CHAPTER FIVE
RESERVOIR CAPACITY DETERMINATION
5.0 Introduction
A reservoir is a large, artificial lake created by constructing a dam across a river. Broadly
speaking, any water pool or a lake may be termed a reservoir. However, the term reservoir in
water resources engineering is used in a restricted sense for a comparatively large body of water
stored on the upstream of a dam constructed for this purpose. Thus a dam and a reservoir exist
together. The discharge in a river generally varies considerably during different periods of a year.
If a reservoir serves only one purpose, it is called a single-purpose reservoir. On the other hand,
if it serves more than one purpose, it is termed a mniltipurpose reservoir. The various purposes
served by a multipurpose reservoir include
Trrigation
Municipal and industrial water supply,
Flood control
Hydropower,
Navigation,
Recreation,
Development of fish and wild life,
Soil conservation and
Pollution control etc.
ANNAN ARNAS
‘Types of Reservoirs
Depending upon the purpose served, the reservoirs may be broadly classified into five types:
Storage (or conservation) reservoirs
Flood control reservoirs
Multipurpose reservoirs
Distribution reservoirs
Balancing reservoirs
ve 6
Storage reservoirs: Storage reservoirs are also called conservation reservoirs because they are
used to conserve water. Storage reservoirs are constructed to store the water in the rainy season
and to release it later when the river flow is low. Storage reservoirs are usually constructed for
irrigation, municipal water supply and hydropower. Although the storage reservoirs are
constructed for storing water for various purposes, incidentally they also help in moderating the
floods and reducing the flood damage to some extent on the downstream. However, they are not
designed as flood control reservoirs.
Flood control reservoirs: a flood control reservoir is constructed for the purpose of flood
control. It protects the areas lying on its downstream side from the damages due to flood.
However, absolute protection from extreme floods is not economically feasible. A flood control
reservoir reduces the flood damage, and it is also known as the flood-mitigation reservoir.Sometimes, it is called flood protection reservoir. In a flood control reservoir, the floodwater is
discharged downstream till the outflow reaches the safe capacity of the channel downstream.
When the discharge exceeds the safe capacity, the excess water is stored in the reservoir. The
stored water is subsequently released when the inflow to reservoir decreases. Care is, however,
taken that the discharge in the channel downstream, including local inflow, does not exceed its
safe capacity. A flood control reservoir is designed to moderate the flood and not to conserve
water. However, incidentally some storage is also done during the period of floods. Flood control
reservoirs have relatively large sluice-way capacity to permit rapid drawdown before or after the
occurrence of a flood.
Multipurpose Reservoirs: A multipurpose reservoir is designed and constructed to serve two or
more purposes. Most of the reservoirs are designed as multipurpose reservoirs to store water for
irrigation and hydropower, and also to effect flood control.
Distribution Reservoir: A distribution reservoir is a small storage reservoir to tide over the peak
demand of water for municipal water supply or irrigation. The distribution reservoir is helpful in
permitting the pumps to work at a uniform rate. It stores water during the period of lean demand
and supplies the same during the period of high demand. As the storage is limited, it merely
helps in distribution of water as per demand for a day or so and not for storing it for a long
period. Water is pumped from a water source at a uniform rate throughout the day for 24 hours
but the demand varies from time to time. During the period when the demand of water is less
than the pumping rate, the water is stored in the distribution reservoir. On the other hand, when
the demand of water is more than the pumping rate, the distribution reservoir is used for
supplying water at rates greater than the pumping rate. Distribution reservoirs are rarely used for
the supply of water for irrigation. These are mainly used for municipal water supply.
Balancing reservoir: A balancing reservoir is a small reservoir constructed downstream of the
main reservoir for holding water released from the main reservoir.
The reservoir capacity is a term used to represent the reservoir storage capacity. Its determination
is performed using historical inflow records in the stream at the proposed dam site. There are
several methods to determine a reservoir storage capacity. The most common ones are presented
below.
