5.

0 DESIGN FLOWS
5.1 Introduction
 Hydrologic design may be grouped in two categories namely, design for water control and design for water use. Both
categories will be considered.
 Water control is concerned with mitigating the adverse effects of high flows (floods) and the major task is to determine the
flood flow for flow conveyance structures (storm, sewers, drainage channels, etc) as well as for flow regulating structures
(e.g. detention basins, flood control reservoirs, weirs, etc).
 The purpose of flow conveyance structures is to safely convey the flow to downstream points where the adverse effects of
the flows are controlled or minimal while that of flow regulation structures is to smooth out peak discharges thereby
decreasing downstream flood elevation peaks.
 Water use is concerned with the development of water resources to meet human needs alongside the conservation of the
natural environment. The increasing water demand must be balanced against the finite supply provided by nature and the
need to maintain a healthy animal and plant life in water environments.
 In contrast with hydrologic design for water control, which is concerned with mitigating the adverse effects of high flows,
hydrologic design for water use is directed at utilizing average flows and with mitigating the effects of extremely low
flows.

5.2. Storm Sewer Design

 Storm sewers are networks of pipes laid underground to safely convey storm runoff from built areas to natural water
channels or water bodies such as streams and lakes.
 Built environments also have sanitary sewers which are pipes used to convey wastewater.
 Sewer systems that convey both storm water and wastewater are called combined sewers.
 With increasing awareness of public health and environmental conservation, combined sewers are no longer being built.
 System concepts are increasingly being used as an aid in understanding and developing solutions to complex urban
problems.
 A storm sewer system is composed of three principal components, namely, the inlet, the pipes and the outlet (Fig. 5.1).

Figure 5.1: Elements of a storm sewer system

 An adequate and properly functional storm water drainage system is one of the basic facilities needed in a built
environment.

5.2.1 Design Approach

 A storm sewer system is a network of pipes used to convey storm runoff in an urban area. The design of a storm sewer
system involves the determination of diameters, slopes and elevation of each pipe in the system.
 The crown and invert elevations of a pipe are, respectively, the elevations of the top and the bottom of the pipe
circumference.
 Design for storm sewer is preceded by the system layout for which good knowledge of the site is a key requirement. This
may be acquired from topographical maps, land development plans and site reconnaissance.
 The selection of a layout for a storms sewer system requires a considerable amount of subjective judgement. Sewers are
sloped in the direction of the ground surface to facilitate gravity flow.

CVS 447 Page 1

 Storm drainage design can be divided into two aspects: runoff prediction and system hydraulic design.
 Runoff prediction may be achieved by computer models that have been developed in recent years for rainfall-runoff
modelling in urban catchments. However, the rational method is widely used on account of its simplicity and acceptable
results.
 The objective of hydraulic design is to determine the size (capacity) of the pipes.

 The design approach is governed by standards of regulating authorities which incorporate the following constraints and
assumptions:
1. The sewer is designed for gravity flow.
2. The sewers are of commercially available circular sizes no smaller than 8 inch/200mm.
3. The design diameter is the smallest commercially available pipe having flow capacity
equal to or greater than the design discharge e.g., 200mm, 300mm, 400, 450mm.
4. Storm sewers must be placed at a depth such that they will drain basements and will have sufficient cushioning to
prevent breakage due to surface loading or soil pressure. Minimum cover depths must therefore be specified.
5. The sewers are joined at junctions such that the crown elevation of the upstream sewer is no lower that of the
downstream sewer.
6. Minimum permissible flow velocity at design discharge must be specified to prevent excessive deposition of
solid material in the sewers (0.6 - 0.76 m/s). This is the self-cleansing velocity. This is achieved by ensuring that
when the pipe is flowing half full, a minimum velocity not less that the cleansing velocity is maintained.
7. At any junction (or manhole) the downstream sewer must be larger than any of the upstream sewers at that
junction.
8. The sewer system is a branching network converging in the downstream direction without closed loops.

