R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.

),
Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

UNIT I
Introduction

PRECIPITATION

Water is the most abundant substance on earth, the principle constituent of all living things, and a major force constantly shaping the surface of the earth. Water can be called as the most helpful servant but this helpful servant sometime become our most furious enemy. Water can be compared to a wild animal. Hydrology, which treats all phases of the earth's water, is a subject of great importance for people and their environment. The study and practice of hydrology aids in explaining and quantifying the occurrence of water on, under and over the earth's surface. Hydrology is both a scientific and engineering field of study. The subject area is derived from many basic sciences such as mathematics, physics, meteorology and geology. Hydrology is the study of physical processes. Atmospheric processes: Surface processes: Subsurface processes: Interfacial processes: cloud condensation, precipitation snow, overland flow, river flow, lake storage infiltration, soil-water storage, groundwater flow evaporation, transpiration, sediment water exchange

Water is also an agent for many other processes (weathering, transport of chemicals, erosion, deposition). Water is the most important natural resource. Distribution of water in the global hydrologic cycle Oceans Rivers and lakes Ice caps and glaciers Soil water Groundwater Atmosphere : : : : : : 97.2 % 0.01 % 2.1 % 0.005 % 0.61 % 0.001%

IMPORTANCE OF HYDROLOGY 1. To know the depth of precipitation. 2. To measure the discharge in rivers. 3. To quantify the capacity of reservoirs.
R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),
Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

To To To To To To

design any hydraulic structures. predict the chance of occurrence of max rainfall & flood. identify the best flood control method. plan & improve the water supply system. control the river pollution. quantify the groundwater potential and its recharge.

HYDROLOGIC CYCLE The total amount of water on the earth and in its atmosphere does not change but the earths water is always in movement. Oceans, rivers, clouds and rain, all of which contain water, are in a frequent state of change. This circulation and conservation of earths water as it circulates from the land to the sky and back again is called the hydrological cycle. Hydrologic cycle is ultimately driven by solar radiation, which evaporates water from the ocean and lifts it up in the atmosphere. The hydrologic cycle is a simplified accounting of the complex interactions of meteorological, biological, chemical and geological phenomena. It is the movement of water from surface water, ground water and vegetation to the atmosphere and back to the earth in the form of precipitation as shown in Figure 1 below.

Dunne & Leopold, 1978, Fig. 1-1

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

The cycle has no beginning or end, and its many processes occur continuously. Water evaporates from the oceans and the land surface to become part of the atmosphere; water vapour is transported and lifted in the atmosphere until it condenses and precipitates on the land or oceans; precipitated water may be intercepted by vegetation, become overland flow over the ground surface, infiltrate into the ground, flow through the soil as subsurface flow, and discharge into streams as surface runoff. Much of the intercepted water and surface runoff returns to the atmosphere through evaporation. The infiltrated water may percolate deeper to recharge groundwater, later emerging in springs or seeping into streams to form surface runoff, and finally flowing out to the sea or evaporating into the atmosphere as the hydrologic cycle continues. Understanding the hydrologic cycle is essential for: sustainable agriculture (foods for the growing population) environmental protection and management water resources development and management prevention and control of natural disasters mitigation of the negative impacts of climatic change The hydrologic cycle appears to be controlled by climatic conditions (rain, snow, wind, etc.), but there are strong feedback mechanisms between hydrological and meteorological processes. Poor representation of hydrological processes has been one of the stumbling blocks for global-climate modeling. Hydrological cycle can be understood in various stages as given below: 1. Evaporation 4. Precipitation 2. Transport 5. Surface Run-off 3. Condensation 6. Infiltration

1. Evaporation
Water is transferred from the surface to the atmosphere through evaporation, the process by which water changes from a liquid to a gas. The suns heat provides energy to evaporate water from the earths surface. Land, lakes, rivers and oceans send up a steady stream of water vapour and plants also lose water to the air (transpiration). Approximately 80% of all evaporation is from the oceans, with the remaining 20% coming from inland water and vegetation.

2. Transport
The movement of water through the atmosphere, specifically from over the oceans to over land, is called transport. Clouds are propelled from one place
R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),
Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

to another by surface-based circulations. Most water is transported in the form of water vapour.

