Water Resources Engineering

Krishna Pada Bauri

Civil Engineering Department
C. V. Raman College of Engineering,
Bhubaneswar
Catchment

• Introduction
• Introduction
• Concept
• Map
• Map
• Characteristics
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
• Centroid Catchment
• Catchment Length
• Channel Order
• Channel Order
• Catchment Order
• Exercise

Water Resources Engineering 2

 Introduction

Catchment
A catchment (or drainage basin) is a region of land where water from rain or
• Introduction
• Introduction snowmelt drains downhill into a body of water, such as a river, lake, dam, estu-
• Concept
ary, wetland, sea or ocean. The catchment includes both the streams and rivers that
• Map
• Map convey the water, as well as the land surfaces from which water drains into those
• Characteristics
channels.
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
The catchment acts like a funnel - collecting all the water within the area covered
• Centroid by the basin and channeling it into a waterway. Each catchment area is separated
• Catchment Length
• Channel Order topographically from adjacent basins by a ridge, hill or mountain, which is known as
• Channel Order
the catchment boundary.
• Catchment Order
• Exercise

Water Resources Engineering 3

 Introduction

Catchment

• Introduction
• Introduction
• Concept
• Map
• Map
• Characteristics
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
• Centroid
• Catchment Length
• Channel Order
• Channel Order
• Catchment Order
• Exercise

Water Resources Engineering 4

 Concept

Catchment

• Introduction
• Introduction
• Concept
• Map
• Map
• Characteristics
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
• Centroid
• Catchment Length
• Channel Order
• Channel Order
• Catchment Order
• Exercise

Water Resources Engineering 5

 Map

Catchment

• Introduction
• Introduction
• Concept
• Map
• Map
• Characteristics
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
• Centroid
• Catchment Length
• Channel Order
• Channel Order
• Catchment Order
• Exercise

Water Resources Engineering 6

 Characteristics

Catchment
Certain characteristics of catchments reflect hydrologic behaviour. These are useful
• Introduction
• Introduction in evaluating the hydrologic response of the basins. These characteristics relate to
• Concept
either the physical catchment or to the channels.
• Map
• Map
• Characteristics
Physical Characteristics Channel Characteristics
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Area • Channel Order
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope • Catchmen Shape • Channel Length
• Centroid
• Catchment Length • Ground Slope • Channel Slope
• Channel Order
• Channel Order • Centroid of the Area • Drainage Density
• Catchment Order
• Exercise
To identify these characteristics, topographic maps and satellite images can be used
together with GIS based software.

Water Resources Engineering 8

 Catchment Area

Catchment
Catchment area is defined as the area contained within the vertical projection of the
• Introduction
• Introduction catchment boundary on a horizontal plane. This condition is exhibited on a topo-
• Concept
graphic map. On the map, the boundary is traced beginning with the drainage outlet
• Map
• Map on the stream and following the boundary around the catchment and back to the
• Characteristics
outlet.
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
It is apparent that the boundary of the catchment can only cross the stream at the
• Centroid basin outlet. Catchment area is measured in square kilometers or hectares.
• Catchment Length
• Channel Order Catchment area is highly correlated with several hydrologic parameters. Discharge
• Channel Order
(runoff) Q from a catchment has been related to the catchment area. One of the
• Catchment Order
• Exercise simplest relationship is of the form

Q = kAx

where k and x are parameters.

Water Resources Engineering 9

 Catchment Shape

Catchment
Numerous symmetrical and irregular forms of catchment areas are encountered in
• Introduction
• Introduction practice. A frequently occurring shape is a pear shape in plan view.
• Concept
• Map A number of dimensionless parameters have been proposed to quantitatively define
• Map
• Characteristics
the catchment shape. Some of these are
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Shape • Form Factor A/L2
• Catchment Slope
• Centroid
• Catchment Length
• Shape Factor L2 /A
• Channel Order
• Channel Order • Elongation Ratio 1.128A0.5 /L etc.
• Catchment Order
• Exercise
A = catchment area, L = length of the catchment and P = perimeter.

