CVS 348: HYDROLOGY

CHAPTER 6: RUNOFF
6.1. Introduction
 Runoff means the draining or flowing off of rainfall from a catchment area through a surface channel.
 It thus represents the output from the catchment in a given unit of time.
 Consider a catchment area receiving rainfall. For a given rainfall, the evapotranspiration, initial loss, infiltration and detention
storage requirements will have to be first satisfied before the commencement of runoff.
 When these are satisfied, the excess rainfall moves over the land surfaces to reach smaller channels.
 This portion of the runoff is called overland flow or surface runoff and involves building up of storage over the surface and
draining off of the same.
 Interflow: rainfall that infiltrates moves laterally through upper crusts of the soil and returns to the surface at some location.
Also known as through flow, storm seepage, subsurface flow or quick return flow. See Figure 6.1.

Fig. 6.1: Different routes of runoff

 Another route for the infiltrated water is to undergo deep percolation and reach the groundwater storage in the soil. The
groundwater follows a complicated and long path of travel and ultimately reaches the surface/stream. The time lag, i.e. the
difference in time between the entry into the soil and outflows from it is very large, being of the order of months and years.
This is called base flow or groundwater flow runoff or groundwater flow.
 Base flow provides the dry-weather flow in perennial streams.
 Based on the time delay between the runoff and the runoff, the runoff is classified into two categories; as
1. Direct runoff and,
2. Base flow

1. Direct Runoff
 It is that part of the runoff which enters the stream immediately after the rainfall.
 It includes surface runoff, prompt interflow and rainfall on the surface of the stream.
 Sometimes terms such as direct storm runoff and storm runoff are used to designate direct runoff.
 Direct runoff hydrographs are tackled in detail in Chapter 7.

2. Base Flow
 This is the delayed flow that reaches a stream essentially as groundwater flow.
 Many times delayed interflow is also included under this category.
 In the annual hydrograph of a perennial stream (Fig. 6.2) the base flow is easily recognized as the slowly decresing flow of the
stream in rainless periods.

Natural Flow
 Natural flow is stream flow in its natural condition, i.e. without human intervention.
 Such a stream flow unaffected by works of man, such as reservoirs and diversion structures on a stream is called natural flow
or virgin flow.
 When there exists storage or diversion works on a stream on a stream, the flow on the downstream channel is affected by the
operational and hydraulic characteristics of these structures and hence does not represent the true runoff, unless corrected for
the diversion of flow and return flow.
 The natural flow volume in time ∆t at the terminal point of a catchment is expressed by water balance equation as:
……………………………. (6.1)
Where RN = Natural flow volume in time ∆t
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 R0 = Observed flow volume in time ∆t at the terminal site
Vr = Volume of return flow from irrigation, domestic water supply and industrial use.
Vd = Volume diverted out of the stream for irrigation, domestic water supply and industrial use.
E = Net evaporation losses from reservoirs on the stream
EX = Net export of water from the basin
∆S = Change in the storage volumes of water storage bodies on the stream.
 In practice natural flows are derived based on observed flows and data on abstractions from the stream.

Example 6.1
The following table gives values of measured discharges at a stream-gauging site in a year. Upstream of the gauging site a
weir built across the stream diverts 3.0 Mm3 of water per month for irrigation and for use in an industry respectively. The
return flows from the irrigation is estimated as 0.8 Mm 3 and from the industry at 0.3 Mm3 reaching the stream upstream of
the gauging site. Estimate the natural flow, if the catchment area is 180 km 2 and the average annual rainfall is 185 cm,
determine the runoff-rainfall ratio.

Solution
In a moth the natural flow volume RN is obtained from Eq. (6.1) as

Here E, EX and ∆S are assumed to be insignificant and of zero value.