3. Condensation
The transported water vapour eventually condenses, forming tiny droplets in clouds.

4. Precipitation
The primary mechanism for transporting water from the atmosphere to the surface of the earth is precipitation. When the clouds meet cool air over land, precipitation, in the form of rain, sleet or snow, is triggered and water returns to the land. A proportion of atmospheric precipitation evaporates.

5. Surface Run-off
In the time of rainfall soil moisture zone gradually gets saturated and water flows on overland as surface runoff. Different surfaces hold different amounts of water and absorb water at different rates. As a surface becomes less permeable, an increasing amount of water remains on the surface, creating a greater potential for flooding.

6. Infiltration
Some of the precipitation soaks into the ground and traveled to subsurface through infiltration process. Water which originates from the infiltration of fluids through the soil profile and accumulates below the earth's surface in a porous layer is called groundwater. Water when encounters impermeable rock then travels laterally. The locations where water moves laterally are called aquifers. Groundwater returns to the surface through these aquifers, which empty into lakes, rivers and the oceans. PRECIPITATION From the hydrological view point any form of moisture reaching the earths surface from the atmosphere is called the Precipitation. In a tropical country like India, major portion of the precipitation occurs in the form of rain only. Precipitation data is of utmost importance to hydrologists as it forms the basis of many hydrological studies. It is the variations in the rainfall distribution over space and time which create serious hydrological problems such as floods and droughts.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

Formation of Precipitation There are four basic conditions which are to be satisfied for the precipitation to occur. They are: Accumulation of moisture of sufficient intensity to account for the observed rate of precipitation. Cooling of air to the dew point temperature to produce saturation condition. Condensation Growth of small water droplets to precipitable size. If only first three conditions are occurred but not the fourth then the clouds will gradually dissipate without producing any precipitation. Accumulation of Moisture Evaporation feeds moisture in the form of water vapour to the atmosphere. Since the evaporation is continuous, the moisture accumulates in the atmosphere. Cooling The Processes of Cooling: There are three ways of cooling the air to bring about condensation in the atmosphere. 1. Adiabatic Expansion: This occurs when air rises to levels of low pressure. 2. Radiational Cooling or by Contact with Cold Objects: When the air comes in contact with the objects whose temperature is below the dew point temperature of air. This applies to the ground, which has relatively cooled because of loss of heat by nocturnal long wave radiation. 3. Mixing of two nearly saturated air parcels having different temperature. Condensation What is Condensation? Condensation is the change of state of water from vapour to liquid. When the moist air is sufficiently cooled it becomes saturated and the excess of water appears on the ground as dew, fog, frost or cloud. In atmosphere, the condensation occurs in presence of moisture and dust particles.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

Conditions for Condensation: When unsaturated atmosphere becomes saturated by the process of cooling and super cooling. Presence of condensation nuclei i.e. minute dust particles. The size of these nuclei is of the order of 0.001 to 10 micrones. Change in temperature is isobaric (cooling of air at constant pressure without gain or loss of water vapour) Presence of sufficient water vapour. Forms of Condensation: 1. Condensation near the ground Dew, fog, mist, frosts. 2. Condensation in the troposphere cloud, precipitation Growth of Droplet As the condensation nuclei attracts water, the size of the droplet increases making it less curved. The water attracted by the nuclei goes into solution and the attraction for water decreases. These two effects of curvature and hygroscopity which counteract with each other at initial stages and becomes negligible after the droplet becomes 1 micron. Time required for the droplet to grow to a droplet: 10 microns in few seconds 100 microns in few minutes 1000 microns (1 mm) in 3 hours small drop (3 mm dia) in 24 hours As the droplet gain mass they begin to have a motion relative to their host cloud. This relative motion has the effect of transporting additional water vapour into the neighbourhood of the droplet. This is known as the ventilation effect. When the water droplet moves relative to the cloud it may collide with the other droplets and grow further in size. This phenomenon is called the coalescence. As the drop grows to a diameter of 7 mm the fall velocity increases to about 10 m/s and then the drop flattens and breaks up into drops of the size of small rain or drizzle.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

