ABSTRACT / SUMMARY

An apparatus for taking representative samples of liquid flow along large

channels is patented. The Armfield Hydraulics Bench and its comprehensive range of
optional accessories are used to determine the discharge coefficient. A flow divider
consisting of a set of weirs extends across the channel. Additional flow dividers are
arranged in series, so that the weirs of one flow divider collect behind them then flow
over a specific weir in the preceding flow divider. There is a continual fall in level from
the first to the last flow divider. The flow over a particular weir in the last flow divider is
collected for analysis. Baffles upstream of the flow dividers provide streamlined flow and
ensure a representative sample at the collector. ince the geometry of the top of the weir
is known, and all water flows over the weir, the depth of water flowing over the weir will
be an indication of the flow.
There are different types of weir, they may be a simple metal plate with a !ee
notch cut into it or it may be a concrete and steel structure across the bed of a river. A
vee notch weir will give a more accurate indication of low flow rates.
1
1.0 INTRODUCTION
The armfield bench top incorporates an open channel with side channels to
support the accessory on test. !olumetric measurement is integral and has been
chosen in preference to other methods of flow measurement for its ease of use,
accuracy and safety in use "no heavy weights for students to drop#. This is done by
determine the characteristics of open$channel flow over a rectangular notch and a
triangular "vee# notch weir by direct observation or measuring the height of the free
surface of water above the notch base.

%eirs are structures consisting of an obstruction such as a dam or bulkhead
placed across the open channel with a specially shaped opening or notch. The weir
results an increase in the water level, or head, which is measured upstream of the
structure. The flow rate over a weir is a function of the head on the weir. %eirs are
typically installed in open channels such as streams to determine discharge "flowrate#.
The basic principle is that discharge is directly related to the water depth above the
crotch "bottom# of the !& this distance is called head "h#. The !$notch design causes
small changes in discharge to have a large change in depth allowing more accurate
head measurement than with a rectangular weir.
Broad$crested weirs can be observed in dam spillways where the broad edge is
beneath the water surface across the entire stream. 'low measurement installations with
broad$crested weirs will meet accuracy requirements only if they are calibrated. (ther
available weirs are the trape)oidal "*ipolletti# weir, utro "proportional# weir and
compound weirs "combination of the previously mentioned weir shapes#.

2
2.0 OBJECTIVE
This experiment is to determine the characteristics of open$channel flow which is
the rectangular notch and a triangular "vee# notch. +n this experiment, we were asked to
determine the discharge coefficient for both notches. This is the first step where we are
teach on how to handle the equipment properly n how to used it in appropriate way
whiteout damaging the equipment.

3
3.0 THEORY
,eneral equation for notches, -t . / "0g# 1
H
2 bh
340
dh
For a rectangular notch
2
3
2
3
2
H g b C Q
d t
=
Where
Qt = volume flow rate
H = height above notch base
B = width of rectangular notch
= angle of the Vee in the triangular notch
Cd = the discharge coefficient, which has to be determined by e!eriment
g = gravitational acceleration "#.$0% m&s
2
'
(he coefficient Cd is re)uired to accommodate the effects of the sim!lifying assum!tions
in the theory.'
*
2
+
2
2
tan
1+
$
H g C Q
d t

