Proceedings of 2013 IAHR Congress

2013 Tsinghua University Press, Beijing

Propagation of a positive surge against an initially steady flow:

influence of the flow rate
Carlo Gualtieri
Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering (DICEA), University of
Napoli "Federico II", Napoli (Italy) Email: carlo.gualtieri@unina.it
Hubert Chanson
Professor, School of Civil Engineering, The University of Queensland, Brisbane QLD 4072, (Australia)
E-mail h.chanson@uq.edu.au

ABSTRACT: A positive surge results from a sudden change in flow that increases the depth. It is the
unsteady flow analogy of the stationary hydraulic jump and a geophysical application is the tidal bore.
Although a positive surge may be analysed using a quasi-steady flow analogy, its inception and
development is commonly predicted using the method of characteristics and Saint-Venant equations. After
formation, the flow properties immediately upstream and downstream of the surge front must satisfy the
continuity and momentum principles. This paper presents the results of new experimental investigations
conducted in a large rectangular channel. Several experiments were conducted five different initial
discharges (Q=0.035, 0.045, 0.050, 0.060 and 0.070 m/s) to investigate a positive surge propagating
upstream against the initially steady flow for the same downstream gate opening after closure. In each
case, a breaking (weak) bore was observed and free-surface measurements were performed using
non-intrusive acoustic displacement meters. Detailed unsteady velocity measurements were further
carried out with high temporal resolution using acoustic Doppler velocimetry for Q=0.035 and 0.045 m/s.
The analysis of free-surface profiles revealed the influence of the flow rate on the surge characteristics.
Unsteady flow turbulence analysis highlighted some patterns in streamwise and transverse velocities due to
the effect of the flow rate.
KEY WORDS: Environmental hydraulics, turbulence, positive surge, surge front, instantaneous velocity
field, Reynolds stress, physical modelling.
1 INTRODUCTION
A positive surge results from a sudden change in flow that increases the depth. It is the unsteady
flow analogy of the stationary hydraulic jump and a geophysical application is the tidal bore (Chanson,
2012). Positive surges are commonly observed in man-made and natural channels. In water supply canals
for irrigation and water power purposes, a positive surge may be induced by a partial or complete closure
of a control structure, e.g. a gate, resulting in a sudden change in flow that increases the water depth. In
rivers and estuaries, a form of positive surge is the tidal bore which is a positive surge of tidal origin.
Tsunami-induced bores were also observed. Although a positive surge may be analysed using a
quasi-steady flow analogy, its inception and development is commonly predicted using the method of
characteristics and Saint-Venant equations. After formation, the flow properties immediately upstream
and downstream of the surge front must satisfy the continuity and momentum principles (Henderson,
1966, Chanson 2004). For a fully-developed positive surge, the surge is seen by an observer travelling at
the surge speed U as a quasi-steady flow situation called a hydraulic jump in translation (Fig. 1). In a

rectangular, horizontal channel and neglecting friction loss, if the subscripts 0 and conj refer, respectively,
to the initial flow conditions and conjugate flow conditions, i.e., immediately behind the positive surge
front, the solution of the continuity and momentum equations applied to a control volume across the surge
front yields:
d conj
d0
Frconj
Fr

1
2

1 8 Fr 1

(1)

23 2
1 8 Fr 2 1

(2)

32

where dconj and d0 are respectively the new and initial flow depths (Fig. 1), and the Froude numbers Fr
and Frconj are the surge Froude numbers defined respectively as:
Fr

V0 U
g d0

Frconj

(3)

Vconj U
g d conj

where U is the surge velocity as seen by a stationary observer on the channel bank and positive in the
upstream direction and V0 is the flow velocity (Fig. 1).

