Discharge Measurement in Flood Situation

The latest product release of Sommer GmbH (Austria) sets a new milestone in hydrography. The RP-30 is a radar velocity profiler, which allows quick measuring of the surface velocity in rivers, canals and streams, even in flood condition.

Up to now hydrologists have to rely on their extrapolated rating curves to determine the discharge of a river in a flood event. No conventional velocity sensor which is in contact with the water, can be used in case of turbulent and high flow situations.

The RP-30 is a portable radar velocity sensor, specially developed for hydrological purpose. It can be safely operated from a bridge or on a cable way. As it is not in contact with the water, the RP-30 delivers reliable velocity information even in high flow situation, where no other equipment e.g. a flow meter, can be used.

The velocity spectrum is automatically transmitted via Bluetooth from the RP-30 to the laptop which runs the software “RPCommander”. With a complex hydraulic model, which is based on the theory of Manning and Strickler, the measured surface velocity is converted into the mean velocity. Knowing the cross section and the water level, the discharge is automatically calculated.

The portable RP-30 radar velocity profiler is the ideal tool for hydrologists to quickly determine the discharge of rivers or canals. With the ability to measure the velocity in turbulent and high flow situation the RP-30 is the perfect addition to conventional tools like the flow meter.