5.3 Runoff Prediction using the Rational Method

 This is probably the most widely used method in urban storm sewer design (because of its simplicity).
 The runoff rate gradually increases from zero to a constant value as indicated in Fig. 5.2. The runoff increases as more and
more flow from remote areas of the catchment reach the outlet.
 Designating the time taken for a drop of water from the farthest part of the catchment to reach the outlet as tc = time of
concentration, it is obvious that if the rainfall continues beyond tc, the runoff will be constant and at the peak value. The
peak value of the runoff is given by
 The peak value of the runoff is given by (rational method equation) :

𝑄 = 𝐶𝐴𝑖; for t ≥ tc …………………………………………………………. (5.1)

Fig. 5.2: Runoff Hydrograph due to Uniform Rainfall

where C = coefficient of runoff = (runoff/rainfall), A = area of the catchment and i = intensity of rainfall.
 Using the commonly used units, Eq. (5.1) is written for field application as”:

𝑄 = 0.278 𝐶 𝑖 , 𝐴…………………………………………………………. (5.2)

Where Qp = peak discharge (m3/s)
C = coefficient of runoff
𝑖 , = the mean intensity of precipitation (mm/h) for a duration equal to tc and an
exceedance probability P
A = drainage area in km2

CVS 447 Page 2

 The use of this method to compute Qp requires three parameters: tc, (itc,p) and C.

Time of Concentration (tc)

 There are a number of empirical equations available for the estimation of the time of concentration. Kirpich equation is
the commonly used.
 It relates the time of concentration of the length of travel and slope of the catchment as:

𝑡 = 0.01947 𝐿 . 𝑆 . ………………………………………………………….. (5.3)

where tc = time of concentration (minutes)
L = maximum length of travel of water (m), and
S = slope of the catchment = ∆ H/L in which
∆H = difference in elevation between the most remote point on the catchment and the
outlet.

 For easy use Eq. (5.3) is sometimes written as:

.
𝑡 = 0.01947 𝐾 …………………………………………………………………………. (5.3a)
Where 𝐾 =
∆
Rainfall Intensity (itc,p)
 The rainfall intensity corresponding to a duration tc and the desired probability of exceedence P.
 This will usually be a relationship of the form in equation 5.4.
𝑖 , = ( )
…………………………………………………………. (5.4)

in which the coefficients K, a, x and n are specific to a given area.

 The recommended frequencies for various types of structures used in watershed development projects are given in Table
5.1:

Table 5.1: Recommended frequencies for various structures

Runoff Coefficient (C)

The coefficient C represents the integrated effect of the catchment losses and hence depends upon the nature of the surface,
surface slope and rainfall intensity.
 Some typical values of C are indicated in Table 5.2(a & b).
 Equation (5.2) assumes a homogeneous catchment surface. If however, the catchment is non-homogeneous but can be
divided into distinct sub areas each having a different runoff coefficient, then the runoff from each sub area is
calculated separately and eqn 5. 5 is used:
∑
𝐶 = ……………….……………………………………………….... (5.5)
where Ai = the areal extent of the sub area i having a runoff coefficient Ci and N =
number of sub areas draining into a sewer.

Table 5.2(a): Value of the Coefficient C in Eq. 5.2)

CVS 447 Page 3

Table 5.2(b): Values of C in Rational Formula for Watersheds with Agricultural and Forest Land Covers

 The rational formula is found to be suitable for peak-flow prediction in small catchments up to 50 km2 in area.
 It finds considerable application in urban drainage designs and in the design of small culverts and bridges.

Example 5.1: An urban catchment has an area of 85 ha. The slope of the catchment is 0.006 and the maximum length of
travel of water is 950 m. The maximum depth of rainfall with a 25-year return period is as below:

If a culvert for drainage at the outlet of this area is to be designed for a return period of 25 years, estimate the required peak-
flow rate, by assuming the runoff coefficient as 0.3.

Solution
The time of concentration is obtained by the Kirpich formula [Eq. (5.3)] as:
. .
𝑡 = 0.01947 × (950) × (0.006) = 𝟐𝟕. 𝟒 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒔
By interpolation,
Maximum depth of rainfall for 27.4-min duration

CVS 447 Page 4

 From Equation 5.2: Q = 𝟎. 𝟐𝟕𝟖 × 𝟎. 𝟑 × 𝟏𝟎𝟑. 𝟖 × 𝟎. 𝟖𝟓 = 𝟕. 𝟑𝟓 𝐦𝟑 ⁄𝐬

Exercise 5.1: A 750 ha watershed has the land use/cover and corresponding runoff coefficient as given below:

The maximum length of travel of water in the watershed is about 3000 m and the elevation difference between the highest and
outlet points of the watershed is 25 m. The maximum intensity duration frequency relationship of the watershed is given by

i = intensity in cm/h, T = Return period in years and D = duration of the rainfall in hours. Estimate the
(i) 25 year peak runoff from the watershed and
(ii) The 25 year peak runoff if the forest cover has decreased to 50 ha and the cultivated land has encroached upon
the pasture and forest lands to have a total coverage of 450 ha.
There are several assumptions inherent to the Rational method:
1. The rainfall intensity is constant over a period that equals the time of concentration of the basin.
2. The rainfall intensity is constant throughout the basin.
3. The frequency distribution of the event rainfall and the peak runoff rate are identical (this assumption is true for all
event-based computations).
4. The time of concentration of a basin is constant and is easily determined (this assumption is also shared by other
event based methods).
5. Despite the natural temporal and spatial variability of abstractions from rainfall, the percentage of event rainfall that
is converted to runoff (the runoff coefficient, C) can be estimated reliably.
6. The runoff coefficient is invariant, regardless of season of the year or depth or intensity of rainfall.
.
5.3.1 Pipe Capacity using the rational method
 Once the design discharge Q entering the sewer pipe has been calculated by the rational formula, the diameter of the pipe D
required to carry, this discharge is determined.
 The diameter adopted should be the next larger commercially available size (i.e., 200mm, 250mm, 300mm, and so on).
 It is assumed that the pipe is flowing full under gravity but not pressurized. The pipe capacity is thus computed for open channel
flow using the Manning’s equation,

𝑄 = 𝐴𝑅 𝑆 …………………………………………………………………… (5.6)

Noting that 𝐴 = 𝜋𝐷 /4, and 𝑅 = , (5.5) can be expressed as:

𝑄= 𝑆 …………………………………………………………… (5.7)

This is solved for D and the required diameter is given as:

.
𝐷= / ………………………………………………………… (5.8)

 The diameter for each pipe segment in the storm sewer layout is computed based on its tributary (drainage) area.
 Note: For imperial units, (5.6) and (5.8) become

CVS 447 Page 5

 .
𝑄= 𝐴𝑅 𝑆 ………………………………………………………………… (5.9)

and
.
𝐷= / ……………………………………………………………… (5.10)

 Once the diameter has been determined, it is necessary to check that the velocity is greater than the self-cleaning velocity:

𝑸
𝒗= ≥ 𝒗𝒎𝒊𝒏 = 2.0 - 2.5 ft/s or 0.6 - 0.76 m/s.
𝑨

Example 5.1: A hypothetical drainage basin comprising seven sub-catchments is shown in Fig. 53. Determine the required
capacity of the storm sewer EB draining sub-area III for a 5-year return period storm. This sub-catchment has an area of 4
acres, a runoff coefficient of 0.6, and an inlet time of 10 minutes.

:
Fig. 5.3: The drainage basin and storm sewer system for Examples 5.1 and 5.2.

The design precipitation intensity for this location is given by i = 3.05T0.175/(Td + 27), where i is the intensity in m/hr, T is the
return period, and Td is the duration in minutes. The ground elevations at points E and B are 151.92 and 151.04 m above
mean sea level, respectively, and the length of pipe EB is 137.2 m. Assume Manning's n is 0.015. Calculate the pipe diameter
and flow time in the pipe.

Solution
The time of concentration for flow into sewer EB is simply the 10-minute inlet time for flow from sub-catchment III to point
E. So, Td = 10 min and the design rainfall intensity with T = 5 years is
i = 3.05T0.175/(Td + 27)

. × .
= ( )
= 0.109 𝑚/ℎ𝑟

The design discharge is given by Eq. (5.2)

𝑄 = 0.278 𝐶 𝑖 , 𝐴
i in mm/hr : 0.109x1000 = 109 mm/hr
Acres to Km2: 4 x 0.004 = 0.016 km2

𝑄 = 0.278 × 0.6 × 109 𝑚𝑚/ℎ𝑟 × 0.016

= 0.29 𝑚 𝑠

The slope of the pipe EB is the difference between the ground elevations at points E and B divided by the length of the pipe:
S0 = (151.92 – 151.04)/137= 0.0064.

