UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL AND CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERING
First Semester Lectures
ACADEMIC YEAR: 2025/2026
FCE 525: WATER RESOURCE ENGINEERING
Part 1: Reservoirs Tutorial No. 01
Issued: 17 September 2025
Part 1: Reservoirs
1. A dam reservoir which is not provided with gate controls on its spillway and other
sluices is called
a) detention dam
b) storage reservoir
c) retarding basin
d) flood control reservoir
Explanation:
2. A hydro power project has been envisaged to serve the water supply and irrigation
needs of the area at its inception stage. The dam reservoir so constructed is known as:
a) multipurpose reservoir
b) single-purpose reservoir
c) distribution reservoir
d) retarding reservoir
Explanation:
3. A dam reservoir catering to flood control, irrigation, and water supply basically
designed for irrigation alone is a
a) multipurpose reservoir
b) single-purpose reservoir
c) distribution reservoir
d) retarding basins
Explanation:
4. Which reservoir is also known as Mitigation reservoir?
a) Conservation reservoir
b) Flood control reservoir
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c) Multipurpose dam
d) Storage reservoir
Explanation:
5. A reservoir having gates and valves installation at its spillway and at its sluice outlets:
a) storage reservoir
b) retarding basin
c) both storage and retarding reservoir
d) distribution reservoir
Explanation:
6. Which reservoir is helpful in permitting the pumps or the water treatment plants to work
at a uniform rate?
a) Storage reservoir
b) Detention reservoir
c) Multipurpose reservoir
d) Distribution reservoir
Explanation:
7. In which of the following reservoir the flood crest downstream can be better controlled
and regulated properly?
a) Distribution reservoir
b) Multipurpose reservoir
c) Storage reservoir
d) Retarding reservoir
Explanation:
8. What are the types of flood control reservoirs?
a) Multipurpose reservoir and Single purpose reservoir
b) Storage reservoir and retarding reservoirs
c) Distribution reservoir and Storage reservoir
d) Distribution reservoir and multipurpose reservoir
Explanation:
9. As the reservoir elevation increases, the outflow discharge increases.
a) True
b) False
Explanation:
10. The maximum discharging capacity of a retarding reservoir should not be equal to
the maximum safe carrying capacity of the channel downstream.
a) True
b) False
Explanation:
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11. What is a schedule of operations and how is it used
12. List a combination of incompatible reservoir uses and explain the respective
scenarios
13. Draw a diagram showing various reservoir levels and storages, and explain
14. Explain various processes for reservoir water losses
15. Explain various investigations carried out during reservoir site selection
16. Explain how to calculate area and volume from a catchment contour plan
17. Draw an area-elevation and storage-elevation curve and explain the curves with
respect to reservoir site selection
18. Which aspects need to be investigated while selecting a suitable reservoir site?
Explain
19. Explain how Nature based solutions (NBS) can be utilized to (i) reduce reservoir
water losses (ii) reduce sediment inflow to reservoirs
20. Where is the mass curve method used?
21. What is the capacity of reservoir?
22. Which method is used to determine reservoir capacity?
23. What is the difference between the mass inflow curve and the demand curve?
24. Why does the mass curve in the graph rise continuously?
25. The following table gives the monthly inflows during a critical low water period at a
site of a proposed dam, the corresponding monthly evaporation and precipitation at a
nearby station, and the estimated monthly demand of water. Prior water rights require a
release of full natural flow or 6.5 hectare-metre per month, whichever is less. Assume
that 30 percent of the rainfall on the land area to be flooded by the reservoir has reached
the stream in the past. Using a net increased pool area of 520 hectares, find the required
useful storage. Take pan evaporation coefficient equal to 0.7.
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Steps:
1. The first five columns are same as given in the problem.
2. Develop column (6) that gives the downstream requirement on account of prior
water right and the entries in this column are equal to the river flow or 6.5 hectare-
metre whichever is less.
3. Develop column (7) that gives the quantity of water E which evaporates from whole
of the water surface area of reservoir during each month which is computed by the
following expression:
4. Develop column (8) that gives the precipitation P in hectare-metre, falling over the
reservoir area. Since 30% of the precipitation is assumed to have reached the
stream it is included in the now given in Column (2) and hence only 70% of the
precipitation falling on the reservoir area is considered which is given by the
following expression:
P = (Reservoir area x precipitation x 0.70)/1000
5. Compute column (9) that gives the adjusted inflow I which is computed as follows:
I = Column (2) — Column (6) — Column (7) + Column (8).
6. Compute column (10) that gives the quantity of water S required from storage to
meet the required demand and it is computed as follows:
S = Demand — Adjusted inflow = Column (5)—Column (9)
Only the positive values of S are to be considered and entered in column (10) and
where negative values are obtained nil should be entered in column (10). This is
so because a positive value of S indicates that water is required from the storage
since demand is more than the adjusted inflow, whereas a negative value of S
indicates that no water is required from the storage since demand is less than the
adjusted inflow.
7. The sum of the column (10) gives the required useful storage.
Answer: 216.36 hectare-metre.
26. Describe the four processes leading to sedimentation in reservoirs
27. Describe the four broad techniques of controlling sedimentation in reservoirs
28. Describe sediment yield
29. What is the trap efficiency of reservoir?
30. How do you calculate trap efficiency of a reservoir?
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31. What are measures to control reservoir losses?
32. What is the effect on trap efficiency if the capacity inflow ratio increases or decreases?
33. What is life of reservoir?
34. What do you mean by reservoir sedimentation? Explain the effects of reservoir
sedimentation.
35. How do you remove sediment from a reservoir?
36. Explain aggradation and degradation and explain the effects of each on the reservoir
and on the downstream respectively.
37. Explain the difference between bed load and suspended bed material load with
respect to formation and transportation.
38. What are check dams and how are they used
39. Explain sediment routing through density current venting
40. What are some of the surveys conducted for reservoir sedimentation?