Vr = Volume of return flow from irrigation, domestic water supply and industrial use.
= 0.80 + 0.30 = 1.10 Mm3
Vd = Volume diverted out of the stream for irrigation, domestic water supply and industrial use.
= 3.0 + 0.5 = 3.5 Mm3
The calculations are shown in the following table

Total RN = 116.8 Mm3

Annual natural flow volume = Annual runoff volume = 116.8 Mm3
Area of the catchment = 180 km2 = 1.80 x 108 m2

Annual rainfall =185 cm

Runoff/Rainfall) = 64.9/185 = 0.35

6.2 Hydrograph
 A plot of the discharge in a stream plotted against time chronologically is called a hydrograph.
 Depending upon the unit of time involved, we have
o Annual hydrographs showing the variation of daily or weekly or 10 daily mean flows over a year.
o Monthly hydrographs
o Seasonal hydrographs depicting the variation of the flow in a particular season e.g. dry season.
o Flood hydrographs, representing stream flow due to a storm over a catchment.
 Annual and seasonal hydrographs are used in calculating surface water potential f stream, reservoir studies and drought
studies
 Flood hydrograph are essential in analysing stream characteristics associated with floods.

Water Year
 In an annual runoff studies it is advantageous to consider a water year beginning from the time the precipitation exceeds the
average evapotranspiration losses.

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 In a water year a complete cycle of climatic changes is expected and hence the water budget will have the least amount of
carryover.

6.4. Runoff Characteristics of Streams

 A study of the annual hydrographs of streams enables one to classify streams into 3 classes:
o Perennial
o Intermittent and,
o Ephemeral
Perennial Streams
 Perennial stream in one which always carries some (Fig. 6.2).
 There is considerable amount of groundwater flow throughout the year. Even during the dry seasons the water table will
be above the bed of stream.

Fig. 6.2: Perennial Stream

Intermittent Stream
 An intermittent stream has limited contribution from the groundwater.
 During the wet season the water table is above the stream bed and there is a contribution of the base flow to the stream
flow. However, during dry seasons the water table drops to a level lower than that of the stream bed and the stream dries
up.
 The stream remains dry for the most part of the dry months (Fig. 6.3)

Fig. 6.3: Intermittent Stream

Ephemeral Stream
 An ephemeral stream is one which does not have any base-flow contribution.
 The annual hydrograph of such a river shows series of short duration spikes marking flash flows in response to
storms (Fig. 6.4).
 The stream becomes dry soon after the end of the storm flow.
 Typically an ephemeral stream does not have any well-defined channel.
 Most of the rivers in arid zones are of the ephemeral kind.

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 Fig. 6.4: Ephemeral Stream
6.3. Runoff Volume
Yield
 The total quantity of surface water that can be expected in a given period from a stream at the outlet of its catchment is
known as yield of the catchment in that period.
 Unless otherwise qualified the term yield is usually used to represent annual yield.
 The annual yield from a catchment is due to many processes and parameters and lots of uncertainties involved. Thus the
yield is a random variable. Therefore, it is prudent to assign probabilities to occurrence of runoff event e,g. 75%
dependable yield. That is the value that can be expected to be equalled to or exceeded 75% times; on an average 15 times
in a span of 20 years.
 The yield of a catchment Y in a period ∆t could be expressed by water balance equation 6.2 as:
……………………………………… (6.2)

Where RN = Natural flow volume in time ∆t.

Vr = Volume of return flow from irrigation, domestic water supply and industrial use.
R0 = Observed runoff volume at the terminal gauging station of the basin in time ∆t.
Ab = Abstraction in time, ∆t for irrigation, water supply and industrial use and inclusive of evaporation
losses in surface water bodies on the stream.
∆S = Change in the storage volumes of water storage bodies on the stream.
 The calculation of natural runoff volume (and hence yield), is of fundamental importance in all surface water resources
development studies.
 The most desirable basis for assessing the yield characteristics of a catchment is to analyse the actual flow records of the
stream draining the catchment. However, in general, observed discharge data of sufficient length is unlikely to be
available for many catchments. As such, other alternate methods such as the empirical equations as used in the subsequent
sections.

6.4. Factors Affecting Runoff

The principal factors affecting the flow from a catchment area are:

1. Rainfall Characteristics
 This is the most important factor on which runoff depends.
 Important rainfall characteristics are:
o Intensity
o Duration
o Aerial distribution
o Direction of storm movement
o Form of rainfall and
o Evapotranspiration.
 The higher the intensity the higher the runoff.

