Unit Hydrograph

A Unit Hydrograph is a direct runoff hydrograph resulting from one unit depth (e.g., 1
cm or 1 in) of effective rainfall occurring uniformly over the watershed area for a
specified duration. It represents the time-distribution of direct runoff from that unit
rainfall.

Example

Assume base flow = 2 m³/s . Find the hydrograph for 4-h storm with Problem
Statement:

Catchment Area: 42 km²

DRO depth = 12.5mm

Time (hr) 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
Total Q (m³/s) 2.0 4.8 7.4 10.0 8.4 6.0 4.0 2.8 2.0

Problem Solution: Unit Hydrograph Derivation

and Application
Step 1: Isolate the Direct Runoff (DRO)
The base flow is a constant 2 m³/s. The Direct Runoff (DRO) is calculated by subtracting the base
flow from the total flow at each time interval.
Formula: DRO = Total Flow - Base Flow

Time (hr) Total Flow (m³/s) Base flow (m³/s) DRO (m³/s)

0 2 2 0.0

2 4.8 2 2.8

4 7.4 2 5.4

6 10 2 8.0

8 8.4 2 6.4

10 6 2 4.0

12 4 2 2.0

14 2.8 2 0.8

16 2 2 0.0

Step 2: Verify Runoff Volume and Depth

The runoff volume is calculated from the DRO hydrograph and checked against the given
catchment area (42 km²).

Formula: Volume = Σ(DRO) × Δt × 3600

Σ(DRO): 0 + 2.8 + 5.4 + 8.0 + 6.4 + 4.0 + 2.0 + 0.8 + 0.0 = 29.4 m³/s
Δt: 2 hours
Conversion: 3600 seconds/hour

Calculation:
1. 29.4 m³/s × 2 hr = 58.8 m³/s·hr
2. 58.8 m³/s·hr × 3600 s/hr = 211,680 m³

Runoff Depth Calculation:

Catchment Area = 42 km² = 42,000,000 m²
Depth = Volume / Area = 211,680 / 42,000,000 = 0.00504 m = 5.04 mm= 0.504 cm

The calculated depth of 5.04 mm matches the given effective rainfall depth, confirming the DRO
isolation is correct.

Step 3: Derive the Unit Hydrograph (UH)

A unit hydrograph represents the direct runoff from 1 cm (0.01 m) of effective rainfall. The
derived DRO is for 0.504 cm of rain, so each DRO ordinate is scaled accordingly.

Formula: UH (m³/s per cm) = DRO (m³/s) / 0.504 cm

 Time (hr) DRO (m³/s) Unit Hydrograph (m³/s per
cm)

0 0.0 0.0

2 2.8 5.5556

4 5.4 10.7143

6 8.0 15.873

8 6.4 12.6984

10 4.0 7.9365

12 2.0 3.9683

14 0.8 1.5873

16 0.0 0.0

Step 4: Apply the Unit Hydrograph to the New Storm

The new storm has an effective rainfall depth of 12.5 mm, which is 1.25 cm. Due to linearity, the
storm's DRO hydrograph is found by multiplying each unit hydrograph ordinate by 1.25.

Formula: DRO storm = UH × 1.25

Time (hr) UH (m³/s per cm) DRO for Storm (m³/s)

0 0.0 0.0

2 5.5556 6.9445

4 10.7143 13.3929

6 15.873 19.8413

8 12.6984 15.873

10 7.9365 9.9206

12 3.9683 4.9604

14 1.5873 1.9841

16 0.0 0.0

Result: The peak flow for the 12.5 mm storm is 19.84 m³/s

19.84 +2 = 21.84 m³/s at t = 6 hours.

Step 5: Volume Check for the New Storm
A final check ensures the volume of the generated storm hydrograph matches the expected
volume from the rainfall.

Expected Volume:
Depth = 12.5 mm = 0.0125 m
Area = 42 km² = 42,000,000 m²
Volume = Depth × Area = 0.0125 × 42,000,000 = 525,000 m³

Volume from Hydrograph:

Σ(DRO_storm) = 72.9168 m³/s
Volume = Σ(DRO) × Δt × 3600 = 72.9168 × 2 × 3600 = 525,000 m³ (approximately)

The volumes match, confirming the solution is correct.

 Storm 1: depth = 1.6 cm, starts at t= 0 → DRO1(t)=UH(t)x1.6.