5.1 Mass curve (ripple's) method:
A mass curve (or mass inflow curve) is a plot of accumulated flow in a stream against time. As
indicated below a mass curve can be prepared from the flow hydrograph of a stream for a large
number of consecutive previous years. Figure 5.1 (a) shows a typical flow hydrograph of a
stream for six consecutive years. The area under the hydrograph from the starting year (ie.,
1953) up to any time tl (shown by hatching) represents the total quantity of water that has flown
through the stream from 1953 up to time t] and hence it is equal to the ordinate of the mass curve
at time tl. The ordinates of mass curve corresponding to different times are thus determined and
plotted at the respective times to obtain the mass curve as shown in fig. 5.1(a). A mass curve
continuously rises as it shows accumulated flows. The slope of the curve at any point indicates
the rate of flow at that particular time. If there is no flow during certain period the curve will be
horizontal during that period.TRAP EF! IENCY
Reservoir sedimentation is measured in terms of Trap Efficiency. Trap
efficiency is defined as the ratio of sediment deposited in the reservoir to the sediment
brought by the water into reservoir, ic.,
Trap Efficiency (n) = Total Sediment deposited in Reservoir
Total Sediment inflow in Reservoir
In most of the reservoirs, 9 is 95 to 100% of the sediment load flowing into them.
Even if various silt control measures are adopted it has not been possible to reduce
this trap efficiency below 90% or so.
RESERVOIR SEDIMENTATION
All the rivers carry certain amount of silt eroded from the catchment area
during heavy rain. The extent of erosion and hence the sill load in the stream depends
upon:
@ Nature of soil of catchment area
Topography of catchment area
Vegetation cover
Intensity of rainfall
‘The sediment transported by rivers can be divided into two heads
a) Bed load
(b) Suspended load
The bed load is dragged along the bed of rivers. The suspended load is kept in
suspension because of vertical component of eddies formed due to friction of flowing
water against bed. Bed load is normally 10-15% of suspended load. When stream
approaches the reservoir, the velocity is very much reduced. Thus coarser particles
settle in the head reaches of the reservoir while the finer particles are kept in
suspension for sufficient time till they settle just to the U/S side of the dam, Some fine
particles may pass through sluiceways, turbines or spillways.
flow Rati
It is the ratio of reservoir capacity to the total inflow of water annually. Trap
efficiency is the function of capacity-inflow ratio
n= f (Capacity / Inflow)
Graphically, it is shown as follows.RESERVOIR SEDIMENT CONTROL
Following are some of methods used for the control of silting of reservoii
(1) Proper selection of reservoir site
A stream collecting water from a catchment area having loose or soft soil and having
steep slopes may carry more silt load. Ifa certain tributary of the main stream carries
more silt, the dam should be constructed to the U/S of that tributary.
(2) Control of sediment Inflow
Small check dams may be constructed across those tributaries which
carry more silt. Increase of vegetal cover over the catchment area also decreases the
soil erosion and hence sediment inflow is reduced.
(3) Proper designing and reservoir planning
A small reservoir on a big river has lesser trap efficiency. Hence if a dam is
constructed lower in the first instance and is being raised in stages the life of the
reservoir will be very much increased.During the floods, the sediment carried by the stream is the maximum.
Hence sufficient outlets should be provided in the dam at various elevations so that
the floods can be discharged to the d/s without much silt deposit.
(4) Construction of Underslu Dam
‘The dam is provided with openings in its base so as to remove the more silted
water on the dis side. Sluices are located at level of higher sediment concentration.
Sometimes water dig channels behind sluices leaving most of sediment undisturbed
so mechanical loosening and scouring of sediment is required sinmultaneously. But
providing large sluices near bottom of dam is againa structural problem so use of this
method is limited.
(5) Remov
of Post Flood Water
‘The sediment content increases just after floods therefore attempts are
generally made not to collect this water. Hence the provision should be made to
remove the water entering the reservoir at this time.
