48
Maritime Hydraulic Construction and Hydrology
REGGIO DI CALABRIA
Overview
Date/time interval
Syllabus
Course Objectives
Knowledge and Understanding: Upon successful completion of the course, students will have expanded and integrated their knowledge of hydraulics, hydraulic systems engineering, and river hydraulics. They will have gained an in-depth understanding of the different types of hydraulic machines and their applications, as well as the main issues associated with the start-up and shutdown of high-head, low-discharge hydroelectric power plants.
Applying Knowledge and Understanding: By the end of the course, students will be able to design and size a penstock (pressure pipeline) and a surge tank, and will have acquired the fundamental concepts required for the design and verification of river channels.
Making Judgements: Students will develop the skills and critical awareness necessary to identify, analyze, and solve the main engineering problems related to the design and operation of the hydraulic systems examined during the course.
Communication Skills: Upon passing the examination, students will have acquired an appropriate command of the technical terminology specific to hydraulic engineering and will be able to communicate their knowledge effectively using the methods and tools commonly employed in professional engineering practice.
Learning Skills: Students who have attended the course will be capable of independently deepening their knowledge of hydroelectric systems and river engineering through the study of specialized literature. This will enable them to effectively enter the professional engineering field or pursue further academic and professional training.
Course Prerequisites
Teaching Methods
Students are expected to devote approximately 100 hours of independent study, including the review and further study of topics covered during lectures, as well as the completion of assigned exercises and coursework.
Assessment Methods
The oral examination is intended to assess the student's knowledge and understanding of the course contents, as well as their independent judgment, learning skills, and communication abilities.
The final grade will be awarded according to the following criteria:
30–30 cum laude (30L)
The student demonstrates a complete and detailed knowledge of the subject matter: they master the relevant contents, use appropriate technical terminology, identify and explain the main concepts, and incorporate personal insights into their synthesis of the topics. They show an excellent understanding of the subject, clearly distinguishing between primary and supporting ideas, effectively framing key issues, enriching discussion with references to supplementary materials or independent study, and developing interdisciplinary connections. They demonstrate well-established abilities to apply knowledge and analyze results. Their presentation is clear and well-structured, characterized by logical reasoning, maturity, and conciseness.
28–29
The student demonstrates an in-depth knowledge of the subject matter: they master the relevant contents, use appropriate technical terminology, and identify and explain most of the key concepts. They show a solid understanding of the subject, successfully framing most of the main issues, although they may not always clearly distinguish major topics from secondary ones. They discuss topics with references to supplementary materials or independent study. They demonstrate excellent abilities in applying knowledge and analyzing results. Their presentation is clear and well-developed, logical, mature, and concise, despite occasional inaccuracies.
25–27
The student demonstrates a broad knowledge of the subject matter: they are familiar with the relevant contents, although explanations may not always be complete. Technical terminology is generally used appropriately, though not always precisely. They identify key concepts but may not fully or accurately explain them. They demonstrate an adequate understanding of the subject, recognizing important issues but not always framing them comprehensively. They show good ability in applying knowledge. Their presentation is generally clear, though sometimes incomplete, with a schematic organization and occasional fragmentation or repetition of ideas.
22–24
The student demonstrates an acceptable knowledge of the subject matter: they are familiar with most of the contents but exhibit some gaps and confusion regarding certain important, though not fundamental, concepts. They demonstrate an essential understanding of the subject and do not always frame all topics accurately or comprehensively. They show fair ability in applying the fundamental concepts of the discipline. Their presentation is generally correct but lacks a fully coherent and well-defined structure, occasionally including less relevant information.
18–21
The student demonstrates a limited knowledge of the subject matter: they know the most important contents but exhibit numerous gaps. They identify many key concepts but are unable to explain them completely or accurately. Their understanding of the subject is basic, and they encounter difficulties in identifying and contextualizing key issues due to incompleteness or inaccuracies. They show uncertainty in applying the fundamental concepts of the discipline. Their presentation is often unclear and disorganized, characterized by fragmented and repetitive reasoning, and technical terminology is not always used appropriately.
