Runoff
October 1, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Calculating the design flow, or runoff, is usually one of the most difficult parts of an engineering project. We’ve come a long way towards defining some of the abstractions, but unfortunately it is still an inexact science. There are three primary methods to calculating a design flow (and one additional important consideration): Rational Method SCS […]