CVS 447 Page 6

 The required pipe diameter is calculated from (5.8):
.
𝐷=

3/8
3.21 × 0.29 × 0.015
=
√0.0064

= 0.52 m

 The diameter is rounded up to the next commercially available pipe size, 500 mm.

The flow velocity through pipe EB is found by taking the nominal diameter (500 mm), and assuming the pipe is flowing full
3
with Q = 0.29 𝑚 𝑠.

Hence, V = = 0.29 0.52

= 1.5 𝑚/𝑠
𝜋×
4

 The flow time is L/V = 137.2/1.5 = 91.47 seconds = 1.5 minutes.

 It should be noted that a slight error in the computed flow is caused by assuming that the pipe is flowing full.

Example 5.2: Do Example 15.1.2 p 504, Chow et al., 1988, in SI units.

5.3.2 Hydraulic design using the rational method

 Consider the storm sewer layout with incremental drainage areas for various pipe segments shown in Figure 5.4.

Figure 5.4: Delineated catchment and sub-catchments with storm sewer layout

 Sewer inlets are marked 1, 2, …. 8. Pipe segment 1-2 drains drainage area 1. The peak discharge 𝑄 and pipe diameter for pipe
segment 1-2 are determined as previously described with appropriate values for the composite runoff coefficient (C) and drainage
area (A) (shaded in Figure 5.5 (a)).
 The time of concentration is also calculated using the longest hydraulic path to inlet 1. Pipe segment 2-3 has a drainage area
composed of incremental drainage areas 1 and 2 and the peak discharge 𝑄 and pipe diameter are calculated for this combined
tributary area (Figure 5.5 (b)).
 The travel time for segment 2-3 is the longest hydraulic path for the combined drainage area (Figure 5.5).

CVS 447 Page 7

 (a) (b)
Figure 5.5: Incremental drainage areas to pipe segments

 Thus, the drainage areas are cumulative of the entire area upstream of the inlet point being considered while time of
concentration is determined for the longest hydraulic path for the combined area.
 The process is repeated for each pipe segment until the diameter of the outlet pipe is determined.

Example 5.3: Example 5-1 Gribbin p154

5.4 Simulating Design Flows

A large number of hydrologic simulation models have been developed over the years for storm sewer analysis. The models may be
divided into two categories:
1. Event simulation models which model a single rainfall–runoff event and
2. Continuous simulation models which have soil moisture accounting procedures and are used for modelling runoff from rainfall at
hourly (or daily) intervals over long periods.

5.5 Flood Damage Mitigation and Management

1. Definition: A flood is any relatively high flow overtopping the natural or artificial banks in any reach of a stream.
2. Overview: A popular conception is that floods are increasing in magnitude and frequency, yet all available evidence
indicates they are not. Although floods are not increasing, damages amounting to many millions of dollars annually are
increasing steadily due to greater exposure to risk as man increases occupancy and obstruction of flood plains.
3. World experience of flood damage: Floods have created problems in many areas of the world ever since mankind
began settling on and developing the natural flood plains. In recent times urban flooding has also increased due to effect
of urbanization on particular phases of hydrologic cycle and inadequacy of storm drains.
4. Major factors initiating and modifying floods: Factors initiating and modifying floods may be grouped into: natural
inputs, basin interactions and human effects. Examples of each group are as follows:
 Natural inputs: e.g. rapid water input ( heavy rain, rapid ice melt, rapid snow melt) and jams and
blockages ( ice jam flood, log-jam and related flood, landslide blockage), very high tides, onshore
winds, low atmospheric pressure
 Basin interactions: e.g. Basin morphometry, hill slope properties and channel properties
 Human effects: water supply engineering related structures(e.g. dam construction, river regulation and
conjunctive use of groundwater, inter-basin transfer, waste water release), land surface changes (e.g.
urbanization, deforestation/afforestation, agriculture) and channel modification (e.g. land drainage,
river training, flood protection works)

5. Flood Standards: The flood standard, sometimes expressed by return period is the size of flood adopted as the basis for
planning the protection of and controlling the development on flood-liable land. The appropriate flood standard should
reflect a realistic level of flood risk and take into consideration the social, economic and environmental factors associated
with a programme of flood loss reduction. The adopted flood standard will determine the trade-off between short term
costs and long term damages. Examples of flood standards adopted by some countries for the levee design. (Find out
Kenya’s practice in reference to dams- Refer Ministry of Water and Irrigation design manual):