(6) Mechanical Stirring of Sediment
‘The deposited sediment is scoured and disturbed by mechanical means so as to
a moving state and thus help in pushing it towards the sluices.
keep
(8) Erosion control and Soil conservation
This includes all those methods to reduce soil erosion to make it more and
more stable. This is because when soil erosion is reduced, the sedimentation is
reduced automatically. But the methods of treating the catchment in order to minimize
erosion are very costly. The methods of soil conservation are provision of control
bunds, checking gully formation by providing small embankments, afforestation,
regrassing and control of grazing etc. Provision of vegetation screen helps in reducing
the sheet erosion.
RESERVOIR LOSSES
‘The important reservoir losses are:-
VAP
‘These losses mainly depend upon the reservoir surface area. The other factors
influencing these losses are temperature, wind velocity, relative humidity. Standard
pan evaporation can be measured and when multiplied by pan coefficient gives the
reservoir evaporation losses.Reservoirs are vital components of water management, playing a crucial role in the storage and distribution of water for
varlous purposes, These artificial lakes, created by darnming rivers or streams, come in different types based on thelr
primary functions. The classification mcludes potable water reservoirs, designed for supplying drinking water to
communities, and agricultural reservoirs, which serve the irrigation needs of farmlands. The storage zone of a reservolr
is the volume of water that can he stored in the reservoir.
‘This blog shall discuss all the different storage zones of reservoir. This topic is important for all the upcoming civil
engineering examinations, including SSC JE CE and RRB JE Civil.
Storage Zones of Reservoir
Fig 1: Storage zones of reservoir
‘The different Storage zones of reservor are
Full Reservoir Level (FRL):
‘The FRL encompasses both active and Inactive storage, including flood storage, if incorporated. It represents the highest
attainable reservoir level that can be maintained without the need for spillway discharge or slulce-way operation
Minimum Draw-down Level (MDDL):
‘The MDDL signiftes the minimum water level below wh{ch draw-dowwn is restricted to maintain the requisite head for
power projects,
Dead Storage Level (DSL):
Below the DSL, there are no outlets for gravity drainage, leading to silt accumulation over the design lifespan.
Maximum Water Level (MWL) or High Flood Level (HFL)/High Reservoir Level (HRL):
‘The MWL Is the level likely to be reached during the design flood, serving as a crucial reference point for flood
management,
Live Storage:
This represents the volume of water available between the dead storage level and the full supply level at any given time.
‘The minimum operating level should prevent vortex formation and air entrainment.
Dead Storage:
Total storage below the inverted level of the lowest discharge outlet, remaining unusable under ordinary operating
conditions.
Outlet Surcharge of Flood Storage:
This required storage between FRL and the maximum water level helps contain flood peaks when storage capacity below
TRL Is insufficient.
Buffer Storage:
Storage above the dead storage level up to the minimum draw-down level, Releases ftom this zone during dry periods cater
to essentlal requirements only. Dead storage and buffer storage together constitute Inactive Storage,Reservoir
A reservoir generally means an enlarged natural or artificial lake, storage
pond created using a dam to store water.
Reservoir can be created by controlling a stream that drains an existing
body of water.
Geological investigation for dam site & reservoir
+ Topography: Topography in large measures dictates a first choice of
Gaurav Srivastava, Civil Engg. Deptt., FoET, LU
dams. Generally a dam site is ideal where a valley is constricted with steep rock
slopes. A narrow stream flowing between high, rock walls would naturally
suggest a concrete overflow dam whereas a low, rolling plain would suggest an
earth-fill dam.
+ Geology and foundation condition: Foundation condition depend upon
the geological character and thickness of the strata which are to carry the weight
of the dam, their inclination, permeability and relation to underlying strata,
existing faults and fissures.
+ Foundations are better on igneous rocks and hard metamorphic rocks like
granite, gneiss, quartzite etc. than on sedimentary rocks like shale, phyllite, slate
and schist etc.
