Literature on subsurface drainage theories, determination of drainage parameters, and analysis approaches of uncertainty was reviewed. Sensitivity analysis was carried out on drain spacing equations for steady state and nonsteady state, in homogeneous soils and in layered soils. It was found that drain spacing is very sensitive to the hydraulic conductivity, the drainage coefficient, and the design midspan water table height. Spacing is not sensitive to the depth of the impermeable layer and the drain radius. In transient state, spacing is extremely sensitive to the midspan water table heights if the water table fall is relatively small. In that case steady state theory will yield more reliable results and its use is recommended. Drain spacing is usually more sensitive to the hydraulic conductivity of the soil below the drains than to that of the soil above the drains. Therefore, it is desirable to take samples from deeper soil when measuring hydraulic conductivity. A new spacing formula was developed for two-layered soils and a special case of three-layered soils with drains at the interface of the top two layers. This equation was compared with the Kirkham equation. The new formula yields spacings close to the Kirkham equation if the hydraulic conductivity of the soil above the drains is relatively small; otherwise, it tends to give more accurate results. First and second order analysis methods were employed to analyze parameter uncertainty in subsurface drainage design. It was found that conventional design methods based on a deterministic framework may result in inadequate spacing due to the uncertainty involved. Uncertainty may be incorporated into practical design by using the simple equations and graphs presented in this research; the procedure was illustrated through an example. Conclusions were drawn from the present study and recommendations were made for future research. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Graduate

A deterministic computer model was developed to continuously simulate the runoff from surface and subsurface-drained fields in the St. Lawrence lowlands. The model simulates all of the major hydrologic and hydraulic processes occurring both above and below the ground. Input data requirements include hourly rainfall, daily potential evapotranspiration, soil physical properties, field dimensions, open channel geometry and drainage system specifications. / Events for the years 1978 to 1982 were simulated, to compare the runoff characteristics between 20 ha, clay loam, surface-drained and subsurface-drained fields. Further simulations were conducted to examine the hydrologic effects of wide-spaced, deep, parallel field ditches. / Hydrographs for the one-in-200-year storm were also simulated. All of the simulations confirmed that the peak flow rate on the subsurface-drained field was less than that of the surface-drained field. Longer times to peak and lag times occurred on the subsurface-drained field.

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Superelevation transition is often used to help balance the centrifugal forces on vehicles through curved roadway sections. Such transitions have regions with near-zero cross-slope as the pavement cross-section rotates from a negative to positive grade. For drainage of roadway surfaces, regions with near-zero slope constitute 'irregular topography'. This condition promotes extended stormwater runoff drainage path lengths and may result in excessive splash from vehicles and hydroplaning. A critical concern is the effect of longitudinal slope on stormwater drainage through superelevation transition. The overall goal of this study is to provide design guidance on longitudinal slope at superelevation transitions through application of a numerical simulation model of highway drainage. Sheet flow on urban pavement surfaces is very shallow, typically measuring a depth less than one centimeter. For modeling of such flow conditions, any small discontinuity or over-simplification of the surface geometry may result in failure in the flow computation. The kinematic wave approximation to the full Saint-Venant equations is often used in many surface and subsurface water models due to its simplicity in application. However, this model fails when backwater effects, ponding, or flow on reverse slope occurs in the local scale. Furthermore, due to the complexity in the surface geometry and the existence of drainage systems, the kinematic wave model is not sufficient for modeling urban stormwater runoff. On the other hand, the full dynamic wave (DW) model usually requires more computational effort. The long computation time of DW model often compromises the accuracy of the model, making the model practically inefficient. In this study, an algorithm was developed to properly represent the irregularly shaped roadway surfaces near superelevation transition areas with unevenly spaced curvilinear grids based on the geometry profile provided by a roadway design software package such as MicroStation CAD. With this accurately defined geometric representation, a nonlinear hydrodynamic diffusion wave model for hydraulic analysis developed in this research estimates the flow depth and runoff volume on the pavement surfaces. The model computes the flow responses for rising hydrographs using a preconditioned general Conjugate Gradient method. Kinematic boundary conditions developed for the open boundaries at the upstream and downstream boundaries compute the boundary values explicitly at each time step. The result of a numerical experiment shows that the spread and concentration of sheet flow is closely related to the transition in cross slope, longitudinal slope, rainfall intensity, and the width of the road. The characteristics of the sheet flow on superelevation transition areas are analyzed to find the optimal longitudinal slope. It is found that the longitudinal slope in the range of 0.3%-0.4% is the optimal slope at superelevation transition areas which minimizes the depth of stormwater runoff. An example application of the model on a rural highway in Texas is also presented. It is found that a significant amount of stormwater may exist on traffic lanes at the superelevation transitions tested. The predicted ponding depth exceeds the minimum value for potential hydroplaning, and the pattern of the flow concentration may cause differential drag forces on traffic vehicles. / text

