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Estimating the flow velocity and discharge in rivers is of particular interest for monitoring, modeling, and research purposes. Instruments for measuring water level and surface velocity are generally mounted on bridge decks, and this poses a challenge because the bridge structure, with piers and abutments, can perturb the flow field. The current research aims to investigate the applicability of entropy theory to estimate the velocity distribution and the discharge in the vicinity of river bridges. For this purpose, a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model is used to obtain three-dimensional flow fields along a stretch of the Paglia River (central Italy), where a historical multi-arch bridge strongly affects flood flows. The input data for the entropy model include the cross-sectional bathymetry and the surface velocity provided by the numerical simulations. A total of 12 samples, including three different flow conditions at four cross-sections, one upstream and three downstream of the bridge, are considered. It is found that the entropy model can be reliably applied upstream of the bridge, also when forced with a single (i.e., the maximum) value of the surface velocity, with errors on total discharge below 13 % in the considered case. By contrast, downstream of the bridge, the wakes generated by the bridge piers strongly affect the velocity distribution, both in the spanwise and in the vertical directions and for very long distances. Here, notwithstanding the complex and multimodal spanwise distribution of flow velocity, the entropy model estimates the discharge with error lower than 8 % if forced with the river-wide distribution of the surface velocity. The present study has important implications for the optimal positioning of sensors and suggests the potential of using CFD modeling and entropy theory jointly to foster greater knowledge of river systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimating the flow velocity and discharge in rivers is of particular interest for monitoring, modelling, and research purposes. Instruments for measuring water level and surface velocity are generally mounted on bridge decks, and this poses a challenge because the bridge structure (e.g., piers and abutments) can lead to perturbated flow fields. The current research aims to investigate the applicability of the entropy theory to estimate the velocity distribution and the discharge in the vicinity of river bridges. To this purpose, a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model is used to obtain threedimensional flow fields along a stretch of the Paglia River (central Italy), where a historical multi-arch bridge strongly affects flood flows. The input data for the entropy model include the cross-sectional bathymetry and the surface velocity provided by the numerical simulations. Different flow conditions and cross-sections, either upstream and downstream of the bridge, are considered. It is found that the entropy model can be applied safely upstream of the bridge, also when forced with a single (i.e., the maximum) value of the surface velocity, with errors on total discharge below 13% in the considered case. On the contrary, downstream the bridge, the wakes generated by the bridge piers strongly affect the velocity distribution, both in the spanwise and in the vertical directions, and for very long distances. Here, notwithstanding the complex and multimodal spanwise distribution of flow velocity, the entropy model estimates the discharge with error lower than 8% if forced with the river-wide distribution of the surface velocity. The present study has important implications for the optimal positioning of sensors and suggest the potential of using CFD modelling and entropy theory jointly to foster the knowledge of river systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In open channel flows, a hydraulic jump is a rapid shift from a supercritical flow to a subcritical flow with a sharp rise in the elevation of the free surface, which is associated with strong energy dissipation, air entrainment, and spray. The present research aims to investigate the air–water flow properties in a hydraulic jump on rough pebbled bed. A range of discharges from 0.06 to 0.1 m3/s, corresponding to inflow Froude numbers Fr1 between 1.7 and 2.84 and Reynolds numbers Re1 from 140,000 to 220,000 were considered. The basic parameters of two-phase flow such as the void fraction and bubble count rate are presented. Close to the jump toe, the mean void fraction on rough bed was larger than on smooth bed, while farther downstream larger magnitudes were observed on smooth bed. No significant difference was observed between rough and smooth beds in terms of the maximum void fraction. In the turbulent shear layer, the bubble count rate was comparatively larger on rough bed than on smooth bed, while the longitudinal distribution decayed for both bed configurations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydraulic complexity metrics referred to as M1 and M2 play an important role when it comes to the analysis of habitat metrics. In the present paper, the significance of these parameters is analysed by using laboratory data as well as field observations along the Tiber River in Italy. Based on the laboratory data, the estimated parameters allow us to characterise the high/low-velocity areas. Based on field observations, larger magnitudes of M1 are linked to the zones with large changes in cross-sectional flow velocity. Larger magnitudes of M2 are observed at the left bank of the channel for all flow conditions, suggesting locations with larger kinetic energy consumption for aquatic organisms. Overall, the findings of the present research would be of particular interest in quantifying biologically important flow patterns occurring at different spatial scales within different streams and flow conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some basic characteristics of a classic hydraulic jump flow over a pebbled rough bed, as well as on a smooth bed as a reference, are presented in this experimental study. For the experiments, an inflow Froude number Fr1 from 1.54 to 4.94 and inflow Reynolds number Re1 from 42 000 to 230 000 were considered. Visual observations and measurements suggested some differences between the formation of a hydraulic jump on rough and smooth bed configurations, including different air entrainment processes, larger vortical structures in the roller length and stronger backward flow in the upper layer. Furthermore, the jump roller and aerated flow lengths were shorter on a pebbled rough bed than on a smooth bed, while the dimensionless advection velocity of large vortices was the same for both bed types. The instantaneous jump toe perimeter showed the largest variation at the largest Fr1 and was generally larger on rough bed than on smooth bed. Larger oscillations of the free-surface profile were observed on smooth bed, highlighting that roughness resulted in smaller free-surface oscillations, suggesting the higher rate of energy dissipation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper aims to evaluate the local scouring of non-cohesive sediment beds consisted of uniform sediment particles downstream of a D - type piano key weir in steady flow condition. The experiments were conducted for one model of D - type piano key weir with five keys. Accordingly, the effect of hydraulic parameters was examined on scouring profiles and depth, downstream of the piano key weir. While nine runs were conducted to evaluate the local scouring downstream of the piano key weir under clear-water conditions with different discharge rates and tail water depths. The experimental results showed that the maximum scouring depth increased with increasing the discharge. Further, increasing the tail water depth resulted in decreasing the largest scour depth. The 3D numerical simulation was implemented using a CFD package. Overall, the results of the numerical modelling were in agreement with the experimental data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study implements an entropy theory-based approach to infer bathymetry for 29 selected cross-sections along a 1740 km reach of the Congo River. A genetic algorithm optimization approach is used based on an analysis of near-surface velocity measurements to generate a random sample of 1000 bathymetry profiles from which the analysis is carried out. The resulting simulated bathymetry shows good agreement compared to the measurements obtained via Accoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP), with a correlation that varies from 0.49 to 0.88. The bathymetry results are subsequently used to estimate the two-dimensional cross-sectional flow velocity distribution and, consequently, to calculate the river discharge. The mean errors observed for flow area, discharge, and mean velocity are found to be 2.7%, 1.3%, and 1%, respectively. This study demonstrates, for the first time, the successful application of an entropy-based approach to estimate bathymetry and discharge in large rivers and has significant implications for remote sensing applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]