Water Resources Lab

Our new 3000 sqft laboratory was completed in the Spring of 2014. Construction of the facility (renovations to the building, digging of the sump, laying the floor) was initiated in 2012. The facility is aimed at supporting geomorphic, hydraulic, and hydrologic experiments that utilize recirculating water. The permanent flume as purchased used from Cal State Long Beach. We contracted with the manufacturer, Engineering Laboratory Design, Inc., and had it disassembled, shipped and installed in our new facility. Though the flume occupies one third of the room, there is floor space dedicated to temporary experimental work.

Laboratory also contains instrumentation including a automated sediment feeder (Shenck AccuRate), water and bed elevation measurement (point and sheet lasers, acoustic and point gages), various velocimeters as well as supporting I/O devices and wireless datalogging.

Laboratory characteristics

• Integrated piping within room capable of a variety of experimental configurations (in or out of flume)

• Sub-floor water storage reservoir (~8000 gallons) and zeolite sand filtration system

• Flygt-Xylem N-3202 submerged pump moving up to 4500 US gpm at 58 hp (curve).

• Two 12-inch electromagnetic flow meters  and two 8-inch electromagnetic flow meters

Flume dimensions and characteristics:

• 18" deep (extensions available to 48" depth), 48" wide, 40' long channel

• 1.25" SAR acrylic sidewalls and 1.0" GM acrylic floors, one removable sidewall

• +5% to -1% Channel Slope

• Aluminum headgate (undershot weir) with remote controlled motor

• Aluminum tailgate (overshot weir) with remote controlled motor

• Sediment trap in floor close to tail. Sediment transported via rotary pump with 3 HP motor

• Badger low head loss venturi flow meter with Rosemont differential pressure transducer