Depth-Averaged Velocity Distribution in a Meandering Compound Channel Using Calibrating Coefficients

Abstract

The precise prediction of the depth-averaged velocities, lateral shear stresses, and boundary shear stresses are necessary to access the flow capacity and flow variations related to flood events in meandering channels. The accurate assessment of the distribution of velocities, conveyance, and bed shear stress distribution is significant for flood management schemes, bank protection studies, and sediment dynamics on meandering channels. This work proposes a new approach for assessing the depth-averaged velocities laterally across a meandering compound channel. The experimental evaluation was done in Hydraulic Laboratory in the National Institute of Technology Rourkela (NITR), Odisha, India. The apex section was considered for estimating the boundary shear stress through experimentation. The meander cross-section is split into five distinctive panels for studying the flow phenomenon for overbank flow. The results indicated that the boundary shear stress causes a notable change in the secondary flow coefficient (K). The new model provides the variation of depth-averaged velocity (${U}_{d})$ across the cross-section of the meandering compound channel, which includes the bed-generated friction, secondary flows, and lateral shear turbulence.