=

(hese can be rearranged to give,
For a rectangular notch, and
Cd = 3Qt .
2b(2g) H
3//2
for a vee notch.
Cd = 15Qt .
8 tan (2g) H
5/2
2
+
4.0 PROCEDURE
4.1 Equipm!" S" Up
3. The hydraulic bench was positioned so that its surface is hori)ontal "necessary
because flow over notch is driven by gravity#.
0. The rectangular notch plate was mounted into the flow channel and the stilling
baffle was positioned as shown in the diagram.
5. +n order to measure the datum height "with the height gauge# of the base of the
notch, the instrument carrier was positioned in the opposite way round from that
shown in the diagram.
6. Then carefully the gauge was lowered until the point was 7ust above the notch
base and the coarse ad7ustment screw was locked.
8. Then, using the fine ad7ustment, the gauge was ad7usted until the point 7ust
touched the notch bottom and a reading would be taken& here we must be careful
not to damage the notch.
9. The instrument carrier was mounted as shown in the diagram and it would be
approximately located half way between the stilling baffle and the notch plate.
:. The bench control valve was opened and water was admitted to the channel& the
valve was ad7usted to give approximately 32mm depth above the notch base. To
help achieve this, + founded it useful to pre$set the height gauge position to give a
rough guide.
-
4.2 T#$i!% A S" O& R'u("'
3. The general features of the flow were observed and recorded.
0. To take an accurate height reading, the fine ad7ustment was used to lower the
gauge until the point 7ust touched its reflection in the surface& "to achieve this, +
need to have my eye level 7ust above the surface#.
5. The flow rate was ensured large enough to prevent the outflow from the notch
;clinging< to the notch plate& it was pro7ected clear of the plate.
6. The volume flow rate was determined by measuring the time required to collect a
known volume in the volumetric tank. =sing the ball valve to close the tank
outflow did this and then the volume collected would be determined from the
sight$glass.
8. After determined the volume collected, the valve was opened again at the end of
the measurement.
-. This procedure was repeated by having opened the bench valve further, to
produce an increase in depth of approximately 32 mm& the level was checked in
stable condition before taking readings.