Forms of Precipitation The number of different forms of precipitations is very large. The common types are: Drizzle: It is fine sprinkle of very small and rather uniform water drops with diameters between 0.1 and 0.5 mm. The drops are so small that they seem to float in air. The intensity of drizzle rarely exceeds 1 mm/hr. Rain: Rain is the precipitation of liquid water in which the drops are generally larger than 0.5 mm in size. Glaze: The ice coating formed when rain or drizzle freezes as it comes in contact with cold objects at the ground is called the glaze. Sleet: When rain drops are frozen while falling through a layer of subfreezing air (below 0C) near the earths surface or refreezing of largely melted ice crystals occurs, transparent globular grains of ice known as sleet or ice pellets are formed. The pellets are generally between 1 mm and 4 mm in diameter. Snow: Precipitation in the form of ice crystals is called snow. When the ice crystals fuse together, it is called snowflake. Hail: Precipitation in the form of balls or irregular lumps of ice over 5 mm in diameter is called hail. Hail stones are generally composed of alternating ice and opaque snow like layers as a result of repeated ascents and descents within the cloud during their formation. It occurs almost exclusively in violent or prolonged thunderstorms. Dew: Dew forms directly by condensation on the ground mainly during night when the surface has been cooled by the outgoing radiation. the

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

Types of Precipitation Depending upon the way in which the air is cooled to cause precipitation, it is divided into three types: (i) (ii) (iii) Convectional Rain Orographic Rain Frontal Rain

Convectional Rain Due to heating, the air near the ground becomes hot and light and thus starts upward movement. This is known as Convection. As it moves upward, it cools at the dry adiabatic lapse rate (about 10C/km), become saturated and reaches dew point temperature at some

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

height where the condensation begins. This height is known as Condensation level. Above condensation level the air cools at saturated adiabatic lapse rate (about 4C/km). In this process, first of all cloud is formed and then, the further condensation results into precipitation. These rains are known as convectional rain and mostly occur in the tropics.

Orographic Rains When the moist air coming form the ocean encounters mountain barrier, it cannot move horizontally and has to rise to overcome the mountain. When this air rises upward cools down, cloud is formed and condensation starts and gives precipitation. These rains are known as Orographic Rains. Thus heavy rains are possible on the windward side of the mountain. After crossing the mountain, the air descends downwards, pressure increases, air is compressed, and the air becomes warmed up at DALR. This process decreases relative humidity and the dry air does not give precipitation in the leeward side of the mountain. This is known as rain shadow region. After crossing Western Ghats the leeward side places like Pune, Nagar, Nasik, etc receives less rain while the places on the windward side like Mumbai, Mahabaleshwar etc receives heavy rains. Such rains occur in Himalayans and Sahyadri belts.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

Orographic lifting Frontal Rains or Cyclonic Rains Frontal precipitation is produced when two opposing air currents with different temperatures meet, vertical lifting takes place. This convection gives rise to condensation and precipitation. This is known as frontal precipitation and is more common between 55 to 60 latitudes in both the hemispheres. The rains received from the cyclones are called as Cyclonic Rains.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

CLIMATIC ZONES OF THE WORLD The non-uniform radiation received by the earth makes it divided into three different climatic zones. They are: Torrid Zone - lies between 23.5N and 23.5S Latitude; receives more solar energy. Temperate Zone lies between 23.5 to 66.5 on either side; receives lesser solar energy. Frigid Zone lies between 66.5 to polar region; it is of extremely cold.