CVS 447 Page 8

6. Flood studies: Flood studies are largely aimed at determining the nature and extent of the flood hazard in a particular
area. The flood study constitutes the first step of the flood management process. As well as documenting the studies
undertaken to assess the frequency and extent of inundation, the flood study report also provides technical details on all
other flood aspects which must be considered when formulating a flood loss prevention and management plan. The flood
study report should provide all the relevant information which is listed below in a comprehensive but succinct format.
i. Physical setting of the river basin
 Topography
 Soil and vegetation types
 Landuse and cadastre
 Longitudinal stream profiles
 Channel cross sections
 Channel roughness
 Coastal and estuarine bathymetry
ii. Nature of flooding
iii. Hydrological analysis: rainfall, streamflow, river stage, sediment load, storm surge, tidal data,
wind data.
iv. Hydraulic analysis: operation record of flood control works- dams, weirs, pumping stations,
gates, retarding basins
v. Potential flood damages: (1)inundation – area, depth, floodwater velocity, duration, volume
(2) damages- tangible and intangible
The study may include the preparation of a flood risk map which identifies the extent, severity and frequency of the
flood.

7. Flood damage Mitigation measures:

All mitigation measures of flood disaster may be categorized as structural and non structural

Examples of structural measures

 Reduction of peak flow by reservoirs

 Confinement of the flow within a predetermined channel by levees, floodwalls or closed conduit.
 Reduction of peak stage by increased velocities resulting from channel improvement.
 Diversion of flood waters through a flood bypass, which may return the water to the same channel at a
point downstream or deliver it to another channel of different watershed.
 Flood proofing of specific properties
Examples of non structural measures are:
 Reduction of flood runoff by land management
 Temporary evacuation of flood threatened areas on the basis of flood warnings
 Legal framework: Disaster policy and appropriate legislation
 Training and education.
8. General steps in the design of a flood mitigation project are:
 Determine the project design flood and flood characteristics of the area.
 Define the areas to be protected and, on the basis of a field survey, determine the flood damages which can
be expected at various stages
 Determine the possible methods of flood protection. If reservoirs or floodways are considered feasible,
select possible sites and determine the physical characteristics of these sites
 Design the necessary facilities for each method of mitigation in sufficient detail to permit cost estimates
and analysis of their effect on flood frequency or stage damage relations.
 Select the facility or combination of facilities that offer the maximum net benefit.
 Evaluate the social and environmental impacts of the project and consider alternatives that maximize the
positive impacts and minimize the negative ones.
9. Economic Analysis of flood protection: The economic analysis of flood loss prevention options usually follows
conventional cost-benefit analysis in making comparisons of flood protection schemes. This approach to project
appraisal is appropriate where governments, acting on behalf of the society, wish to justify that the expenditure of the
public funds is in the best interest of the society. Widespread misuse of this technique has been identified, particularly
the tendency to select a discount rate to yield the desired cost-benefit ratio. In addition, difficulties exist with the
quantification of certain types of benefits. In an effort to overcome the deficiencies of the strict cost-benefit analyses, the
multi-objective planning approach requires consideration of social and environmental objectives as well as economic
factors.
CVS 447 Page 9
 It is not unusual to proceed with flood loss prevention and management schemes on mainly social grounds. In fact, it
is often the experience worldwide, that these types of schemes are found to be uneconomic in straight cost-benefit
terms. More often, the cost effectiveness approach is adopted. This approach specifies a goal then examines the most
cost-effective way of attaining that goal. First, a standard flood is adopted, and then investigations seek to find the
most cost-effective methods to provide to provide protection against that flood. The least cost method of achieving
the level of protection is then chosen. It should be recognized that use of this method will not necessarily result in
the acceptance of the most economically efficient scheme.

