Effect of Canal Width Contraction on the Hydraulic Parameters and Scour Downstream Water Structures

The dimensions of many water streams, which satisfy proper hydraulic conditions, may not be compatible with the designed dimensions of an irrigation work that needs to be constructed in some locations. The design requirements of such irrigation works may involve a contraction in the channel width in the required location. This contraction, of course, affects different flow properties and the scour hole formed downstream of these structures. Therefore, the present experimental study aims to investigate the effect of the transition angle and the contraction on the flow properties and on the scour phenomenon downstream water structures. Through 460 experimental runs, carried out on 20 experimental models, the study proved that, for an efficient hydraulic performance and economic design, the best transition angle (θ) for the approaches of water structures is 30° with a relative contracted width ratio (r = b/B) not less than 0.6.