 Storm 2: depth = 2.4 cm, starts at t = 4 hr →DRO2(t) =UH(t-4) x2.4
 (i.e., UH scaled by 2.4 and shifted right by 4 hr).

 Compute both scaled series (multiply UH by 1.6 and by 2.4). Then shift the second series
by 4 hr (two time steps because t = 2 hr). Then add the two DRO series at each time
point. Finally add base flow +2.0 to each summed ordinate.
Shortcut Method for Changing Unit Hydrograph
(UH) Duration
1. Definition
The Shortcut Method (or Superposition Method) is a simplified technique used to convert a Unit
Hydrograph (UH) of a given short duration (D) to a Unit Hydrograph of a longer duration (n×D),
where 'n' is an integer (e.g., converting a 2-hour UH to a 4-hour or 6-hour UH).

It relies on the principle of superposition from the unit hydrograph theory, assuming that the
response of a watershed to consecutive rainfall pulses is linear and additive.

2. When to Use It
Use this method only when the desired new duration is an integer multiple of the original UH's
duration. For example:

• Original 2-hr UH → New 4-hr UH (n=2)

• Original 1-hr UH → New 3-hr UH (n=3)
• Original 3-hr UH → New 6-hr UH (n=2)

If the durations are not multiples (e.g., 3-hr to 5-hr), you must use the more general S-Curve
Method.

Example Question
Assume a 2-h unit hydrograph is given and a 4-h unit hydrograph is required.

Original 2-h Unit Hydrograph (for 1 cm rainfall)

Time (h) 2-h UH (m³/s)

0 0

1 6

2 36

3 66

4 100

5 80

6 60

7 35

8 0
Step 1 & Step 2: Superposition (Original + Lagged 2-h UH)

Time (h) Original 2-h UH Lagged 2-h UH Sum (m³/s)

0 0 0 0

1 6 0 6

2 36 0 36

3 66 6 72

4 100 36 136

5 80 66 146

6 60 100 160

7 35 80 115

8 0 60 60

9 0 35 35

10 0 0 0

Step 3: Interpretation

The original UH represents 1 cm rainfall in 2 hours. The lagged UH represents another 1 cm

rainfall in the next 2 hours. Thus, the Sum column represents the total runoff from 2 cm rainfall
over 4 hours.
Step 4: Derive 4-h Unit Hydrograph

Since the Sum corresponds to 2 cm rainfall, we divide every ordinate by 2 to obtain the 4-h Unit
Hydrograph for 1 cm rainfall.

Time (h) Sum (m³/s) 4-h UH (m³/s)

0 0 0

1 6 3

2 36 18

3 72 36

4 136 68

5 146 73

6 160 80

7 115 57.5

8 60 30

9 35 17.5

10 0 0

✅ The last column is the required 4-h Unit Hydrograph for 1 cm rainfall.
This is the hydrograph that represents the watershed response to a 4-hour effective rainfall.
 S-Curve Method Explanation and 3-
Hour Unit Hydrograph
Definitions
Unit Hydrograph (UH): A unit hydrograph is a direct runoff hydrograph
resulting from one unit (e.g., 1 cm or 1 inch) of excess rainfall generated
uniformly over a watershed at a constant rate for a specified duration (D).
S-Curve (or S-Hydrograph): An S-curve is a continuous hydrograph
produced by an infinite series of identical rainfall pulses, each of duration D
and each yielding one unit of direct runoff. Each pulse is lagged by its
duration D from the previous one. The S-curve represents the response of
the watershed to a constant-intensity rainfall that continues indefinitely.
S-Curve Method: A technique used to convert a unit hydrograph of a given
duration (D) to a unit hydrograph of any other desired duration (T). The
core of the method involves constructing the S-curve from the known UH,
lagging it by time T, and finding the difference between the two curves. This
difference is then adjusted to represent one unit of runoff for the new
duration.