Fail
The student demonstrates a poor and fragmented knowledge of the subject matter: they lack knowledge of the essential contents, exhibit significant gaps, and fail to identify key concepts. They display serious misunderstandings, are unable to answer numerous questions or solve a substantial number of problems, and make significant errors in applying the fundamental concepts of the discipline. Their level of reasoning and articulation concerning the subject matter does not reach the minimum acceptable standard.
Texts
MARCHI RUBATTA, Meccanica dei Fluidi, Ed. UTET.
CENGEL YUNUS A.; CIMBALA JOHN M.; Meccanica dei Fluidi. McGraw-Hill Education
Contents
The main topics of the course are surface water flows (open-channel flows) and unsteady flow in pressurized conduits (water hammer). Given the importance of laboratory experimentation in hydraulic engineering, another central topic is modeling theory; lectures and practical exercises on the physical and numerical modeling of hydraulic phenomena (similarity and models) are included. The course also presents and analyzes high-head, low-discharge hydroelectric power plants. In addition to lectures, the course includes practical sessions devoted to the application of theoretical concepts to real-world problems relevant to civil engineers.
Course Contents
Fluid Properties and Fluid Statics (1 Credit)
Definition of a fluid. Fundamental hydraulic quantities. Density and specific weight. Compressibility. Viscosity. Flow regimes. Internal stresses in fluids at rest. Differential equation of hydrostatics. Piezometric head. Pressure measurement instruments. Hydrostatic force on plane surfaces. Global equation of hydrostatic equilibrium. Hydrostatic force on curved surfaces. Equilibrium of submerged bodies. Stability of floating bodies.
Ideal Fluids (1 Credit)
Velocity and acceleration. Kinematic characteristics of flow: trajectories and streamlines. Types of motion. Euler's equation. Projection of Euler's equation along the tangent, normal, and binormal directions to a trajectory. Pressure distribution in the normal plane. One-dimensional flows. Bernoulli’s theorem: geometric and energy interpretation; application of Bernoulli’s theorem to efflux processes. Flow power. Extension of Bernoulli’s theorem to a streamtube. Equations of unsteady motion for an ideal fluid: integration along a trajectory and along a streamline. Analysis of flow start-up in a pipeline. Oscillations in a surge tank. Global equilibrium equations under dynamic conditions. Dynamic forces acting on Pelton turbines.
Hydraulic Models (0.5 Credits)
Dimensional analysis: Buckingham’s theorem and its applications. Introduction to hydraulic models. Reynolds similarity. Froude similarity.
Real Fluids (1 Credit)
Navier–Stokes equation. Global equilibrium equation for a real fluid. Application of Navier’s equation to laminar flow: flow between parallel plates, flow in circular pipes, and flow in wide rectangular sections. Turbulent flow: Reynolds experiment; global equilibrium equation for turbulent flow; origin of turbulent stresses; velocity distribution in circular sections; resistance coefficient and its expressions for smooth and rough pipes; velocity profiles as a function of the characteristic parameters of turbulent flow; Colebrook equation; Moody diagram; design and verification problems solved using the Moody diagram and auxiliary curves; dependence of head loss per unit pipe length on diameter and discharge for different flow regimes; practical formulas for turbulent flow.
Unsteady Flow in Pressurized Conduits (1 Credit)
Hydroelectric power plants. Water hammer: description of the phenomenon; equation of motion; continuity equation; general integrals of the water hammer problem; characteristic equations; determination of pressure rise at the valve and at a generic section; Allievi–Michaud equation.
Open-Channel Flows (1.5 Credits)
General concepts. Uniform flow; channel design and verification; energy characteristics of the flow at a cross-section; mild-slope and steep-slope channels; kinematic characteristics of the two flow types; steady open-channel flow; water-surface profiles; hydraulic jump. Practical applications and examples.