Review of Constructions Hydrauliques by Willi H. Hager and Anton J. SchleissConstructions HydrauliquesPresses Polytechniques et Universitaires Romandes978-2-88074-746-6$125.00

Abstract

This is a new edition of the 15th volume of Traite de Genie Civil de Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, a series of 25 civil engineering textbooks. Four of the books in the series cover hydraulic engineering subjects, and the companion titles are on hydrodynamics, fluvial hydraulics, and dams. The series has been developed to assist practitioners and engineering students at the B.S. and M.S. levels. The topic of hydraulic constructions is particularly difficult to master since it involves solids, water, and air. The main topics covered in this volume include flow in pipes, open channels, spillways, and energy dissipation. The new edition has been expanded to include recent developments in the field. This book is written in French and comprises five main sections approximately translated as follows. Section 1 reviews the fundamentals, head losses in pipes and open channels as well as backwater curves. Section 2 covers different types of spillways, with and without gates. Section 3 focuses on prismatic and nonprismatic channels as well as air entrainment on spillways. Section 4 covers dissipation of energy through rapid expansions and hydraulic jumps. Section 5 guides the reader through the design of water intakes and sluices. Each section is comprehensive and includes several fully developed chapters with concise text, definition sketches, governing equations, experimental results, design drawings, and numerous photos. Each chapter has a set of solved calculation examples, relevant references, and a notation list. The book is well illustrated to the extent that very few pages do not have sketches, diagrams, and/or photos, and the material can be useful to a broader international audience.