Step-by-Step Procedure
1. Build the S-Curve by summing the original D-hour UH lagged multiple
times by D-hours.
2. Lag the S-Curve by the new desired duration T-hours.
3. Find the difference between the two S-Curves. This is the hydrograph for
a T-hour storm at the S-Curve's intensity.
4. Multiply the difference by (D / T) to convert it into a unit hydrograph for
the new T-hour duration.
Final Result: The Derived 3-Hour Unit Hydrograph
Time (h) 4-h UH S-Curve S-Curve S-Curve Difference 3-h UH
(Given) Addition [Col2+Col3] Lagged by [Col4-Col5] [Col6 ×
3h (4/3)]

0 0 - 0 - 0 0.0

1 6 - 6 - 6 8.0

2 36 - 36 - 36 48.0

3 66 - 66 0 66 88.0

4 91 0 91 6 85 113.33

5 106 6 112 36 76 101.33

6 93 36 129 66 63 84.0

7 79 66 145 91 54 72.0

8 68 91 159 112 47 62.67

9 58 112 170 129 41 54.67

10 49 129 178 145 33 44.0

11 41 145 186 159 27 36.0

12 34 159 193 170 23 30.67

13 27 170 197 178 19 25.33

14 23 178 201 186 15 20.0

15 17 186 203 193 10 13.33

16 13 193 206 197 9 12.0

17 9 197 206 201 5 6.67

18 6 201 207 203 4 5.33

19 3 203 206 206 0 0.0

20 1.5 206 207.5 206 1.5 2.0

21 0 206 206 207 -1 -1.33

 Drought Sustained
periods of low precipitation occur with some regularity in most regions, due to random
variability and persistence in precipitation. There is no universally accepted quantitative
definition of drought that distinguishes droughts from non-droughts. In general,
droughts are defined in terms of shortages of water relative to human water demands
and expectations in a particular region.

Types of Drought Meteorological-low precipitation Hydrological –low stream flow or

ground water Agricultural –low soil moisture or crop yields

A Synthetic Unit Hydrograph (SUH) is a way to estimate how a watershed will respond
to rainfall when no direct measurements are available. In simple terms, it is an artificial
hydrograph created using the physical features of the watershed—such as its area, the
length of the main river, the slope of the land, and land use—rather than actual field data

The Rational Method Hydrograph

1. Given Data
• Drainage Area (A): 12 acres
• Rainfall Intensity (i): 4 in/hr
• Time of Concentration (tₑ): 30 minutes (0.5 hours)
• Runoff Coefficient (C): 1.0 (All rainfall becomes direct runoff)
2. Key Hydrograph Parameters
• Rainfall Duration (D): D = tc = 0.5 hr
• Time to Peak (tₚ): tₚ = tc = 0.5 hr = 30 min
• Base Time (tᵦ): tᵦ = 2.67 × tₚ = 2.67 × 0.5 hr = 1.335 hr = 80.1 min
3. Rainfall Depth and Volume
• Total Rainfall Depth: Depth = i × D = 4 in/hr × 0.5 hr = 2 inches
• Total Rainfall Volume (Vrain): Vrain = Depth × Area = 2 in × 12 acres = 24
acre-in
Conversion to cubic feet (1 acre-in = 3,630 ft³): Vrain = 24 × 3,630 =
87,120 ft³
4. Peak Discharge (Qₚ) Calculation
Formula: Qₚ = 0.75 × C × i × A
Qₚ = 0.75 × 1.0 × 4 × 12 = 36 cfs
5. Volume Check (Mass Balance)
The volume under the triangular hydrograph should match the rainfall
volume.
hydrograph = (1/2) × Qₚ × tᵦ × 3600
= 0.5 × 36 cfs × 1.335 hr × 3600 s/hr = 86,508 ft³
≈ 87,120 ft³ (Matches rainfall volume, difference due to rounding ≈0.7%)

6. Hydrograph Construction (Tabulated Values)

Triangular shape with linear rising and falling limbs.

Time (min) Calculation Flow (cfs)

0 Q=0 0

10 Q = 36 × (10/30) 12

20 Q = 36 × (20/30) 24

30 Q = Qₚ = 36 36

40 Q = 36 × (1 − 10/50.1) 28.8

60 Q = 36 × (1 − 30/50.1) 14.4

80.1 Q=0 0
Snyder Synthetic Unit Hydrograph
Introduction
→ Snyder (1938) provided a method of developing a synthetic unit hydrograph that is widely
used.

→ This method is most appropriate for large watersheds.

→ Formation of unit hydrograph depends on:

1) Time to peak
2) Time base
3) Peak discharge
4) Duration of rainfall excess

Time Parameters
→ The time of the peak depends on two elements:

1) Duration of rainfall excess (td)

2) Time lag (tL) defined as the time between the center of mass of rainfall excess and the time of
peak discharge.

