Bridge and Culvert Hydraulics
(HENG-5203)
Faculty of Hydraulic and Water Resources Engineering
AWTI
Lecturer: Wondafrash A.
wondeatnafu21@[Link]
March 2023, Arba Minch, Ethiopia 1
Chapter One
1. Introduction
Brainstorming activity
1. Why do you study bridge and culvert hydraulics
2. Discuss the difference between culvert and bridge structures.
3. List basic factors that can affect the hydraulic capacity and
overall performance of the culvert.
2
1. Introduction
• Culverts and bridges are highway cross-drainage hydraulic structures those
accommodate the passage of water, sediment, natural debris in addition to
both the upstream and downstream movement of aquatic organisms.
3
The difference between culvert and bridge structures
Culvert Bridge
• Culverts are submerged structures buried • Bridges are highly costing structures that
under a high-level embankment usually of
shorter span (< 6 m), with the top not support a roadway over the water body by
normally forming part of the road surface
like in a bridge structure (P. Novak et al., means of a span (> 6m).
2007).
• This type of structure does not have a
constructed structural invert (bottom) and
therefore does not fully enclose the channel
that it spans.
4
Cont’d...
Culvert Bridge
• Culverts are also enclosed conduits • It may consists of a deck supported on
• Complete pipe, Elliptical, Pipe arch or Box in abutment or piers, open bottom box or half
shape pipe or other structural arch.
5
Cont’d...
Culvert Bridge
• Culvert hydraulic analysis assumes • Bridge hydraulic analysis is typically
• No velocity approaching the culvert based on GVF calculations providing a
or more accurate water surface profile
• In the channel immediately throughout the crossing.
downstream of the culvert, which
overestimates entrance and exit
energy losses and
• Tail water condition in the channel
downstream of a culvert is typically
based on normal depth analysis.
6
Types of culvert
• Based on shapes culverts are available in many types like round, elliptical, flat-
bottomed, pear-shaped, and box-like constructions.
• The shape of culvert can be selected based on a number of factors including hydraulic,
upstream elevation, and roadway height and other conditions.
• Following are the different types of Culvert:
• Pipe culvert (single or multiple)
• Pipe-Arch culvert (single or multiple)
• Box culvert (single or multiple)
• Arch culvert
• Bridge culvert
• Metal box culvert
7
Cont’d…
Pipe Culvert
• Pipe culverts are the most common types of culverts due to competitive price and easy
installation.
• They are found in different shapes such as circular, elliptical and pipe arch.
• Generally, their shapes depend on site conditions and constraints.
8
Cont’d…
Advantages of Pipe Culvert
• It can be constructed of any desired strength by proper mix design, thickness, and
reinforcement.
• They are economical.
• These pipes can withhold any tensile stresses and compressive stresses.
• The crossing of water is under the structure.
Disadvantages of Pipe Culvert
• The main disadvantage of pipe culvert is that it can be easily corroded at the crown
because of bacteria‘s organic matter and release of harmful gas, which is known as
Crown corrosion.
9
Cont’d…
Pipe-Arch Culvert (Single or Multiple)
• Arch culverts are suitable for large waterway opening where fishes can be
provided with a greater hydraulic advantage.
• Moreover, they provide low clearance and are definitely, much artistic.
• Pipe arches are particularly useful for sites where headroom is limited and also
have a hydraulic advantage at low flows.
Advantages of Pipe-Arch Culvert
• Limited headroom condition
• Improved hydraulic capacity at a low flow
• Aesthetic shape and appearance
• Lightweight
• Easy to install
10
Cont’d…
Box Culvert
• Box culverts are made up of concrete and especially, RCC (Reinforced Concrete).
• The most challenging part in constructing a box culvert is that dry surface is needed for installing
it.
• However, due to the strength of the concrete floor, water direction can be changed when a
large amount of water is expected.
Advantages of Box Culvert
• The box culvert is a rigid frame structure and
very simple in construction
• It is Suitable for non-perennial streams
where scrub depth is not significant but the soil is weak.
• The bottom slab of the box culvert reduces pressure
on the soil.
• Box culverts are economical due to their rigidity and monolithic action and separate
foundations are not required.
• It is used in special cases, weak foundation.
11
Cont’d…
Arch Culvert
• An arch culvert is made up of metal, stone masonry, concrete, RCC etc.
• Construction does not take a lot of time and unlike box culvert, water diversion
is not necessary, as it can be installed without disturbing the water current.
• Thus, it can be termed as a Low Profile Culvert.
• This type of culvert maintains the natural integrity of the wash bed.