:. >eadings with increasing flow rate continued and had been taken until the level
reached the top of the notch& take care not to allow spillage to occur over the
plate top ad7acent to the notch.
?. Before starting this test, there was sufficient water in the bench main tank
checked to allow the pump to operate without drawing in air at the maximum flow
rate "i.e. maximum height above notch#.
@. The rectangular notch plate was replaced with the !ee notch plate and procedure
above was repeated. 'or this notch + need to work with height increment 8$9 mm.
%
).0 APPARATUS
5.1 B#'i' *i+ App#+#"u'
The apparatus has five basic elements used in con7unction with the flow channel in the
molded bench top of Hydraulic Bench description.
A stifling baffles and the inlet no))le combine to promote smooth flow conditions in
the channel
A !ernier nook and point gauge is mounted on an instrument carrier, to allow
measurement of the depth of flow above the base of the notch.
'inally, the weir notch are mounted in a a carrier at the outlet enf of the flow channel.
$
To connect the delivery no))le, the quick release connector is unscrewed from the
bed of the channel and the no))le screwed in place. The stifling baffle is slid into slots in the
wall of the channel. These slots are polari)ed to ensure correct orientation of the baffle. The
instrument carrier is located on the side channel of the moulde top. The carrier may be
moved along the channel to the required measurement position. The gauge is provided with
a coarse ad7ustment locking screw and a fine ad7ustment nut. The vernier is locked to the
mast by screw and is used in con7unction with the scale. The hook and point is clamped to
the base of the mast by means of a thumb screw.
The weir may be clamped to the weir carrier by thumbs nuts, the weir plates
incorporate captive studs to aid assembly.
5.2 Equipm!"
+n order to complete the exercise we need a number of pieces equipment.
The '3$32 Hydraulic Bench which allows us to measure flow by timed volume
collection
The '3$35 tifling Baffle
The '3$35 >ectangular and !ee Aotches
!ernier Height gauge "supplied with '3235#
top watch "not supplied#
pirit level "not supplied#
#
,.0 RESU-T
3. %ith direct observation, general features of the flow been determined.
0. The measurement of height of the free surface of water above the notch base and
corresponding volume flow rate was used to calculate the discharge coefficient.
5. this is the data for the equipment used in the whole experiment that need to calculate
the results&
%idth of rectangular notch, b . 2.25 m
Angle of vee notch, B . @2 degrees
10
Aotch
type
"! or >#
Height
Catum
, ho
"m#
Height
of water
level, h
"m#
!olume
collecte
d, !
"m
5
#
Time for
collectio
n t "sec#
!olume flow
rate, -
"m
5
4sec#
Height
above
notch,
H "m#
H
540
>ectangular
"># notch
"m
540
#
>ectangular
Aotch
Cischarge
*oefficient,
*d
H
840
!ee Aotch,
"m
840
#
!ee Aotch
Cischarge
*oefficient,
*d
3 ! 2 2 2.225 ?@6.35 5.59 x 32
$9
2 $ $ 2 2
0 ! 2 2.228 2.225 :0:.8: 6.30 x 32
$9
2.228 $ $ 3.:: x 32
$9
2.@?88
5 ! 2 2.232 2.225 360.68 0.33 x 32
$8
2.232 $ $ 3.22 x 32
$8
2.?@55
6 ! 2 2.238 2.225 8@.9? 8.25 x 32
$8
2.238 $ $ 0.:9 x 32
$8
2.::39
8 ! 2 2.202 2.225 58.@6 ?.58 x 32
$8
2.202 $ $ 8.99 x 32
$8
2.9569
9 ! 2 2.208 2.225 0?.:? 3.26 x 32
$6
2.208 $ $ @.?? x 32
$8
2.668:
: > 2 2 2.225 3@6.35 3.88 x 32
$8
2 2 2 $ $
? > 2 2.228 2.225 85.?6 8.8: x 32
$8
2.228 5.86 x 32
$6
3.::9 $ $
@ > 2 2.232 2.225 0?.90 3.28 x 32
$6
2.232 3.22x 32
$5
3.3?8 $ $
32 > 2 2.238 2.225 02.25 3.82 x 32
$6
2.238 3.?6 x 32
$5
2.@026 $ $
33 > 2 2.202 2.225 38.92 3.@0 x 32
$6
2.202 0.?5 x 32
$5
2.:992 $ $
30 > 2 2.208 2.225 33.:? 0.88 x 32
$6
2.208 5.@8 x 32
$5
2.:0?? $ $
35 > 2 2.252 2.225 @.?: 5.26 x 32
$6
2.252 8.02 x 32
$5
2.9922 $ $
36 > 2 2.258 2.225 :.6: 6.20 x 32
$6
2.258 9.88 x 32
$5
2.9@0@ $ $
11
38 > 2 2.262 2.225 9.85 6.8@ x 32
$6
2.262 ?.22 x 32
$5
2.96:? $ $
39 > 2 2.268 2.225 8.0? 8.9? x 32
$6
2.268 @.88 x 32
$5
2.9:38 $ $
12
..0 SAMP-E CA-CU-ATION
"*alculation of *oefficient of Cischarge#
7.1 R/"#!%u(#+ N0"/1
i' Volume flow rate, .t = volume collected&time for collection
= 0.003 m
3
& +3.$* s
= 8.8: x 32
$8
m
3
&s
ii' /ectangular 0otch, 1
3&2
= "2.228 m'
3&2
= 5.86 x 32
$6
m
3&2
iii' 2oefficient of 3ischarge, 2d = 3.t .
2b4"2g' 1
3&&2
= 3" 8.8: x 32
$8
m
3
&s' .
2"0.030 m' 4 2"#.$0% m&s
2
' "5.86 x 32
$6
m
3&2
'
= 3.::9
..2 T+i#!%u(#+ 2V3 N0"/1
i' Volume flow rate, .t = volume collected&time for collection
= 0.003 m
3
& :0:.8: s
= 6.30 x 32
$9
m
3
&s
ii' Vee 0otch, 1
+&2
= "0.00+ m'
+&2
= 3.:: x 32
$9
m
+&2
iii' 2oefficient of 3ischarge, 2d = 1+.t .
$ tan 54 "2g' 1
+&2
2
= 1+" 6.30 x 32
$9
m
3
&s' .
$ tan "*+
o
' 42"#.$0% m&s
2
' "3.:: x 32
$9
m
+&2
'
. 2.@?88
13
4.0 DISCUSSION

