Committee on Fluvial Hydraulics
Scope
This branch of geophysical hydraulics consists of
the observation, analysis and control of fluvial processes. Any
engineering intervention of a river (control) requires a preliminary
assessment of the mechanisms involved (observation) and the prediction
of their effects (analysis).
Physical processes in rivers are determined by the interaction of
water and sediments. Waterflow and sediment transport are, therefore,
traditional topics of study of this branch. Chemical and biological
processes are also becoming more important, especially as their
relationships to river morphology are recognised.
River engineers work in close contact with the natural environment.
Their measures often interfere with natural processes. Environmental
consideration and careful handling of fragile ecosystems are gaining
increasing attention.
The morphology of a river is highly variable along its course, from
the steepest branches of the upland regions down to the flat reaches
of the estuary where rivers meet the sea. The behaviour of rivers
in their middle course, where sediment transport is constituted
by the relatively uniform material of the bed, has been investigated
rather comprehensively by hydraulic engineers. Less attention has
been paid to the upper and lower parts of the river. In the upper
reaches sediment transport is directly controlled by the input from
mass movement and surface erosion. In the lower estuary region,
sediment motion is affected by salt, and tidal influences.
Consequently, the fluvial hydraulics Committee is now interested in
research that involves components from other disciplines like biology,
geomorphology, soil mechanics and oceanography.
Fluvial hydraulics needs contact with practice. The researchers
depend on the engineers involved in practical river management,
including construction. Their models and scientific approaches require
data and experience from the field. On the other hand, the engineers
doing practical work can benefit from research results and innovations
by applying them in practice.
 back
to top
Research
Agenda
River processes: Experimental and theoretical investigations are being carried out
to describe, in a more accurate and detailed way, various aspects
of fluvial dynamics. These investigations include secondary flow
and secondary sediment transport in geometrically complex configurations.
Horizontal distribution in the bottom of non-uniform grainsize material,
and dynamics of hyperconcentrated flows, like mud and debris flows.
Overall models of the entire fluvial system, which would take into
account the above-mentioned components, are also required for various
engineering purposes.
Risk analysis and mitigation in fluvial
systems: Besides the traditional one-dimensional analysis
of the propagation of flood waters along a fixed-bed river, many
other aspects of risk analysis and mitigation should be considered
for general hazard assessment.
In the past years, attention has been focused on the two-dimensional
spread of a steep wave in a valley produced by a ruptured dam. However,
catastrophic inundations may also be related to large earth movements
like the falling of a large mass into a reservoir, the sudden washing-away
of a natural dam formed by landslides, or the rapid overaggradation
of a mountain river, by mud and debris flow.
Mitigation of these effects, including reliable warning systems
and structural and non-structural measures are currently under investigation.
Re-naturalisation of river environment: Due to increased environmental awareness by hydraulic engineers
and the mounting pressure exerted by conservationist groups, the
design of structural interventions in rivers must now consider environmental
problems. In some cases, existing works decades and centuries old
are under scrutiny for a possible “re-naturalisation”.
As a “natural” configuration will generally correspond
to more severe hydraulic conditions, research is needed to improve
the compatibility between biological and engineering requirements,
as well as to define new standards for the design of trained rivers.
Long-term evolution: While in some
places (e.g. in Europe), future interventions in rivers will likely
be limited to relatively small training and re-naturalisation works
of secondary streams, new projects in other countries will probably
involve important constructions on the largest rivers of the world.
In general, the necessity of environmentally acceptable and economically
feasible sediment management which is oriented towards sustainable
development must be given careful consideration
Improved methods for predicting the effects of new projects have
to be developed, especially with regard to the hydrological and
sedimentary regimes of the system. Because the reaction-time of
the system depends upon its size, the evolution of very large rivers
following these constructions may go on for centuries.
Special long term models that can simulate this time-scale should
be prepared and tested against historical records. The history of
river-water utilisation is full of examples of the unpredictable
changes to river morphology and water quality as a result of river
constructions.
back
to top
Committee Officers
Leadership Team
Chair
 |
Mustafa Altinakar
NCCHE
The University of Mississippi
Carrier Hall, Room 102
University, MS 38677
USA
Tel: +1-662-915-3783
Fax: +1-662-915-7796
E-mail: altinakar@ncche.olemiss.edu |
Past Chair
 |
Ana Maria da Silva
Queen’s University,
Dept. of Civil Engineering, Ellis Hall
Kingston, Ontario K7L 3N6
Canada
Tel. +16135332122
Fax.+16135332128
E-mail: amsilva@civil.queensu.ca |
Members
back
to top
Publications
- River Flow. International Conference on Fluvial Hydraulics
- River Flow 2010. 5th Int. Conference on Fluvial Hydraulics, September 8-10, 2010, Braunschweig, Germany. 2 volumes + CD-ROM. ISBN: 978-3-939230-00-7. Published by Bundesanstalt für Wasserbau (BAW) e-mail: info@baw.de Available online
- River Flow 2008. 4rd Int. Conference on Fluvial Hydraulics, September 3-5, 2008, Cesme, Izmir, Turkey. 3 volumes + CD-ROM. ISBN 978-605-60136-1-4. Published by Taylor & Francis / Balkema.