2. Shape and size of the catchment

 More intense rainfalls are generally distributed over a relatively smaller area; a stream collecting water from a small
catchment area is likely to give greater runoff intensity per unit area.
 In the case of a very large catchment, uniform rain seldom falls over the entire area; with the result that only very few
tributaries of the stream feed water to main stream during a particular storm.
 Therefore, runoff intensity of larger stream, per unit catchment area is lesser.

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 In the case of a fan shaped catchment (Fig. 6.5a) all the tributaries are approximately of the same size. Such catchments give
greater runoff since the peak flood from the tributaries is likely to reach the main stream approximately at the same time.
 In the case of a fern leaf catchment (Fig. 6.5b), the tributaries are generally of different lengths, and meet the main stream at
the regular intervals. In such a narrow catchment, the peak flood intensity is reduced since discharges are likely to be
distributed over a long period of time.

Fig. 6.5: Effect of Shape of the Catchment

3. Topography of Catchment
 The runoff depends upon whether the surface of the catchment is smooth or rugged.
 If the surface slope is steep, water will flow quickly, and absorption and evaporation losses will be less, resulting in
greater runoff.
 If the catchment is mountainous, and is on the windward side of the mountain, the intensity of rainfall will be more, and
hence runoff will be more.
4. Orientation of Catchment
5. Geological characteristics of Catchment
6. Meteorological Characteristics
7. Character of Catchment surface
8. Storage Characteristics of catchment

6.6. Estimation of Runoff

The runoff from rainfall may be estimated by the following methods:
a) By linear or exponential regressions/equations
b) By empirical equations and Tables
c) By infiltration method
d) By Unit hydrograph
e) By Rational method
f) By SCS-CN method.

a) By linear or exponential regressions/equations

 Because of several factors affecting runoff resulting from a given rainfall, the relationship between these two is quite
complex.
 However, we may use straight-line regression for small and medium sized catchments and exponential form of regression
for large catchments.
1. Straight line regression between P and R: The equation of linear regression line between observed values of R and P
is:
…………………………………………………………………. (6.3)
Where a & b are constants representing abstraction. The values of a & b are given by
the following equations:

……………………………………. (6.3a)

………………………………………….. (6.3b)
In which N = number of observation sets R and P. The coefficient of correlation r can be calculated as:

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 ………………………….. (6.4)
2. Exponential Regression between P and R
 For large catchments, sometimes it is found advantageous to have exponential relationships as:

………………………………………………………………………. (6.5)
Where and m are constants, instead of the linear relationship given by Eq. 6 .3. In that case Eq 6.5 is reduced
to linear form by logarithmic transformation as:

………………………………………………………….. (6.6)
And the coefficients m and ln are determined by using methods indicated earlier.
Assignment 6.1
Annual rainfall and runoff values (in cm) of a catchment spanning a period of 21 years are given below. Analyse the
data to develop a linear correlation equation to estimate annual runoff for a given annual rainfall value.

b) By empirical equations and Tables

Read about the following:
 Dickens formula
 Ryves formula
 Barlow’s table
 Strange’s tables and curves
 Lacey’s formula

c) Infiltration Method
 By deducting the infiltration loss, i.e., the area under the infiltration curve from the total precipitation.
 These methods are largely empirical and the derived values are applicable only when the rainfall characteristics and
the initial soil moisture conditions are identical to those for which these are derived.

d) Unit hydrograph method: will be addressed in Chapter 7.

e) Rational method
 It is used for calculating peak discharge for small catchments (<50 km2).
 The formula is called rational because of the units of the quantities considered being numerically consistent.
 Original formula was in FPS unit (Foot-pound-second system). (Rainfall-inch, Area-Acre)
 The runoff gradually increases from zero to peak when rainfall duration reaches the time of concentration ‘t c’ and
thereafter it becomes constant for the remaining period of rainfall excess (t-t c) i.e. from time tc onwards. After the
cessation of rain, the runoff recedes gradually to become zero at time t c from the end of the peak. In rational
formula a certain % of rainfall is considered as runoff.
 In FPS unit, Qp = CIA ……………………………………………………………… (6.7)
where Qp = peak discharge