COST_BENEFIT ANALYSIS

Cost

Benefit
Benefit
Or

Maximum
departure

Flood standard chosen

Flood standard

COST-EFFECTIVENESS APPROACH

Cost Least cost

chosen

Fig. 5.6: Various alternatives for attaining specified goal (flood standard fixed)

10. Flood risk analysis and mapping: Essential to the formulation and implementation of appropriate flood loss prevention
and management strategies. The exercise involve flood mapping for different risk levels.
11. Flood Forecasting: Forecasting of floods in advance enables a warning to be given to the people likely to be affected
and further enables civil-defence measures to be organized. It is thus forms a very important and relatively inexpensive
non-structural flood control measure. Erroneous warning will cause the populace to loose faith in the system.
Flood forecasting technique can be broadly divided into 3 categories:
CVS 447 Page 10
  Short range forecasts- This gives an advance warning of 12-40 hrs.
 Medium range forecasts - This gives an advance warning of 2-5 days.
 Long range forecasts- This gives much longer time than the above.
12. Flood forecasting methods: may include (1) multiple correlation methods e.g. H-upstream vs H-downstream, Q-
upstream vs Q-downstream Rainfall-upstream vs H-downstream (2) Rainfall-runoff models e.g. UH, conceptual models
(3) Routing models e.g. Muskingum, kinematic wave and dynamic wave approaches. When adequate data are available
and forecasts of complete hydrograph are required, rainfall-runoff relations are used to estimate the amount of water
expected to appear in the streams, while UH and stream flow routing procedures in one form or another are utilized to
determine the time distribution of this water at forecast point. Stage-discharge relation is then utilized to convert these
flows to stages. Computerized real time systems are nowadays in use in many points around the globe.

5.6 Types of flood control reservoirs

 Flood control reservoirs are of two types: detention reservoirs and retention reservoirs. Retention reservoirs are usually large
long term storage reservoirs. The principle purpose of retention reservoirs is to reduce the volume of runoff. The impounded
water may be used for agriculture, groundwater, recharge water supply, or recreational purposes. A retention reservoir may or
may not be connected to a natural water body.

 Detention reservoirs are also flood management reservoirs that smaller that retention reservoirs. They range from highway
culverts that provide backwater (Fig. 5.7), to fairly large reservoirs.

Figure 5.7: A small detention basin on a highway culvert

 The primary purpose of detention reservoirs is to reduce the peak of the runoff hydrograph. This is called attenuation.
Detention reservoirs are designed to hold runoff for short periods of time and release it to the natural water bodies with
significantly lower hydrograph peaks. The slow release of water from detention reservoirs is achieved by providing it with
much smaller outlet weir or orifice than the inlet. A typical detention reservoir is depicted in Fig.5.8.

Figure 5.8: A typical detention reservoir

CVS 447 Page 11

It is noted that the hydrograph is not only attenuated but that peak is also delayed by a lag time that depends on the size of
reservoir and the comparative size of its outlet (Fig. 5.9).

Figure 5.9: Attenuating effect of a detention reservoir

5.5.2 Categories of detention reservoirs

Detention reservoirs may be divided into two categories: on-site and regional. On-site reservoirs are small basins that serve a
single site or tract of land while regional reservoirs serve several tracts of land or a region of a municipality (Fig. 5.10).

a) b)
Figure 5.10: a) On-site and b) regional detention reservoirs

In the figure, the numbers 1-12 show the potential locations for on-site detention basins while the portions designated R1 –
R3 show the potential locations of regional reservoirs that would be developed as alternatives to the on-site basins. A
combination of the two may also be considered. Careful consideration should be given to the impact of the detention
reservoirs constructed on the areas to be protected. The flow time to the point of interest should be considered to ensure that
the peak of the attenuated hydrograph does not coincide with the peak of the main hydrograph thus aggravating the flooding
instead of abating (Fig.5.11).

Figure 5.11: Aggravating impact of a detention reservoir

CVS 447 Page 12
 5.5.3 Other uses of detention reservoirs
 As stated earlier, the primary purpose of detention reservoirs is to reduce the flow rate of runoff thereby reducing the peak
flow. However, detention basins may be designed to also provide other water resources management functions. One such
function is to serve as water quality control facilities.
 A detention reservoir that serves as a quality control reservoir is provided with a permanent pond at the bottom where silts
and other pollutants are trapped (Fig. 5.12).

Figure 5.12: Typical water quality control detention reservoir

Detention basins may also be designed as infiltration basins to provide recharge to groundwater storage (Fig. 5.13).

Figure 5.30: Typical detention reservoir for groundwater recharge

CVS 447 Page 13