Analysis of Vortex Pool-and-Chute Fishway

Abstract

Fishways are constructed in riverine habitats where structures such as culverts, dams, and flood channels have negatively impacted flow conditions suitable for the movement of native and migratory fish species. These auxiliary channels are engineered to resist gravitational force with frictional force, resulting in sustained depth and reduced velocity over a range of design flow rates. The Chézy hydraulic resistance coefficient accounts for such forces and provides a metric useful for determining the effectiveness of a fishway to alter flow conditions prohibitive to the passage of fish. The objective of this analysis was to use a scale model of an innovative vortex pool-and-chute fishway, that operates with both plunging and streaming flow simultaneously, designed by Michael Love and Associates, to determine the Chézy resistance coefficients over a range of flow rates under controlled hydraulic conditions. Using dimensional analysis to ensure proper scaling allowed laboratory measurements of the model to be translated into a real-world prototype design. The conceptual prototype fishway is a 144-foot-long by 30-foot-wide channel with an 8% slope. A 1:15 scale model was constructed to evaluate the design at prototype equivalent flow rates between 58 and 283 cubic feet per second (cfs). Chézy coefficients were estimated by two different calculation methods; the streaming flow method and the streaming and plunging flow method. Coefficients ranging between 22.3 and 39.2 ft1/2/s were determined by the streaming flow calculation method, whereas the streaming and plunging flow calculation method yielded estimates from 18.9 to 25.0 ft1/2/s at corresponding flow rates. For flows that were exclusively plunging, values of 32.2 to 41.9 ft1/2/s were found. In general, Chézy coefficient estimates were observed to decrease with increasing discharge and values were found to be comparable to those calculated for fishways implemented at similar slopes. The preliminary model fishway results indicated that implementation of a prototype fishway could effectively alter flows for adequate fish passage under the given conditions. KEYWORDS: Hydraulics; Fish Passage; Fishway; Chézy Coefficient; Geometric Scaling; Froude Scaling; Streaming Flow; Plunging Flow; Dimensional Analysis; Similitude