Advantages of Arch Culvert
• The advantages of using arch culverts over traditional box culverts and pipe
culverts are as follows:
• Cost savings
• Accelerated construction schedule
• Greater hydraulic efficiency
• Pleasing aesthetics
• Design-build advantage 12
Cont’d…
Bridge Culvert
• Bridge culverts serve a dual purpose.
• It acts both as a bridge and a culvert.
• Generally, rectangular in shape, bridge culverts are constructed on rivers and canals.
• A foundation is laid under the ground level and pavement surface is laid on top of the
series of culverts.
• Generally, we can term it as a Multi-Purpose culvert.
Advantages of Bridge Culvert
• Extension of the network by acting as a repeater
• Very strong
• Allows traffic to pass on it
• Highly strong foundation
• Most expensive river crossings
13
Cont’d…
Metal Box Culvert
• The metal box culvert is the economic alternative of the bridge.
• These bridges are manufactured from a standard structural plate or deep-corrugated
structural plate.
• They are the perfect bridge replacement maintaining the same road grade level.
Advantages of Metal Box Culvert
• Durability
• Shorter construction period and easy installation
• Deformation ability
• Long service life
14
Culvert materials
• The selection of a culvert material may
depend upon structural strength,
hydraulic roughness, durability (corrosion
and abrasion resistance), and
constructability.
• The most commonly used culvert
materials are concrete (both reinforced
and non-reinforced), corrugated metal Concrete box culvert.
(aluminum or steel) and plastic (high-
density polyethylene (HDPE) or polyvinyl
chloride (PVC)).
• Culverts may also be lined with other
materials to inhibit corrosion and
abrasion, or to reduce hydraulic
resistance.
Corrugated metal pipe. 15
Culvert inlets
• A multitude of different inlet
configurations are utilized on
culvert barrels.
• Commonly used inlet configurations
include projecting culvert barrels,
cast-in-place concrete headwalls,
precast or prefabricated end
sections, and culvert ends mitered to
conform to the fill slope
• The selection of inlet configuration
may depend upon Hydraulic
performance, structural stability,
aesthetics, erosion control, and fill
retention.
Standard inlet types. 16
Cont’d…
• The hydraulic capacity of a culvert may be improved by appropriate inlet selection.
• The channel is often wider than the culvert barrel, causing a contraction at the culvert
inlet which may be the primary flow control.
• The provision of a more gradual flow transition will lessen the energy loss and thus
create a more hydraulically efficient inlet condition.
• Beveled edges are therefore more efficient than square edges.
17
Comparisons between Culverts & Bridges
Comparing culverts to bridges the designer must decide:
• Which type of structure is better for a particular location
• Which analysis approach to use at a crossing (bridge with free surface flow
using GVF concepts or as a culvert with head water-based)
• Which one is preferred hydraulically, aesthetically, and economically
18
Cont’d…
• In most of the sites, either a bridge or culvert will fulfill the structural and hydraulic
requirements.
• The structural choice should be based on:
• Risk of property damage,
• Construction and maintenance costs,
• Traffic safety,
• Environmental considerations,
• Risk of failure and aesthetic considerations.
19
Cont’d…
• Culverts are used where bridges are not hydraulically required;
• Debris and ice potential are tolerable
• More economical than a bridge (including guard rail and safety concerns).
• Bridges are used where culverts are impractical and more economical than a
culvert to satisfy:
• Land-use and access requirements,
• Mitigate environmental concerns,
• Accommodate ice and large debris of heavy sediment loads or moving
boulders…etc.
20
Hydraulic causes of bridge & culvert failure
• Smith (1976, 1977) studied 143 bridge failures
that occurred throughout the world between
1847 and 1975. Almost half of the failures
were due to floods.
• More specifically, two factors were identified:
one was scour and the second was debris.
• Of the two, damage caused by scouring of
the bottom material around the foundation
(most of the time around piers & abutments)
tends to be the most prevalent.
Failure due to overtopping Failure due scouring
21
Cont’d…..
Scour at inlets can be Scour at outlets
Prevented by: • Scour at outlets is
very common
• Paving • Velocity higher than
• Cutoff walls natural channel
• Headwalls • Difficult to predict
• Wingwalls • Generate stream
degradation
Prevention
• Riprap
• Energy dissipator
• Performed scour
holes
22
Cont’d…..
Debris Accumulation
• Debris accumulation is a major problem
at many culvert locations.
• Flood flows often carry both floating and
submerged debris that can obstruct the
culvert entrance and/or accumulate in Steel rail debris deflector (looking downstream).
the barrel.
• As a minimum, debris accumulation will
increase maintenance costs and at the
extreme can lead to increased upstream
flooding, potential overtopping and
roadway embankment failure.
• Consideration of debris accumulation
and the need for debris control structures
should be an integral part of any culvert
design.