Climatic Zones of the World

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),
Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

CLIMATIC ZONES OF INDIA Even though half the portion of India lies in the Torrid Zone and other half in the temperate zone, the climate in India is generally that of Torrid Zone except in few places with high altitudes here and there. WEATHER SEASONS OF INDIA In India, the year may be divided into four weather seasons. (i) Cold Weather Season - December to February (ii) Hot Weather Season - March to May (iii) Southwest Monsoon Season - June to September (iv) North East Monsoon Season - October to November COLD WEATHER SEASON Fine weather prevails over the entire country. The Southern parts along the east coast may occasionally subjected to cyclones. The North will be in the grip of cold wave. The day and night temperatures touch their lowest. The Himalayas and Jammu and Kashmir will be experiencing moderate to heavy rainfall and snowfall. The Northeast monsoon is fully established over the country. HOT WEATHER SEASON Temperature in this season reaching the highest value in the second half of May at the most of the places. Highest temperature during March - 38C at Deccan Plateau April - 43C at Gujarat & Madhya Pradesh May - 48C at Northwest Rajasthan Local thunderstorms may also occur over the Central Parts of the Country and over Deccan Plateau. There is very little rainfall over the country except that produced by the local thunderstorms. SOUTHWEST MONSOON The major portion of the country receives more than 75% of the annual rainfall. During this season there may be breaks of about a weak or more with no rainfall activity. The weather is generally cloudy with frequent spells of rainfall.
R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),
Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

July will be the rainiest month. The Southwest Monsoon consists of the two currents which originate in the - South Bay of Bengal; and - the Arabian Sea during the hot weather season. The Current from Bay of Bengal The Bay currents move North or Northeast. They are deflected by Arakan Hills and the Hills of Assam and then by the Eastern range of Himalayas. After deflection these currents will appear as Southeasterly or even Easterly. Owing to forced ascent over the hills they give very heavy rainfall. [EX: Chirrapunji in Assam] Western Disturbances: Monsoon depressions forming in the North or Central Bay and intensifying into cyclonic storms sometimes move to the West-Northwest to merge with the seasonal low pressure regions formed in Rajasthan which are called the Western Disturbances. These western disturbances provide the much needed rainfall to the wheat growing region of the country. The snowfall caused by them accumulate to feed the Himalayan rivers in the spring and summer that follow. The Arabian Sea Current The Arabian sea currents as they reach the West Coast are forced to ascent the Western Ghats producing very heavy rainfall in the areas to the West of Western Ghats; and creating a rainshadow region to the East of Western Ghats. After crossing the Ghats they advance over the Deccan Plateau and Madhya Pradesh producing less rainfall there and then pass into the Bay of Bengal to meet the Bay currents. The other part of the Arabian sea currents crosses the coast of Saurashtra and Kutch and passes over the plains of West Rajasthan, giving little rain in these areas, until it reaches Aravali Hills. NORTH-EAST MONSOON SEASON In the post-monsoon period, as the southwest monsoon retreats, storms due to tropical cyclonic disturbances develop in the South or Central Bay.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

They are observed to move in any of the following paths: Though they are Northeasterly to start with, they may recurve and strike the Arakan coast like the Southwest monsoon storms developing in the South Bay. Moving Southwest they strike the North Tamil Nadu and South Andhra Coast and weaken. Tamil Nadu and South Andhra Coast receives major part of their rainfall. Then moving through Andhra Pradesh and Orissa they may emerge into the North Bay, intensify there and move to the Northeast. They may strike the Tamil Nadu coast, weaken there and then emerge into the Southeast Arabian sea and intensify there. From the Southeast Arabian sea they may either move Westward or may recurve through the Central Arabian Sea and strike South Gujarat coast and then move over Rajasthan. During this season, the number of cyclones formed in the Bay of Bengal is approximately double the corresponding number in the Arabian sea. They produce intense rainfall along the coasts and cause heavy damage to life and property. MEASUREMENT OF RAINFALL Rainfall is expressed in terms of the depth to which water would stand on an area where it is collected. The precipitation is collected and measured by a device called Rain Gauge. Rain Gauge is also called as Hydrometer, Omprometer, Puluviometer. The rainfall is generally expressed in depth of water in cm or mm. Important parameters to be measured: Depth of Rainfall (mm), Intensity (mm/hr), Duration (minutes, hours) SELECTION OF SITE OF RAIN GAUGE The ground must be level and in open. The instrument must be installed on a horizontal surface. The gauge must be get as near as the ground as possible to reduce wind effect. It must be sufficiently high to prevent flooding. No object should be nearer to the instrument 30 m or twice the height of the obstructions.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