Initial
water
level

dconj
Vconj

d0
V0

x
Fig. 1 Definition sketch of a positive surge. Positive surge for an observer standing on the bank
Positive surges were studied by hydraulicians and applied mathematicians for many decades since
Since Barr de Saint-Venant (1871), Boussinesq (1877). Classical experimental works on undular surges
included and Favre (1935), Lemoine (1948), Benet and Cunge (1971) and Treske (1994). Most of
previous experimental studies were limited to visual observations and sometimes free-surface
measurements, but more recently, unsteady turbulence measurements were carried out using particle
image velocimetry (PIV) and acoustic Doppler velocimetry (ADV) techniques (Hornung et al., 1995,
Koch and Chanson, 2009, Gualtieri and Chanson 2011a, 2011b, 2012). Finally, numerical studies of a
surge were recently presented (Soares Frazo and Zech, 2002, Furuyama and Chanson, 2008, Lubin et al.,
2010). A very recent reviews about tidal bores were prepared by Chanson (2012a, b).
In this paper the authors present the results from new experimental works conducted in a large
rectangular in which the positive surge propagated upstream against an initially steady flow. All
experiments were performed with the same downstream gate opening after closure and five different
initial discharges (Q=0.035, 0.045, 0.050, 0.060 and 0.070 m/s). For each case, free-surface

measurements were performed using non-intrusive acoustic displacement meters, and detailed unsteady
velocity measurements were carried out with high temporal resolution using Doppler velocimetry for
Q=0.035 and 0.045 m/s. Overall this study was aimed at revealing the influence of the flow rate on the
hydrodynamics characteristics of a positive surge.
2 EXPERIMENTAL SETUP. CHANNEL AND INSTRUMENTATION. SURGE GENERATION
2.1 Experimental setup
The experiments were performed in a large tilting flume at the University of Queensland previously
used by Chanson and co-workers (Koch and Chanson, 2009, Chanson, 2010, Gualtieri and Chanson
2011a, 2011b, 2012). The channel was 0.5 m wide, 12 m long and it was horizontal. The flume was made
of smooth PVC bed and glass walls, and waters were supplied by a constant head tank. The water
discharge was measured with orifice meters with an accuracy of less than 2%. A tainter gate was located
next to the downstream end, at x=11.15 m from the channel intake, where x is the distance from the
channel upstream end. Its controlled and rapid closure induced a positive surge propagating upstream.
The study was carried out with the same gate opening after closure (hg = 15 mm) and five different
initial discharges (Q=0.035, 0.045, 0.050, 0.060 and 0.070 m/s). Unsteady free-surface measurements
were performed using seven non-intrusive acoustic displacement meters Microsonic Mic + 25/IU/TC
with an accuracy of 0.18 mm and a response time of less than 50 ms. The acoustic displacement meters
were located at x=1.985 m, 2.995 m, 4 m, 5 m, 6 m, 9 m and 10.9 m, where x is the downstream distance
from the channel intake. For Q=0.035 and 0.045 m/s detailed unsteady velocity measurements were
carried out with high temporal resolution using an acoustic Doppler velocimeter (ADV) Sontek 16MHz
micro-ADV equipped with a two-dimensional side-looking head acoustic Doppler velocimetry. The
velocity range was 1.0 m/s, the sampling rate was 50 Hz and the data accuracy was 1% of the velocity
range. The translation of the ADV probe in the vertical direction was controlled by a fine adjustment
travelling mechanism connected to a Mitutoyo digimatic scale unit. The error on the vertical position of
the probe was z<0.025 mm. The accuracy on the longitudinal position was x< 2 mm. All
measurements were conducted on the channel centreline. Additional information was obtained with
digital cameras Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ20GN (shutter: 8 to 1/2,000 s) and CanonA85 (shutter: 15
to 1/2,000 s).
ADV measurements are performed by measuring the velocity of particles in a remote sampling
volume based upon the Doppler shift effect (McLelland and Nicholas, 2000). An ADV system records
simultaneously four values with each component of a sample: the velocity component, the signal strength
value, the correlation value and the signal to noise ratio. Past and present experiences demonstrated many
problems because the signal outputs combine the effects of velocity fluctuations, Doppler noise, signal
aliasing, turbulent shear and other disturbances (Goring and Nikora, 2002, Koch and Chanson, 2009). For
all experiments, present experience demonstrated recurrent problems with the velocity data, including low
correlations and low signal to noise ratios. The situation improved drastically by mixing some vegetable
dye (Dytex Dye Green) in the entire water recirculation system (Figs. 2 and 3). The vegetable dye
introduced some very fine particles in the water, increasing in turn the number of excited particles in the
ADV control volume. The effect of added dye was to increase the time-averaged signal correlations and
time-averaged signal to noise-ratios. The buoyancy effect was negligible since the dye particles were
neutrally buoyant.
While several ADV post-processing techniques were devised for steady flows (Goring and Nikora,
2002, Wahl, 2003), these post-processing techniques are not applicable to unsteady flows (Koch and
Chanson, 2009). In the present study, unsteady flow post-processing was limited to a removal of
communication errors and a replacement by linear interpolation. Note also that spurious data collected by
the acoustic displacement meters were removed and the removed points were obtained by linear
interpolation of end points. This method is known for the absence of bias.
2.2Positive surge generation
The study of positive surges was conducted with one set of initial flow conditions (Table 1). The
initial flow conditions were supercritical (Eq. (3)). The only dependant parameter was the flow rate.