A computer model was developed in order to determine the effects of drainage practices on nutrient losses from level agricultural soils. The model performs a daily simulation of the vertical flow of water, nitrogen, phosphorus, and heat, and of the growth of crops. A water flow submodel calculates the depth of the water table based on daily predictions of evaporation, transpiration, flow to drains and ditches, and deep percolation. An original saturated-unsaturated flow algorithm is used to determine moisture infiltration, redistribution, and upward flow in the soil matrix, as well as bypassing flow in the soil macropores and horizontal flux between the soil matrix and the macropores, and surface runoff. Nutrient movement occurs by mass flow. Heat flow, nutrient biochemical transformations, and crop growth are determined by using well established relations. Field tests were carried out for a period of two years on an experimental site in the Lower Fraser Valley of British Columbia. The water table depth was measured on a continuous basis. Grab samples of drainwater and observation wells were obtained periodically and analyzed for nitrogen (N0₃-N, NH₄-N, and TKN) and phosphorus (P0₄-P and TP). The field results show a decrease in the concentration of all nutrients over the sampling period, and provide evidence that denitrification and bypassing flow are important mechanisms affecting the nutrient balance of this soil. These results were used to calibrate the model. An excellent fit of the observed water table profile and an adequate fit of the observed drain concentration of nitrate were obtained. The simulation revealed that bypassing flow is a very important transfer mechanism in this soil and must be included in order to obtain a satisfactory fit of the experimental data. A sensitivity analysis of the model showed that the patterns of moisture flow have a predominant influence on the rate of nutrient leaching. In particular, it was found that the nutrient concentration in drain water is a strong function of the hydraulic conductivity of the soil matrix and of the horizontal distance between the soil macropores, which control the ratio of moisture flow in the soil matrix to the macropore flow and the lateral diffusion of nutrients between the soil matrix and the macropores. The effects of four different drainage designs on nutrient losses were simulated over a period of two years for three different soils and two different nutrient distributions in the soil. It was found that there is a large difference between the amount of nutrients leached from drainage systems using different drainage coefficients. There was also a large difference in the response of two drainage designs based on the same drainage coefficient but using different depth and spacing of drains. Transient effects, as determined by the initial vertical distribution of the nutrients, were seen to remain dominant over the two year duration of the simulation. The model was found to be useful in explaining the apparent contradictions found in the literature assessing the effects of subsurface drainage on nutrient losses. The results from the model show these effects to be strongly site and condition specific. Furthermore, the model shows that soils and drainage designs that produce similar volumes of drain flow may exhibit very different leaching responses, and that drainage designs equivalent from a hydraulic standpoint can be very dissimilar in their potential for leaching nutrients. The model provides a tool which can be used to determine the appropriateness of different drainage designs in soils where minimizing nutrient losses is critical. / Science, Faculty of / Resources, Environment and Sustainability (IRES), Institute for / Graduate