+ The removal of disintegrated rocks and sealing of seams and fractures by
grouting will frequently be necessary.
+ Rocks like limestone are usually cavernous with numerous solution
channels. These channels not only provide path for water percolation but also
may collapse and destabilize the setting.
+ Weathered rock pose serious problems of instability and require special
treatment. The weathering of rocks give rise to formation of clays and gritty
soils where the weathering is complete.. Gravel Foundation, if well compacted, are suitable for earth-fill, rock-fill
and low concrete gravity dam.
+ Silt or fine sand foundation can be used for the support of low concrete
gravity dam but not rock-fill dam. The main problem is settlement, excessive
percolation loss, and need of protection of the foundation at the downstream toe
from erosion.
+ Poorly consolidated sediments like silt, sand and gravel have low bearing
strength and become weaker still when moistened.
+ Clay foundation can be used for the support of earth-fill dam but require
special treatment. There may be considerable settlement of the dam if the clay isSelection of site for a Reserve
A goof site for a reservoir should have the following characteristics
Large storage Capacity:
‘The topography ofthe proposed site shouldbe such that the reser
water
has « large capacity for storing the
Suitable site for the dam:
As
table site for the proposed dam should he available on the downstream side the reservoir with very
{g00d foundation. The reservoir basin should have a narrow opening inthe valley. So that the length of the
dam is small,
Watertightness of the reservoir:
Geology atthe proposed reservoir site should be such thatthe entire reservoir basin is watertight, The site
‘with previous cocks are not suitable The reservoir basins having shales, scales. schists gneiss, granite et.
ane generally suitable
Good hydrological conditions:
The hydrolog
al conditions of the river at the reservoir should give high yield. Evaporation, transpiration
and infiltration losses should be minimum,
Deep reservoir:
‘The proposed site should be such that a deep reservoirs formed after the dam construction,
‘Small submerged area:
‘Atthe proposed site the submerged area should be minimum and should not affect the ecology
Minimum silt inflows
‘The life of reservoir defined by the quantity of silt inflow, and hence i is necessary to select the reservoir
site a such a place, where the silt inflow is minimum
No objectionable minerals:
‘The proposed site should be free from soluble and objectionable salts which my poltute the reservoir
Construction cost:
“The overall cost ofthe project should be minimum in terms of dam construction, land acquisition for
buildings, reservoir, roads ete.Types Of Reservoir
The types of reservoir are as follows:
1. Valley-dammed reservoir or Storage reservoir
2. Flood control reservoirs
3. Service reservoirs or Distribution reservoir
1. Valley Dammed Reservoir
Valley-dammed reservoirs are formed in valleys in the middle of the
mountains. There is often an existing lake or water, and the sides of
the mountain are used as reservoir walls to hold water. A dam or
artificial tank wall is built at the narrowest point to hold water.
Before constructing Valley-dammed reservoirs, the water flow or river
must be diverted. The dam construction process involves laying the
foundations for the dam, and then the concrete cladding Is laid and
the construction of the dam can proceed.
The construction of the dam usually takes many years, but when it is
finished, valley ponds and a large water source can be used to serve
the purpose of irrigation, hydropower generation, domestic and
industrial water supply.
2. Flood Control Reservoir
This type of reservoir, also known as a flood mitigation reservoir, is
built to store the floodwater from a high flow water stream to reduce
flooding in protected areas or populated areas.
The entire stream entering the water storage is discharged until the
outflow reaches the safe capacity of the lower channel. The excess
inflow is stored in the reservoir, and the stored water is gradually
resealed to create a storage capacity for the next flood. There are two
types of flood control reservoirs:
1. Storage Reservoir
2, Retarding Reservoir
i) Storage Reservoir
Areservoir where gates and valves are installed at its spillways and
sluice outlets is known as a storage reservoir. This reservoir requires a
manual operation to open and close the gate, which gives complete
control over the amount of water discharged.li) Retarding Reservoir
Areservoir that has ungated outlets and the flow is uncontrolled is
known as retarding reservoir or retarding basin. The retarding
reservoir has some advantages over the storage reservoir, such as no
necessity of installing gates at sluiceways and spillway crests.
