Module Identifier WS20310  
Module Title DYNAMICS OF HYDROLOGICAL SYSTEMS  
Academic Year 2001/2002  
Co-ordinator Dr Stephen Tooth  
Semester Intended for use in future years  
Next year offered N/A  
Next semester offered N/A  
Pre-Requisite WS12310  
Course delivery Lecture   10 x 1 hr  
  Practical   5 x 1 hr  
Assessment Practical report   5 practical reports   50%  
  Supplementary examination   Resubmission of failed problem sets and/or resit of failed end of semester examinations    
  Exam   1 x 2 hr written examination   50%  

Brief description

  1. Introduction: properties of fluids
  2. Principles of fluid flow in channels
  3. Flow resistance in channels
  4. Initiation of motion and onset of sedimentation in channels
  5. Mechanics and prediction of sediment transport in channels
  6. Principles of fluid flow on hillslopes
  7. Flow resistance on hillslopes
  8. Mechanics and prediction of sediment transport on hillslopes
  9. Principles of fluid flow in porous media
  10. Flow resistance in soil and groundwater


Practical exercise 1 - rigid boundary flow
Practical exercise 2 - stream power and shear stress
Practical exercise 3 - initiation of motion and bedforms in sand
Practical exercise 4 - prediction of sediment transport
Practical exercise 5 - overland flow

Module Aims


This module is designed to provide students with a conceptual, factual and practical introduction to the dynamics of hydrological systems, with particular reference to the reference to the flow of water and transport of sediment in channels, on hillslopes and in the ground (as soil or groundwater). The emphasis is on dynamics over short timescales and small areas, and how these dynamics can be represented quantitatively.

Module objectives / Learning outcomes


On completion of this module, students should be able to:

  1. outline the main flow processes operating in river channels, on hillslopes and in the ground;
  2. describe how these flow processes interact with the movement of sediment in channels and on hillslopes;
  3. demonstrate how these flow and sediment processes and their interactions can be represented and analysed quantitatively.

Reading Lists

Books
** Recommended Text
Yalin, M.S.. (1977) Mechanics of Sediment Transport. Pergamon Press, Oxford
Shaw, E.M.. (1988) Hydrology in Practice. 2nd ed.. Chapman and Hall, London
Gordon, N.D., McMahon, T.A. and Finlayson, B.L.. (1992) Stream Hydrology: An Introduction for Ecologists. John Wiley and Sons, Chichester, 526pp. ISBN 0-471-93084-9
French, R.H.. (1985) Open-Channel Hydraulics. McGraw-Hill, New York