 In SI units: Qp = 0.278 CIA ……………………………………………………….. (6.8)

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 C= Runoff Coefficient = runoff/Rainfall
I = Rainfall intensity in mm/h
A = Area of catchment in km2
 C varies 0.05-0.95; it represents the cumulative effect of the watershed losses.
Factors Affecting Value of C:
 Initial losses
 Depression storage
 Nature of the soil
 Surface slope
 Degree of saturation
 Rainfall intensity
 Geology of the catchment
 Geo-hydrological characteristics of basin
Cw = Σ (CiAi)/A, Value can be used in equation (6.8)
General form correlating intensity duration-return period is
I = K.Ta/(tc+b)n
I = intensity of rainfall (cm/h)
T = Return period (yrs)
tc = time of concentration (hr)
K,a,b,n = constants
Time of Concentration (tc)
Number of empirical equation available for the estimation of tc:
1) US practice
For small basins, tc = tp= Ctl ((LLca)/√s)n
Where Ctl, n = Basin Constants
S = Basin slope
(LLca)/√s) = Catchment parameter
L = Basin length measured along the water course from the basin divide to the gauging station.
Lca = distance along the main water course from the gauging station to a point app to the watershed
controlled (Km).
2) KIRPICH Equation
The formula relates the tc of the length of travel and slope of the catchment as;
……………………………………………………….. (6.9)

Where, L = max length of travel of water

S = slope of catchment ΔH/L
Rainfall Intensity (I or Itc,P)
 The rainfall intensity corresponding to a duration tc and the desired probability of exceedance P, (Return period T=1/P)
itc,p = kTx/(t+a)n………………………………………………………………………. (6.10)
k,x,a,n = Area specific co-efficient

Runoff co-efficient (C)

 ‘C’ Represents the integrated effect of the catchment losses and depends upon the nature of the surface, surface
slope and rainfall intensity.
 Equation (6.8) assumes a homogenous catchment surface. If it is non-homogenous, then it can be divided into
subareas each having different runoff coefficients and then each coefficient is calculated separately and then
merged.

f) SCS – CN Method of Estimating Runoff Volume

 SCS – CN method, developed by Soil Conservation Service (SCS) OF USA in 1969, is a simple, predictable, and stable
conceptual method for estimation of direct runoff depth based on storm rainfall depth.
 It relies on only one parameter, Curve Number (CN).

Basic Theory
 The SCS – CN method is based on the water balance equation of the rainfall in a known interval time ∆t, which can be
expressed as:

……………………………………………………. ..(6.11)
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 Where, P = total precipitation, I a = initial abstraction, F = Cumulative infiltration excluding I a and Q = direct
surface runoff (all in units of volume occurring in time ∆t.

 Two other concept as below are also used with Eq. 6.11.
i. The first concept is that the ratio of actual amount of direct runoff (Q) to maximum potential runoff (= P - I a) is
equal to the ratio of actual infiltration (F) to the potential maximum retention (or infiltration), S. This concept
can be schematically shown in Fig. 6.6. Thus

………………………………………………………….. (6.12)

Fig.6.6: Proportionality concept

ii. The second concept is that the amount of initial abstraction (I a) is some fraction of the potential maximum
retention (S).
Thus …………………………………………………………. (6.13)
Combining Equations (6.12) and (5.13), and using (6.11)

…………………….. (6.14a)
Further ……………………………………………... (6.14b)

For operation purposes a time interval ∆t= 1 day is adopted. Thus P = daily rainfall and Q = daily
runoff from the catchment.