During maximum floods, the water present in the land is submerged
temporarily and driven out in a few days after the flood is controlled or
minimized.
3. Distribution Reservoir or Service Reservoir
Distribution Reservoir connected to the main water supply
channels(pipelines). The main purpose of this type of reservoir is to
serve or supply water to consumers according to changing demands or
requirements of the local population.
It also serves as local storage in the event of an emergency. Here the
water is stored in the reservoir by pumping at a specific rate, and later,
this stored water can be used or supplied at a rate higher than the
inflow rate during high demands.
The main advantage of this type of reservoir is it can store water
during the demand period and supply water during the demand period.
Distribution reservoirs mainly depend on the population’s demand for
water at a particular period.
Multi-purpose Reservoirs
As the name suggests, these reservoirs are built to store and supply
the water to meet more than one purpose; hence they are known as
Multipurpose Reservoirs.
For Example, multi-purpose reservoirs are designed for irrigation, flood
control, power generation, etc. In India, Bhakra Dam and Nagarjun
Sagar Dam are examples of important multi-purpose projects that
serve more than two purposes.* Retarding Reservoirs: 4 retarding reservoir is
provided with spillways and sluiceways which
are ungated. The retarding reservoir stores a
portion of the flood when the flood is rising and
teleases il later when the flood is receding.
* Detention Reservoirs : A detention reservoir
slores excess walter during floods and releases |t
afler the flood. Lis similar to a storage reservolr
butis provided with large gated spillways and
siulcaways lo permil flexibility of operation.The different types of yields of a reservoir are as follows:
1. Yield of the Reservoir
+ Itis the amount of water that can be supplied by the reservoir in a specified interval of time. ie. it
is the outflow demand of the reservoir.
+ The specified time interval may vary from a day for a small distribution reservoir to a month or year
for large conservation reservoirs.
+ Itis dependent upon the inflow and thus varies from time to time.
2. Safe Yield:
+ Itis the maximum quentity of water that can be supplied from the reservoir with a full guarantee
during the worst dry period.
+ Itis also known as firm yield.
3. Design Yield:
+ There Is the possibility that sometimes the minimum natural flow in the reservoir may even fall
short of guaranteed yield. The yield whose value is smaller than the safe or guaranteed yield is
known as design yieid.
« In the case of reservoirs used for irrigation purposes, the design yield may be taken slightly more
than the safe yield as crops can tolerate some deficiency of water during the dry season.
4, A Secondary Yield:
+ The quantity of water available in excess of safe yield is known as secondary yield.
+ This yield is available during periods of high inflows.
* This secondary yield of the reservoir can be used either to generate extra hydroelectric power of for
irrigation of extra lands.