TYPES OF RAIN GAUGES Non-Recording Rain Gauge Recording Rain Gauge NON-RECORDING RAIN GAUGE They do not record the rain but only collect the rain. The collected rain is then measured by means of graduated cylinder, where the rainfall volume is divided by the area of aperture of the gauge gives the depth of the rainfall. The rainfall is measured everyday 8.30 a.m. ISI and is recorded as the rainfall of that day. The non recording raingauge extensively used in India is the Symons Gauge & IMD Rain Gauge. Symons Gauge The diameter of circular collecting area 127 mm. The funnel discharge the rainfall into the receiving vessel. Water available in the receiving vessel is measured by a graduated jar.

IMD RAIN GAUGE The receiving bottle is made up of Polythene. The collector is in two series having area of 100 cm2 & 200 cm2.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

According to IS 5225-1969 the capacity of portal has been fixed as below: If expected depth of rainfall is 100 with area 200 cm2. If expected depth of rainfall is 200 with area 200 cm2. If expected depth of rainfall is 400 with area 100 cm2. If expected depth of rainfall is 1000 with area 100 cm2. mm then capacity of portal is 2 litres mm then capacity of portal is 4 litres mm then capacity of portal is 4 litres mm then capacity of portal is 10 litres

The number of rain gauges has been fixed by IS 4987-1968: Catchment Area < 75 km2 76 150 km2 151 300 km2 301 550 km2 551 800 km2 800 km2 Number of Rain Gauges 1 2 3 4 5 6

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

RECORDING RAIN GAUGES Recording type rain gauges produces a continuous plot of rainfall against time. They provides valuable data of intensity and duration of rainfall during a storm. Types of Recording Rain Gauges: a). Float Type Rain Gauge b). Weighing Bucket Type Rain Gauge c). Tipping Bucket Type Rain Gauge d). Radar Type Rain Gauge Float Type Rain Gauge Specified by Indian code IS 523-1969. Rainfall is collected by a funnel and passed into a float chamber causing the float to rise. As the float rises a pen attached to the float records on a rotating drum. A syphon arrangement empties the float chamber when the float has reached a preset max level.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

Weighing Bucket Type Rain Gauge o This type of rain gauge contains a pan supported on a scale. o The scale weighs the rain water which is collected in an exposed bucket. o The rain water so weighted by the scale, is automatically recorded on a graph paper fixed on a rotating drum by means of a pen. o This type of gauge is widely used in USA not in India.

Tipping Bucket Type Rain Gauge The rain water is first caught in a collector and then pass through a funnel. The funnel discharges the water into a two compartment tipping bucket. When 0.1 mm of rain water get filled up in one compartment, the bucket tips and second compartment comes into the place below the funnel. After tipping of bucket completed and electric circuit causing a pen to mark on a revolving graph paper. In case of hilly zone the electric current is converted into electromagnetic wave and it is transmitted over a long distance.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

Radar Type Rain Gauge A beam consisting of a certain known amount of electromagnetic energy is transmitted from the radar in the direction of falling rain. This radio waves travels at a speed of light and is partially reflects back by precipitation. The reflected wave is received by the same antenna at the radar station and represented on the radar screen, called as Echo. The amount of deflected energy is converted into size or rain as well as intensity of rain with the help of computers. Comparison of Non-Recording and Recording types of Rain Gauges Non-Recording Type Skilled persons are required at site. It does not give the intensity of rainfall. It can be installed only at the assessable place. There is chance of error. There is no need of electrical or mechanical mechanism. Its capacity is limited. Its initial cost is low. Recording Type No need of skilled persons at site. It gives the intensity of rainfall. It can be installed at far off places. There is less chance of error. There is need of electric or mechanical mechanism. Its capacity is unlimited. Its initial cost is high.

MEAN RAINFALL OVER A DRAINAGE BASIN Precipitation levels are variable over large geographical areas. Air mass movements, topography, locations, et are a few more important reasons for differences. Gauge recordings give point rainfall since rainfall depth is measured at a point. Rainfall over an area has to be estimated from these point measurements. Several such measurements are made over a catchment area or drainage basin and total quantity of water falling on the catchment is evaluated. Usually, this is expressed as average depth in mm over the catchment area and referred to as average areal precipitation (or rainfall).