'rom the experiment conducted, + can say that the results of this experiment fulfill
the ob7ective to determine the discharge coefficient for both notches, rectangular and
vee notch. Dven thought there are some deviations in both coefficients of discharge, *d,
but + can conclude that the value of *d experimentally is not far away from each other.
'irst, we would consider the *d value for rectangular notch. Theoretical value
gives us a value of 2.90, however we got the nearest *d value of 2.96:?. Eeans here,
there is only 2.20:? significantly different from each other. And noticed that supposed we
should have around 2.20 m
5
4s value of flow rate for suitable value of flow rate in process
to determine the value of *d for rectangular notch.
Aow, waioe consider about the *d value for the vee notch. *ompared to both
notches, the vee notch *d value deviated quite far from the theoretical value.
Theoretically we should get around 2.8? *d value for vee notch. But according to our
experiment of measurements and calculations, the nearest value of coefficient discharge
for vee notch is 2.668: which is approximately 2.3565 significant different compared to
the theoryFs value of *d.
These deviations of values are contributed by the errors during handling the
experiment. +f we take it as overall errors, most of errors occurred when step of taking
the height started. 'irst, we have to be careful about the height of datum. 'or
convenience, it is recommended to take your datum height as )ero. . The purpose of
doing it is to minimi)e the errors. Besides that, we noticed that there is inconsistency in
our readings even we take twice for each observation. Eeans, more readings should be
taken. There are also a few errors occur while doing this experiments but it will be
discussed in the recommendations section.
1*
5.0 CONC-USIONS
'rom experiment and after doing some readings and analysis, we can conclude
that this experiment was handled moderately successful. This is because the ob7ective
to determine the value of *d for both rectangular and triangular "vee# notches is
achieved. As we have discussed earlier, the *d value can be determine experimentally
by measuring the volume flow rate for these notches and by measuring the time needed
for every collection.
+n comparing these two notches, rectangular and triangular, we also see that the
shape and their characteristics play vital role in determining the coefficient of discharge.
Besides that, we can also see the application of these weirs which is used widely in
industrial field.
%hatever, whenever and wherever this concept is applied for, we have to
appreciate it. This is because the flow over weirs is widely used in our industrial sectors
and also in our daily life.

1+
10.0 RECOMMENDATION
After analyst the results of this experiment, we found that there are some errors
that we can reduce or even prevented to do so. Here are some of recommendations to
fulfill this accuracy of this experiment.

The experiment should be carried out at least twice. This can help us to avoid
wide deviation because taking one reading of each observation would give
inconsistency in the readings.
Co not allow spillage to occur over the plate top ad7acent to the notch. +f this
happened, it would affect the collection of known volume.
(nce the data were taken, the procedure cannot be reverse to find the value of
time collection by ad7usting the height. This would affect the value of height
datum. The height datum should be constant and the observation should be done
once round for the little increment of height especially for !ee notch.

The readings of height should be taken carefully by avoiding sight error. The time
collection should be taken much appropriately.
The Basic %eir Apparatus should be placed at a proper sight to easy the reading
of the !ernier scale.
The time to collect water should be taken more than once to get the consistent
results.
Eain error might be parallax error. The measurement should be read correctly.
*ontrolling the water valve is quit difficult.
Before taking the time of collecting, we have to make sure that the water flow is
steady. This could minimi)ed the coefficient discharge of each experiment.
1-

11.0 RE6ERENCES
1. Submitted Articles: ARTC02021403
Article: Weirs for Open-Chnnel !lo" #esurement
ubmitted byG DC+ =niversity of 'lorida
2. """$rmfield$co$u%&fl'21'dtsheet$html
3. """$csus$edu&indi(&h&hpllndm&cel3)&hndouts&"fproced$html
*. itll$colordo$edu&modules&templtes&dsp'bod*$cfm+
ction,indfocusre-focusre,.
1%
12.0 APPENDICES
NOMENC-ATURE
*olumn Heading =nits Aom. Type Cescription
Aotch type Eeasured !ee Aotch or >ectangular Aotch
Height datum m ho Eeasured Catum height, which is based of
the notch. This is read from the
vernier and used to calculate
height of water level above the
notch. The height datum is
measured in "mm#. *onvert to
"m# for calculation.
%ater level m h Eeasured This is read from the vernier. The
water level is measured in "mm#.
*onvert to "m# for calculation.
!olume collected m
5
! Eeasured Taken from scale on hydraulic
bench. The volume collected is
measured in "H# and divide the
readings by 3222.
Time for collection s t Eeasured Time taken to collect the known
volume of water in the hydraulic
bench. The time is measured in
sec.
!olume flow rate m
0
4sec -t *alculated -t . !olume collected 4 time
Height above notch m H
*alculated
H . h $ ho
H
540
rectangular
notch
*alculated
=sed to describe relationship
between flow rate and height for
a rectangular notch.
>ectangular notch
discharge
coefficient
*d
*alculated
2
3
2
3
2
H g b C Q
d t
=
1$
H
840
vee notch
*alculated
=sed to describe relationship
between flow rate and height for
a vee notch.
!ee notch
discharge
coefficient
*d
*alculated
2
+
2
2
tan
1+
$
H g C Q
d t

=

1#