5. Average Yield:
« The arithmetic average of the safe yield and the secondary yield considered for a number of years is
known as the average yield.Feature
Purpose
Functions
Design Criteria
Flexibility
Reservoir Size
Construction
Cost
Environmental
Impact
Examples
Single-Purpose Reservoir
Designed for a specific
function (e.g., water supply,
hydropower)
‘Typically serves only one
primary function
Tailored specifically to
optimize performance for
the designated purpose
Limited flexibility in
adapting to different uses
Size may be optimized for
the specific function,
potentially smaller
May have lower
construction costs due to
focused design
Impact may be more
localized and specific to the
designated purpose
Water supply reservoirs,
hydropower reservoirs
Multipurpose Reservoir
Designed to serve multiple functions
simultaneously (e.g., water supply,
hydropower, irrigation, flood control)
Can serve multiple functions, such as
irrigation, water supply, hydropower,
flood control, and recreation
Balanced design to accommodate
various needs and optimize multiple
functions
Higher flexibility to adapt to changing
demands and priorities
Larger size to accommodate multiple
purposes, often with a larger surface area
Tends to have higher construction costs
due to the complexity of accommodating
multiple functions
May have a broader environmental
impact due to multiple functions and
larger area
Large dams with multiple functions, such
as the Three Gorges Dam in China or the
Hoover Dam in the United StatesFeature
Primary
Function
Focus on
Flooding
Water Release
Patterns
Reservoir Size
Construction
Cost
Environmental
Impact
Examples
Flood Control Reservoir
Mitigate and contro! flooding
by regulating river flows and
storing excess water during
heavy rainfall or snowmelt
Emphasis on preventing or
minimizing flood damage by
managing water levels and
release rates
Rapid release of water during
flood events to create
storage capacity for
incoming flows
Sized to accommodate
floodwaters and reduce
downstream flood risk
Typically lower construction
costs compared to
multipurpose reservoirs due
toa more focused design
Focus on mitigating flood
impact with localized
environmental
considerations
Many small to medium-sized
reservoirs designed primarily
for flood control, such as
those along rivers prone to
flooding
Multipurpose Reservoir
Serve multiple functions, which may
include flood control along with other
purposes like water supply,
hydropower, irrigation, and recreation
While flood control is a component, the
reservoir also addresses various other
needs
Controlled and varied release patterns
to meet the demands of different
functions, considering factors like
irrigation schedules, power generation,
and environmental considerations
Larger in size to handlle diverse
functions, potentially with a greater
capacity to store floodwaters
Can have higher construction costs
due to the complexity of
accommodating multiple functions and
potential additional infrastructure
Broader environmental impact due to
various functions and potentially larger
areaaffected
Multipurpose projects that incorporate
flood control, such as the Aswan High
Dam in Egypt or the Tennessee Valley
Authority (TVA) projects in the United
States1. Mass curve (ripple's) method
A mass curve (or mass inflow curve) is a plot of
accumulated flow in a stream against time.
A mass curve can be prepared from the flow hydrograph
ofa stream for a large number of consecutive previous
years.
The area under the hydrograph from the starting up to
any time t represents the total quantity of water that has
flowed through the stream from the start of the plot to
that specific time t.
Cont...
= FLOW HYDROGRAPH
ce
Za
we
8
=
5 AREA(AI)UPTO THE TiME t_ \
BS =ORDINATE OF MASS CURVE AT TIME,t
S
1st |= TIME (YEAR)
&
Ss
=
=
pa MASS INFLOW CURVE
= | Al
= y
[time (year)Reservoir Capacity Determination
= The reservoir capacity is a term used to represent the
reservoir storage capacity.
= Its determination is performed using historical inflow
records in the stream at the proposed dam site.
= There are several methods to determine a reservoir
storage capacity. The most common ones are:
1 .Mass curve (ripple's) method
2 .Sequent-peak algorithm
3 .Using flow duration curve
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1. Mass curve (ripple's) method
A mass curve (or mass inflow curve) is a plot of
accumulated flow in a stream against time.
A mass curve can be prepared from the flow hydrograph
of a stream for a large number of consecutive previous
years.
The area under the hydrograph from the starting up to
any time t represents the total quantity of water that has
flowed through the stream from the start of the plot to
that specific time t.Cont...
FLOW HYDROGRAPH
AREA(AI)UPTO THE TIME t.
ORDINATE OF MASS CURVE AT TIME,t
DISCHARGE INFLOW
—— RATE
tO tet y (YEAR)
MASS INFLOW CURVE
Al
MASS INFLOW
——* TIME (YEAR)
Cont...
A mass curve continuously rises as it shows accumulated
flows.
The slope of the curve at any point indicates the rate of
flow at that particular time.