Steady gradually-varied flow conditions were established for at least 5 min prior to measurements and the
flow measurements data acquisition was started about 1.5 min prior to gate closure. A positive surge was
generated by the rapid partial closure of the downstream gate. The gate closure time was less than 0.2 s
(Koch and Chanson, 2009, Gualtieri and Chanson 2011a,2011b,2012). After closure the surge propagated
upstream and each experiment was stopped when the bore front reached the intake structure.
One gate opening after closure was considered (Table 1). In Table 1, hg is the gate opening and the
surge front celerity U was calculated using the displacement meters data between x=6 m and 4 m; also, d0
was measured at x=5 m and dconj was derived using Eq. (1). In Table 1 the data for Run 35-4 and Run 45-4
refer to the average of 23 runs with the same gate opening but different vertical elevation z for the ADV
system sampling volume.
All the measurements were performed on the channel centreline. The earlier work of Koch and
Chanson (2009) showed little transverse differences but close to the sidewall where the ADV system was
further adversely affected by the sidewall proximity. Note that, if the structure of flow in positive surges
is generally 3D, previous studies showed a quasi-two-dimensional free-surface in breaking, weak surges
(Koch and Chanson, 2009, Gualtieri and Chanson 2011a, 2011b, 2012).
Table 1 Experimental flow conditions
Run Q m/s
35-4 0.035
45-4 0.045
50-4 0.050
60-4 0.060
70-4 0.070

d0 m
0.1036
0.1214
0.1200
0.1399
0.1545

hg m
0.015
0.015
0.015
0.015
0.015

Type U m/s dconj m

Weak 0.673
0.151
Weak 0.835
0.195
Weak 0.839
0.208
Weak 0.830
0.230
Weak 0.964
0.264

Fr
Remarks
1.338 ADV & surface measurements
1.445 ADV & surface measurements
1.541 Free-surface measurements
1.441 Free-surface measurements
1.519 Free-surface measurements

Fig. 2 Weak surge, Run 35-4. Lateral view (left) and looking downstream at the incoming wave crest
(right)
3 BASIC FLOW PATTERNS
Previous studies (Koch and Chanson, 2009, Gualtieri and Chanson 2011a, 2011b, 2012)
demonstrated that at low inflow Froude numbers, e.g. Fr<1.3 to 1.8, the surge propagation was relatively
slow and the bore front was followed by a train of well-formed undulations: this is typical of an undular
surge. In this case the free-surface undulations had a smooth appearance and no wave breaking and no
formed roller was observed. Furthermore, at intermediate inflow Froude numbers some wave breaking
was observed at the bore front. In the present study only breaking (weak) surges were observed (Figs. 2
and 3). The surges propagated at a relatively fast speed, and the free-surface appeared to be
quasi-two-dimensional, whereas previous studies showed that undular surges have a three-dimensional