- River Flow 2006. 3nd Int. Conference on Fluvial Hydraulics. September 6-8, 2006, Lisbon, Portugal. 2 volumes. ISBN 978-0-415-40815-8. Published by Taylor & Francis / Balkema.
- River Flow 2004. 2nd Int. Conference on Fluvial Hydraulics, Naples, Italy, June 23-25, 2004. 2 volumes. ISBN 90 5809 658 0. Published by A.A.Balkema Publishers.
- River Flow 2002. 1st Int. Conference on Fluvial Hydraulics, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, September 3-6, 2002. 2 volumes. ISBN: 90 5809 509 6. Published by A.A.Balkema Publishers.
- Symposium in Flood Defence
- 5th International Conference on Flood Management (ICFM5) 27-29 September 2011, Tsukuba, Japan. Contact IAHR Secretariat
- 4th International Conference on Flood Management, 6-8 May 2008, Toronto, Canada http://www.ifi-home.info/isfd4/index.html
- 3rd Int. Symposium on River Flood Defence (ISFD3), 25-27 May 2005, Nijmegen, Netherlands. Published by Taylor and Francis
- 2nd Int. Symposium on River Flood Defence, September 10-13, 2002, Beijing, China. 2 volumes + CD-ROM. Order at the IAHR E-shop
- 1st Int. Symposium on River Flood Defence, 2000, Kassel, Germany. 3 volumes. ISBN 3-930150-20-4. Order at the IAHR E-shop
- Symposium in River Sedimentation
- 11th Int. Symposium on River Sedimentation (ISRS), September 6-9, 2010, South Africa
- 10th Int. Symposium on River Sedimentation, August 1-4, 2007, Moscow, Russia
- 9th Int. Symposium on River Sedimentation, October 18-21, 2004, Yichang, China. Published by IRTCES.
- 7th Int. Symposium on River Sedimentation, December 16-18, 1998, Hong Kong. Published by Balkema Publishers.
- 5th Int. Symposium on River Sedimentation, April 6-10, 1992, Karslruhe, Germany. From Institut für Wasserbau und Kulturtechnik, University of Karslruhe, Kaiserstrasse 12, D-7500 Karlsruhe 1, Germany.
- 4th Int. Symposium on River Sedimentation, 1-5 November 1989, Beijing, China.
- River Flood Hydraulics
- 3rd Int. Conference on River Flood Hydraulics, Stellenbosch, South Africa, 5-7 November 1997. Ms. Jacqueline Watts, Conference Organiser, HR Wallingford Ltd., Howbery Park Wallingford, Oxon OX10 8BA England.
- Int. Conference on River Flood Hydraulics, Wallingford, UK, September 17-20, 1990. John Wiley & Sons, Baffins Lane, Chichester, W. Sussex, UK.
- Debris Flow
- 3rd Int. Conference on Debris Flow Hazards Mitigation: Mechanics, Prediction, and Assessment, September 10-12, 2003. e-mail: maria.viklander@sb.luth.se
- 2nd Int. Conference on Debris Flow Hazards Mitigation: Mechanics, Prediction, and Assessment, August 16-18, 2000, Taipei, Taiwan. Published by A.A. Balkema Publishers.
- Others
- Dam-Break Flow Experiments and Real-Case Data, A Database from the European IMPACT Research Program. Supported by the IAHR Fluvial Hydraulics Section, Edited by Marcelo H. García and Yves Zec. Journal of Hydraulic Research, Volume 45, 2007 Extra Issue
- Int. Conference on European River Development (ICERD), Budapest, Hungary, April 16-18, 1998. Paperback 432 pages. US$ 40 + P&P. Water Resources Research Centre VITUKI, 1095 Budapest, Kvassay J. út 1, Hungary. E-mail: jgayer@vituki.hu
- Int. Workshop on Floodplain Risk, Management, Hiroshima, Japan, November 11-13, 1996. Dept. of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Hiroshima Univ., 1-4-1 Kagamiyama, Higashi Hiroshima, 739 Japan.
- Int. ICCORES Conference on Reservoir Sedimentation, Colorado, USA September 9-13, 1996. M.L. Albertson, Civil Engineering Dept, 203 Weber Building, Colorado State University, Ft. Collins, Colorado 80523, USA.
- Int. Conference on Aspects of Conflicts in Reservoir Development & Management, London, UK, September 3-5, 1996. Ms. P. Walker, Int. Conference Secretariat, Dept of Civil Engineering, City University, Northhampton Square, London EC1 0HB UK
back
to top
Reports
back
to top |