Steel debris rack in urban area. 23
Cont’d…
Culvert abrasion and corrosion
• Two problems affecting the longevity of culverts due to
adverse environmental conditions are abrasion and
corrosion.
• Abrasion is defined as the erosion of culvert material due
primarily to the natural movement of bedload in the
stream.
• Corrosion; is an electrochemical reaction between the soil Abrasion issues in a culvert
and/or water and the culvert/bridge material.
• Galvanized steel culverts are generally subject to
deterioration when placed in soils or water where the pH
falls outside the range of 6 to 10;
• aluminum deteriorates outside the range of 4 to 9 (NRC
1964).
• Clay and organic muck with low electrical resistivity have
also proven corrosive to metal culverts.
• Concrete is adversely affected by alternate wetting and Corrosion issues in a culvert.
drying with seawater and when exposed to sulfates and
certain magnesium salts, acidic flow with a pH less than 5.
24
Cont’d…
Prevention of abrasion;
• Using debris control structures.
• A liner or bottom reinforcement utilizing excess structural material is another option.
• Using Concrete or bituminous lining of the invert of corrugated metal pipe.
• The use of metal or wooden planks
Prevention of corrosion;
• Selecting an appropriate material for the environment
• The application of protective coatings.
25
Site selection and Data required
Brainstorming activity
1. Discuss some important factors to select ideally suitable site for culvert and
bridge structures across a roadway.
2. List some factors which govern the maximum length of side drains those will
be relieved by a turnout or cross structure.
3. Explain why the crossing structure should be located away from horizontal
curves in the watercourse.
26
Site selection
• Bridge site selection is important in terms of:
• Cost of construction,
• Maintenance and
• Service life.
• The ideal site would have
• low flood levels,
• rocky banks,
• non-skewed crossing and
• straight approach roads.
27
Cont’d...
• Normally side drains will be relieved by a turnout or cross structure after a maximum
length of about 200m (ERA,2011) to:
• avoid exceeding capacity and causing erosion in the drain or in the outfall
watercourse.
• Ideal outfall sites are at field boundaries where there is vegetation or stable ground to
minimize the risk of downstream erosion.
• For larger structures and watercourses the selection of site location requires more
attention.
28
Cont’d...
• Regardless of the type of structure to be constructed, the following criteria
should ideally be met when determining a site for water crossing (ERA, 2011):
• The crossing should be located away from horizontal curves in the watercourse,
as these areas are unstable, with the line of the watercourse tending to move
towards the outside of the bend with time;
• The crossing should be at an area of uniform watercourse gradient.
29
Cont’d...
• The crossing should ideally be at an area
of the channel with a non-erodible bed.
These areas need low amount of
watercourse protection.
• The road should cross the watercourse at
a point with well-defined banks, where
the stream will generally be narrower.
• The watercourse should not be prone to
flooding at the crossing point and also
the skew angle shall be < 15o.
30
Cont’d...
• A stream channel may have to be relocated to avoid the installation of an inordinately long
culvert.
• When relocating a stream channel, it is best to avoid abrupt stream transitions at either end of
the culvert.
Culvert location methods.
31
Data required
Data Source
Hydrological data
Peak Flow Stream gage analysis or
calculated using Rational
formula, SCS Method, regression
equations, etc.
Check Flows Same as for peak flow
Hydrographs (if storage routing From stream gage information
is or synthetic
utilized development methods such as
SCS, Method, Snyder
Method, or computer models
Site data
Culvert Location Based on site characteristics
including natural stream
section, slope, and alignment 32
Cont’d...
Data Source
Waterway Data
Cross Sections Field survey or
topographic maps
Longitudinal Slope Field survey or
topographic maps
Resistance Observation, photographs,
or calculation Methods
Channel Stability Observation, survey, maps
Tailwater (during field Field survey, maps
survey)
Upstream storage Field survey, maps
Roadway Data
Cross Section Roadway plans
Profile Roadway plans
Culvert Length Roadway plans 33
Cont’d...
Data Source
Aquatic Organism Passage (AOP Data
Channel velocities and depths Measurements or calculation
Pools and riffles Observation, survey, photographs
Potential fish resting areas Observation
Existing channel drops Observation, survey, photographs
Channel substrate Sampling, observation
Cultural Data
Historic sites State Historical Preservation Officer
(SHPO) or
Artifacts State historical society
Allowable Headwater
Critical points on roadway Surrounding Aerial photographs, surveys, or
buildings or structures topographic maps
Regulatory Constraints Floodplain regulations for stream reach
of interest
AOP State or local fish and wildlife agencies
Agency Constraints State or local regulations for culvert
installations 34