If there is no flow during certain period the curve will be
horizontal during that period.Flow
Cont...
inlaw
Mass curve anlysis =S— outtow|
70.00
60.00 +
50.00 +
40.00 +
30.00 4
20.00 4
10.00 4
0.00 o
s 8 65 7 ss 3
2-8 2 § 2 8 &
§ 3 * 226 8 3
g 264
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Cont...
uo:
CPT. ATWHICH RESERVOIR
1s FULL,
MAX OROINATE B22
90 = 1950 HA-MIS.
STWRTER SPILLEO
2600 HA- MTS
TAT WHICH RESR.IS FULL
MAX ORDINATE BxCy
=1500 HA-MTS.
——— NASS INFLOW (IN 100 HA-MTS)
3
1950 st wz 19S 195L SSS 1OSE.
ee ee =
Fig. 18.10.Cont...
The reservoir capacity required for a specified yield or
demand may be determined by using mass curve and
demand curve using the following steps.
A mass curve is prepared from the flow hydrograph
for a number of consecutive years selected from the
available stream flow record such that it includes the
most critical or the driest period.
Corresponding to the given rate of demand, a demand
curve is prepared.
Cont...
Lines are drawn parallel to the demand curve and
tangential to the high points Al, A2 etc, of the mass
curve to represent the rate of withdrawal from the
reservoir and;
Assuming the reservoir is full when the demand
intersect the mass curve and;
The maximum departure b/n the two curves represent
the maximum reservoir capacity just required to
satisfy the demand.
The maximum vertical intercepts B,C,, ByC;, ete
between the tangential lines drawn in step 3 and the
mass curves are measured.Cont...
5. The largest of the maximum vertical intercepts B,C,,
B,C, ete, determined in step 4 represents the reservoir
capacity required to satisfy the given demand.
*
+ However, the requirement of storage so obtained would
be the net storage that must be available for utilization
and it must be increased by the amount of water lost by
evaporation and seepage.
> This graphical solution of the mass method can also be
done in tabular calculation easily using computer
spreadsheet programs.
2. Sequent-peak algorithm
The procedures are as follows:
1. Convert the monthly inflows into the volume units for
the period of the available data.
2. Estimate the monthly volumes of all the outflows from
the reservoir. This should include losses (evaporation,
seepage and other losses).
3. Compute the cumulative values of inflows
4. Compute the cumulative values of outflows
5. Compute the values of cumulative inflows minus
cumulative outflows ; [0 Inflow - 0 Outflow].6. Plota graph by taking months (time) on X- axis, and
0 (1-O) of step (5) on Y- axis, on an ordinary graph
paper
7. The data will plot peaks and troughs. The second and
subsequent peaks are called sequent peaks
8. The maximum difference between any sequent peak
and just following trough is the maximum storage
requirement for the reservoir. The difference between
the first peak and the trough following it is the storage
requirement under normal inflows.
—Demand) [—
= (Intlow
Time in Months ——e
Fig. 18.15. Sequent Peak Algorithm.=
(Peak 3)
(Peak 2) Sequent
2
Sequent pe
Cum. (Supply - Demand)
Required storage = Max.S,
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3. Flow Duration Curve(FDC)
It is well-known that the stream flow varies over a
year.
One of the popular methods of studying this stream
flow variability is through flow-duration curves
(FDC).
A flow-duration curve of a stream is a plot of
discharge against the percent of time the flow was
equaled or exceeded.
Since the area under the curve represents the volume
of flow, the storage will affect the flow duration
curve.> FDC has considerable use in WRPD activities.
These includes:
In evaluating various flows in the planning of WRE
projects,
In evaluating the characteristics of the hydropower
potential of a river,
In the design of drainage systems, in flood-control
studies
In computing the sediment load and dissolved solids
load of a stream, and
In comparing the adjacent catchments with a view to
extend the stream flow data.
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Cont...
Flow Duration Curve (FDC)
1400
Q(m3/sec)
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
% Exceeded or Equalied