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

METHODS OF COMPUTING MEAN OR AREAL RAINFAL 1. Arithmetical Mean Method OR Un-weighted Mean Method. 2. Thiessen Polygon Method OR Weighted Mean Method. 3. Isohyetal Method. Arithmetic Mean Method This is the simplest method of determining areal average rainfall. It involves averaging the rainfall depths recorded at a number of gauges within the catchment area. This method is satisfactory if the gauges are uniformly distributed over the area and the individual gauge measurements do not vary greatly about the mean. It is less accurate compare to other methods.

Thiessen Method This method attempts to allow for non-uniform distribution of gauges by providing a weighting factor for each gauge. The stations are plotted on the base map and connected by straight lines. Perpendicular bisectors are drawn to the straight lines, joining adjacent stations to form polygons, known as Thiessen polygon. Each polygon area is influenced by the rain gauge station inside. It gives more accurate result compare to arithmetic mean method. The gauges should be properly located over the catchment to get regular shaped polygon.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

Isohytal Method In this method the point rainfall values are plotted on a base map and lines of equal rainfall are then drawn. The line of equal rainfall is known as isohyet. The average rainfall between successive isohytes are weighted with the area between the isohyets. The average of all weights gives the average depth of rainfall over the entire basin.

Comparison between Arithmetic, Theission & Isohyetal Method Arithmetical 1.Area It is suitable for a catchment area of less than 500 km2. 2.Number of rain gauges It is suitable for more or less number of raingauge 3.Zone suitable for mountanious zone. 4.Accuracy It is not accurate if rainfall values are considerably varied. 5.Skilled Persons No need of skilled persons. They need of skilled persons. It is most essential to have skilled persons. It is somewhat accurate. It is the most accurate method. It is suitable for plane area. Suitable for any zone. It may not be suitable for less number of rain gauges. It is not suitable for less number of rain gauges. It is suitable for a catchment area lying in between 500 km2 to 5000 km2. It is suitable for large catchement area about more than 5000 km2. Theission Isohyetal

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

ESTIMATING MISSING DATA Rainfall records of certain station suffer a break because of non-observation of the rainfall by the observer or failure of the instrument installed. The missing rainfall record is approximated with the reference to the as close to the missing rainfall station. Methods of Estimation of missing rainfall record 1. Arithmetic Mean Method. 2. Normal Ratio Method. Arithmetic Mean Method This method is applicable if the normal annual rainfall of the missing station is within 10% of the normal annual rainfall of the adjoining stations. The arithmetic mean of storm rainfall of adjoining stations is taken as the rainfall of the station with missing record.

Normal Ratio Method This method is applicable if the normal annual rainfall of any of the nearby operative stations differs from that of the station with missing data by more than 10%. If three stations are considered then, the rainfall values of the 3 stations are weighted by the ratio of the normal annual rainfall.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

OPTIMUM NUMBER OF RAIN GAUGES N = [ Cv/ ]2 N Optimum number of rain gauges Cv coefficient of variation of the rainfall values at the existing m stations (%) allowable degree of error in the estimation of mean rainfall generally 8 % to 12 %. Cv = {/P} x 100 Standard Deviation P mean rainfall

FREQUENCY ANALYSIS OF POINT RAINFALL Hydrologic systems are some times impacted by extreme events, such as severe storms, floods and droughts. The magnitude of an extreme event is inversely related to its frequency of occurrence, severe events occurring less frequently than more moderate events. The objective of frequency analysis of hydrologic data is to relate the magnitude of extreme events to their frequency of occurrence through the use of probability distributions. The results of frequency analysis can be used for many engineering purposes. for the design of dams, bridges, culverts and flood control structures; to determine the economic value of flood control projects: and to delineate flood plains and determine the effect of encroachments on the flood plain. It is also known as dependability analysis of rainfall. VARIOUS FREQUENCY ANALYSIS METHODS California formula: Hazen's formula: Weibul's formula:

California formula: The return period indicates the average number of years within which a given event will be equalled or exceeded is called California formula. But this formula is that for m = n, it gives an exceedence probability of 1 which should not be the case with a finite sample. Tr = n/m

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

 Hazen's formula: The Hazen's formula gives an exceedence probability of less than 1 for m= n, but it gives a return period which is double the size of the sample for m = 1. Tr = 2n / (2m-1) Weibul's formula: This formula is commonly used in hydrology and which avoids the difficulties Tr = (n+1)/m Steps to followed in Dependability analysis of Rainfall According to Mr. Hazen, the following procedure is adopted for the dependability analysis of rainfall: Collect the rainfall data for last certain years. To compute the maximum expected rain gauge, the given rainfall data should be arranged in descending order. To compute the minimum expected rain gauge, the given rainfall data should be arranged in ascending order. Find the ranks of arranged data M (1,2,3,..). Find out recurrence interval by relation, T=2N/(2M-1) Where, N No of years of record; M Rank of arranged data. TEMPORAL DISTRIBUTION: MASS CURVE OF RAINFALL A mass curve of rainfall is a plot of accumulated precipitation against time plotted in chronological order. It is plotted with the help of recording type of raingauge records.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

It is very much useful in extracting the information on the duration, magnitude, depth, time of occurance and intensity of a storm. The slope of mass curve will give eht intinsity of rainfall. DOUBLE MASS ANALYSIS OF RAINFALL The double mass curve is a plot of accumulated rainfall of surrounding stations on X-axis vs accumulated rainfall of station x whose consistency is to be checked on Y-axis. Double-mass analysis is a test for consistency (conforming to a regular pattern or style) of rainfall data. Changes in gauge location, exposure, instrumentation or observational procedure may cause relative change in the precipitation catch. Double-mass tests the consistency of the rainfall record at a station by comparing its accumulated annual or seasonal precipitation with the concurrent accumulated values of mean precipitation for a group of surrounding stations. A break in the slope of the resulting plot indicates a change in the precipitation regime of station X. The corrected precipitation at any time at a station X is obtained by following relation, Pcx = Px (C/A)

A Accumulated annual rainfall of station X C

Accumulated annual rainfall of surrounding stations Intensity-duration frequency (IDF) analysis For point rainfall, the data from recording rain gage can be used for IDF analysis. Note that the extrapolation of the point rainfall data to basin-average rainfall is not trivial.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.

Construction of IDF curves 1. Establish the relationship between the intensity and the return period for 60min storms (see the graph). 2. Determine the rainfall intensity corresponding to several values of return period (2-yr, 5-yr, ...) 3. Repeat Steps 1 and 2 for other durations (5-min, 10-min, , 24-hr) 4. Plot the intensity and duration of each data point on a log-log graph paper and tie the points with smooth curves. PROBABLE MAXIMUM PRECIPITATION (PMP) The probable maximum precipitation (PMP) may be defined as the maximum depth of precipitation for a given duration that may possible occur on a given catchment at any time of the year. This PMP may result from possible severest storm from worst possible combination of hydrological conditions of the area. Such storm is called Probable Maximum Storm (PMS). The PMP is used for designing large hydraulic structures such as spillways of Major & Minor Dams. PMP can be estimated by maximizing the different parameters wind velocity, humidity, etc. STANDARD PROJECT FLOOD (SPF) This occurs from the most severe combination of meteorological and hydrological conditions which are reasonably characteristic of the drainage basin being considered. MAXIMUM PROBABLE FLOOD (MPF) This differs from the SPF that it includes the extremely rare and catastrophic floods and is usually confined to spillway design of very high dams. SPF = 80 % of the MPF. DESIGN FLOOD It is adopted to design the hydraulic structures like spillway, bridge openings, flood banks, etc. It may be the MPF or SPF or a flood of any desired recurrence interval depending upon the degree of flood protection to be offered and cost economics of construction of structures to the desired flood stage. The ratio of benefit to cost may be desired to be the maximum.

R. Sudharsanan, A.M.I.E., M.E., (Ph.D.),

Asst. Professor-II, Department of Civil Engineering, Velammal Engineering College, Chennai 66.