Water Resources Engineering 10

 Catchment Slope

Catchment
Slope of a catchment has a profound effect on the velocity of overland flow, erosion
• Introduction
• Introduction potential and local wind system. Basin slope is defined as
• Concept
• Map
• Map
S = h/L
• Characteristics
• Catchment Area where h is the fall and L is the horizontal length over which the fall occurs.
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
Because ground slope varies greatly from point to point within the catchment, the
• Centroid
• Catchment Length above simple equation needs suitable modifications. One method, suggested by
• Channel Order
Horton, is to divide the catchment area into a grid system on the topographic map.
• Channel Order
• Catchment Order The average horizontal slope SH and vertical slope SV are obtained for each grid,
• Exercise
from the contour intervals. Finally, the average slope for the catchment is obtained
as
SV + SH
S=
2

Water Resources Engineering 11

 Centroid

Catchment
The centroid of a catchment area is simply the location of the point within the area
• Introduction
• Introduction that represents the weighted center of the basin. It is the first moment of the area
• Concept
about the origin.
• Map
• Map
• Characteristics
The centroid of a catchment can be determined by using the method of moments
• Catchment Area and representing the catchment by a grid system. Because the centroid is the first
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
moment of inetrtia, it coordinates (x̄, ȳ) can be computed as
• Centroid

1 X 1 X
• Catchment Length N M
• Channel Order x̄ = xi ai ȳ = yi ai
• Channel Order A A
i=1 i=1
• Catchment Order
• Exercise
where xi is the distance between the y -axis and the center of the i-th grid square, ai
is the area of the grid square, yi is the distance between the x-axis and the center of
the i-th grid square. M and N are the total number of grids in x- and y -directions,
respectively.

Water Resources Engineering 12

 Catchment Length

Catchment
Length of the catchment is defined as the longest dimension of the catchment parallel
• Introduction
• Introduction to its principal drainage channel. Hydrology is concerned with flow in the drainage
• Concept
channels and, therefore, specifically requires that such measurements are made
• Map
• Map along the drainage system to a given point.
• Characteristics
• Catchment Area In a similar vein, basin width can be measured in a direction approximately perpen-
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
dicular to the length measurement.
• Centroid
• Catchment Length The relationship between the length Lb and the area A of a catchment can be ap-
• Channel Order
proximately represented as
• Channel Order
• Catchment Order Lb = 1.312A0.68
• Exercise

where Lb is in km and A in km2 .

Water Resources Engineering 13

 Channel Order

Catchment
Catchment areas may be characterized in terms of channel ordering. The order of
• Introduction
• Introduction the catchment is the order of its highest-order channel.
• Concept
An inspection of the channel network of a catchment reveals that as one traces
• Map
• Map the flow from one of the uppermost channel in the catchment toward the outlet, the
• Characteristics
uppermost channel joins another channel, which in turn joins another channel and
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Shape so on.
• Catchment Slope
• Centroid The first order channels are defined as those having no tributaries. these are the
• Catchment Length
• Channel Order streams whose flow is dependent entirely on surface overland flow to them.
• Channel Order
• Catchment Order The junction of two first order channels form a second order channel. A second
• Exercise
order channel receives flow from the two first-order channels that form it, and from
overland flow from ground surface. It might receive flow from another first-order
channel that flows directly into it. Thus a second order channel must carry much
more flow of water than a first order channel.

A third order channel is formed by the junction of two second order channels.

Water Resources Engineering 14

 Channel Order

Catchment

• Introduction
• Introduction
• Concept
• Map
• Map
• Characteristics
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
• Centroid
• Catchment Length
• Channel Order
• Channel Order
• Catchment Order
• Exercise When two first order channels join together, they form a second order stream.
When two second order channels come together, they form a third order stream.
Channels of lower order joining a higher order channel do not change the order of
the higher channel. Thus, if a first order channel joins a second order channel, it
remains a second order channel. It is not until a second order channel combines
with another second order channel that it becomes a third order channel.

Water Resources Engineering 15

 Catchment Order

Catchment
The order of a catchment is defined by the highest channel order inside the catch-
• Introduction
• Introduction ment, i.e., the order of the channel at the outlet.
• Concept
Catchment of the Amazon River is having the highest order, 12. The Ohio River is
• Map
• Map an "8" and the Mississippi River is a "10." 80 percent of the streams and rivers on
• Characteristics
the planet are first or second order.
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
• Centroid
• Catchment Length
• Channel Order
• Channel Order
• Catchment Order
• Exercise

Water Resources Engineering 16

 Exercise

Catchment
Identify the catchment order.
• Introduction
• Introduction
• Concept
• Map
• Map
• Characteristics
• Catchment Area
• Catchment Shape
• Catchment Slope
• Centroid
• Catchment Length
• Channel Order
• Channel Order
• Catchment Order
• Exercise

Water Resources Engineering 17