Parameters & Equations

L = Mile measured from watershed outlet to basin divide

Lca = Mile measured from watershed outlet to center of area of watershed

Ct = Watershed storage coefficient

tLa = Adjusted value for lag time

Formulas:

• tL = Ct (L * Lca)^0.3

• td = tL / 5.5

• tLa = tL + 0.25(td - td_actual)

• tp = tL + 0.5 td

• tb = 3 + LL / 8 (days)

Peak Discharge & Shape

→ Peak discharge (qp) of the unit hydrograph is given by:

qp = (640 * C * A) / tL

→ The shape of Snyder's unit hydrograph is controlled by:

W50 = 7.56 * qp^-1.081 * A

W75 = 4.50 * qp^-1.081 * A

Example
Develop a unit hydrograph based on Snyder's method:

Drainage Area (A) = 2375 mi²

Watershed Length (L) = 86 mi

Length to Center Area (Lca) = 41 mi

Fitting Coefficients: Ct = 2, ρ = 0.5

Example Calculations
tL = Ct (L *Lca) ^0.3 = 23.2 hr

td = tL / 5.5 = 4.2 hr → rounded to 4 hr

tLa = tL + 0.25(td - td_actual) = 23.15 hr

tp = tLa + 0.5 td = 25.15 hr

tb = (3 + tL/8) days = 5.9 days → 141.6 hr

Gray’s Method for Synthetic Unit Hydrograph

Introduction
Gray (1961) developed another method for generating synthetic unit hydrographs, applicable
mainly to watersheds in Central Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, and Wisconsin, with an approximate
upper size limit of 94 mi². The method is based on dimensionalizing the incomplete gamma
distribution to produce a dimensionless unit hydrograph.
Mathematical Formulation
The unit hydrograph is expressed in a dimensionless form:

Q_t / Q_p = (1 / Γ(q)) * (t / P_r)^(q-1) * e^(-t / P_r)

Where:

• Q_t / Q_p : Percent flow in 0.25 P_r at any given t / P_r

• q, y : Shape and scale parameters

• Γ(q) : Gamma function of q, Γ(q) = (q − 1)!

• e : Base of natural logarithms

• P_r : Period of rise (min) – time from start of rainfall to peak discharge

• t : Time (min)

Relations for parameters:

q = 1 + y′

y_t = y * P_r

Hydrologic Correlations
To make the method applicable for real watersheds, Gray correlated model parameters with
physiographic characteristics:

• Storage factor y′ is related to:

y′ ∝ L / √S

Where:

• L = length of the main channel (mi)

• S = average watershed slope (%)

Application
1. Compute watershed parameters (L, S).

2. Estimate storage factor y′.

3. Calculate q and Γ(q).

4. Construct the dimensionless hydrograph.

5. Scale results to actual watershed size and storm conditions.

Advantages
• Provides a dimensionless form of the unit hydrograph.

• Can be applied without direct streamflow data.

• Useful for ungauged watersheds within the applicability region.

Limitations
• Valid only for watersheds smaller than 94 mi².

• Developed for specific geographic regions.

• Requires estimation of watershed parameters, which introduces uncertainty.

Example (Hypothetical)
Given:

• L = 15 mi, S = 2.5%, P_r = 120 min.

• Storage factor estimated as y′ = 2.5.

• Thus, q = 1 + y′ = 3.5.

Using the gamma distribution equation, discharge ordinates are computed for multiples of t /
P_r = 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1.0, …

(A small table or curve can be plotted).

Figure:

• Dimensionless Hydrograph (typical gamma-shaped curve, rising to peak at t = P_r, then

receding).

References
1. Chow, V.T., Maidment, D.R., Mays, L.W. Applied Hydrology. McGraw-Hill, 1988.

2. Gray, D.M. (1961). Synthetic Unit Hydrographs Based on Gamma Distribution.

3. Singh, V.P. (1988). Hydrologic Systems, Vol. II: Watershed Modeling. Prentice-Hall.

4. Viessman, W., & Lewis, G.L. (2003). Introduction to Hydrology. Prentice Hall.

5. Sherman, L.K. (1932). Streamflow from Rainfall by the Unit Hydrograph Method. Engineering
News-Record.