flow structure (Koch and Chanson 2008, Gualtieri and Chanson 2011a, 2011b, 2012). The breaking bore
front was associated with some air entrainment in the roller (Figs. 2 and 3). For the entire range of
investigations, the bore celerity ranged from 0.67 to 0.96 m/s (Table 1, column 6). Overall the flow
patterns were consistent with earlier studies (Koch and Chanson, 2009, Chanson, 2010, Gualtieri and
Chanson 2011a, 2011b, 2012).
Typical instantaneous free-surface profiles are presented in Figs. 4 and 5. Each curve shows the
instantaneous dimensionless flow depth d/d0 as a function of the dimensionless time from gate closure
t(g/d0)0.5. Note that the zero dimensionless time corresponded to 10.0 seconds prior to the wave crest
passage at the sampling location. Fig. 4 shows some data for the weak surges for Q = 45 and 60 L/s (Runs
45-4 and 60-4) at x=5 m. The roller passage was associated with a marked discontinuity of the
free-surface, although the free-surface elevation rose slowly immediately prior to the roller, with the
free-surface curving upwards ahead of the roller toe (Koch and Chanson, 2009, Gualtieri and Chanson
2011b, 2012). The maximum water depth was higher for the surge with the larger flow rate, i.e. Q=60 L/s.
The free-surface profiles at x=5 m were not significantly affected by the presence of the ADV system.

Fig. 3 Weak surge, Run 60-4. Lateral view looking upstream (left) and from above (right)

Fig. 4 Runs 45-4 and 60-4. Dimensionless instantaneous water depth d/d0 at x = 5 m.

Fig. 5 Runs 35-4, 45-4, 50-4, 60-4 and 70-4. Dimensionless instantaneous water depth d/d0 at x = 5 m.
Fig. 5 shows the instantaneous dimensionless flow depth d/d0 at x = 5 m as a function of the
dimensionless time from gate closure t(g/d0)0.5 for all five experiments. The maximum water depths
were lower for the surges with the smaller flow rates, i.e. Q=35 and 45 L/s. The comparison indicated that,
for the larger flow rate, the increase in the water depth to the steady-state conditions due to the passage of
the surge was larger, as expected for the higher Froude number. In a fully-developed surge, the ratio of
conjugate depths (dconj/d0) must satisfy the continuity and momentum equations (Eq. (1)). Present
experimental results were generally close to those predicted by the momentum principle.
4 UNSTEADY FLOW FIELD IN THE SURGES. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
For two flow rates, i.e. Q=35 and 45 L/s, detailed velocity measurements were carried out beneath
the bore front using the ADV system located at x=5 m (Table 1). Each experiment was repeated to obtain
the vertical distribution of the velocity component time series at several vertical elevations, z. Figs. 6 and
7 illustrate the unsteady turbulent velocity field at two vertical elevations for the two surges, i.e. Run 35-4
and Run 45-4. Each graph presents the dimensionless velocities Vx/V0 and Vy/V0 and water depth d/d0,
where V0 is the flow velocity (Fig. 1 and Table 1), against the dimensionless time t(g/d0)0.5. Herein Vx is
the longitudinal velocity component positive downstream, and Vy is the horizontal transverse velocity
component positive towards the left wall. The zero dimensionless time corresponded to 10.0 seconds
prior to the first wave crest passage at the sampling location.
In the breaking surges, an initial gentle rise of the free surface was linked to a rapid decrease of the
longitudinal velocity component at all vertical elevations (Koch and Chanson, 2009). Immediately after,
the passage of the roller was marked by a sharp rise in free-surface elevation corresponding to a
discontinuity in terms of the water depth. The sudden increase in water depth corresponded to a rapid
deceleration to yield a slower flow motion to satisfy the conservation of mass (Figs. 6 and 7). The
velocity records showed some marked difference depending upon the vertical elevation z (Figs. 6 and 7).
At the larger depth, i.e. z/d0 > 0.3, the streamwise velocity component decreased rapidly at the surge front
but remained positive beneath the roller toe (Fig. 6, right and Fig.7, right). In contrast, for z/d0 < 0.3, a
difference could be noted between Q=35 L/s and Q=45 L/s. For Run 35-4 some negative Vx values were
observed although for a short duration, for a dimensionless time t(g/d0)0.5 from 97 to 104 (Fig. 6, left).
The existence a sudden longitudinal flow reversal indicated unsteady flow separation beneath the surge
front. The longitudinal flow deceleration yielded negative streamwise Vx velocities with
(Vx/V0)min=0.088. This flow feature was first reported for different flow rates by Koch and Chanson
(2009), confirmed by Chanson (2010) and Gualtieri and Chanson (2011b), and obtained numerically by
6

Furuyama and Chanson (2008). It should be also noted that these negative values of the streamwise
velocity may contribute to sediment inception in movable beds as the transient recirculation motion next
to the bed yields to a drag force acting in the upstream direction (Khezri and Chanson, 2012a, b). For Run
45-4, the streamwise Vx velocities remained always positive, but close to the zero (Fig.7, left).
Furthermore, close to the bed, i.e. z/d0=0.085 and 0.073, lower streamwise velocities Vx
corresponded to larger values of the transverse velocities Vy (Figs. 6, left, and 7, left). This trend was
already observed in earlier experimental studies (Koch and Chanson, 2009, Gualtieri and Chanson, 2011).
Overall, for both the flow rates, the turbulent velocity data showed some large fluctuations of all
velocity components beneath the surge and in the flow field behind the surge. Large time variations of the
longitudinal and transverse velocity components were seen at all vertical elevations.

Fig. 6 Run 35-4. Dimensionless instantaneous water depth d/d0 and velocity components Vx/V0 and
Vy/V0 at z/d0=0.085 (left) and z/d0=0.742 (right)

Fig. 7 Run 45-4. Dimensionless instantaneous water depth d/d0 and velocity components Vx/V0 and
Vy/V0 at z/d0=0.073 (left) and z/d0=0.709 (right)

5 CONCLUSION
This study presented some physical measurements in positive surges conducted under controlled
flow conditions in a large channel. Detailed turbulence measurements were performed with a

high-temporal resolution (50 Hz) using side-looking acoustic Doppler velocimetry and non-intrusive free
surface measurement devices. The dependant variable was the flow rate. In all the cases, breaking surges
were observed.
The effect of the flow rate was related to increase of the water depth at the passage of the surge
respect to the steady-state conditions. Detailed instantaneous velocity measurements were carried out for
only two flow rates, i.e. Q=35 L/s and Q=45 L/s. These measurements showed a marked effect of the
surge passage. In the breaking surge, the gentle rise of the free surface corresponded to a rapid flow
deceleration at all vertical elevations, and at the lower flow rate, i.e. Q=35 L/s, some flow reversal were
measured next to the bed, whereas at highest sampling points Vx/V0 remained positive. These negative
values of the streamwise velocity are expected to contribute to sediment inception in movable beds. At the
larger flow rate, i.e. Q=45 L/s, the streamwise velocities were always positive, independently from the
vertical elevation. Furthermore, close to the bed, low streamwise velocities Vx corresponded to large
values of the transverse velocities Vy. Finally, for both the flow rates, the turbulent velocity data showed
some large time variations of the longitudinal and transverse velocity components beneath the surge and
in the flow field behind the surge at all vertical elevations.
Overall, the results here presented mostly confirmed and extended the main findings of previous
experimental works with the analysis of the influence of the flow rate on the surge characteristics.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The first author acknowledges that the paper was prepared as a part of MIUR PRIN 2010-2011 Research
Project Hydroelectric energy by osmosis in coastal areas (HYDROCAR).
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