CURVE NUMBER (CN)

 For practical applications the SCS has expressed in terms of a dimensionless parameter CN (the Curve
Number) as:

………………………………………… (6.15)
The constant 254 is used to express S in mm.
The curve number CN is now related to S as:

……………………………………………………………….. (6.16)
and has a range of .
 A CN value of 100 represents a condition of zero potential retention (i.e. impervious catchment).
 A CN = 0 represents an infinitely abstracting catchment with S = ∞.
 This curve number CN depends upon:
1. Soil type
2. Land use/cover
3. Antecedent moisture condition.
1. Soils
 In the determination of CN, the hydrological soil classification is adopted.
 Here, soils are classified into 4 classes A, B, D and D based upon the infiltration and other characteristics.
 Following is a brief description of 4 classes:

a) Group-A: (Low Runoff Potential):

 Soils having high infiltration rates even when thoroughly wetted and consisting chiefly of deep, well to
excessively drained sands or gravels.

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  Example: Deep sand, deep loess and aggregated silt.

b) Group-B: (Moderately Low Runoff Potential):

 Soils having moderate infiltration rates.
 Moderate rate of water transmission
 Example: Shallow loess, sandy loam, Red Loamy soil, Red sandy loam and Red sandy soil.

c) Group-C: (Moderately High Runoff Potential):

 Soils having low infiltration rates when thoroughly wetted and consisting chiefly of moderately deep to
deep, moderately well to well drained soils with moderately fine to moderately coarse textures.
 Have moderate rate of water transmission.
 Example: Clayey Loam, shallow sandy loam.


d) Group-D: (High Runoff Potential):

 Soils having very low infiltration rates when thoroughly wetted.
 Consists chiefly of clay soils with a high swelling potential, soils with a permanent high water table, soils
with a clay pan, or cay layer at or near the surface.
 Example: Heavy plastic clays, certain saline soils and deep black soils.

2. Antecendent Moisture Condition (AMC)

 Refers to the moisture content present in the soil at the beginning of the rainfall-runoff event under
consideration.
 It is well known that initial abstraction and infiltration are governed by AMC.
 For the purposes of practical application 3 levels of AMC are recognized by SCS as follows:

AMC – I: Soils are dry but not to wilting point. Satisfactory cultivation has taken place.
AMC – II: Average conditions
AMC – III: Sufficient rainfall has occurred within the immediate past 5 days. Saturated soil conditions prevail.
 The limits of these 3 AMC classes, based on total rainfall magnitude in the previous 5 days are given in Table
6.1.
 It is to be noted that the limits also depend on the seasons;

Table 6.1: Antecedent Moisture Conditions (AMC) for determining the Value of CN

3. Land Use
 The variation of CN under AMC –II, called CNII, for various land use conditions commonly found in practice are
shown in 6.2 (a, b and c).

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 Table 6.2 (a): Runoff Curve Number [CNII] for Hydrologic Soil Cover Complexes [Under AMC- II Conditions]

Note: Sugarcane has a separate supplementary Table of CNII values (Table 6.2(b))

 The conversion of CNII to other two AMC conditions can be made through the use of the following correlation:

………………………………. (6.17)
Table 6.2(b): CNII Values for Sugarcane

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 Table 6.2(c): CNII Values for Suburban and Urban Land Use

…………………………………………… (6.18)
 The equations (6.17) and (6.18) are applicable in the CNII range of 55 to 95 which covers most of the practical range.

Value of : On the basis of extensive measurements in small size catchments SCS adopted as a standard value. With
Equation (6.14a) becomes:

……………………………………………………………………… (6.19)
Where Q = daily runoff, P = daily rainfall and S = retention parameter, all in units of mm.
 Equation (6.19) which is well established is known as the Standard SCS-CN equation.

Some of the SCS-CN Equations documented with Varying

 Values of varying in the range have been documented in a number of studies and are useful for
computation of runoff volumes. They are given below:

Valid for Black soils under AMC of type II and III……………………………………..…. (6.20)

AMC of Type 1 and for all other soils having AMC of types I, II and III……………… (6.21)

Advantages of SC –CN method

1. It is simple, predictable, and stable conceptual method for estimating of direct runoff depth based on storm rainfall depth,
supported by empirical data.
2. It relies on only one parameter, CN. Even though CN can have a theoretical range of 0 – 100, in practice it is more likely
to be in the range 40 -98.
3. It features readily grasped and reasonably well-documented environmental inputs.
4. It is well-established method, having been widely accepted for use in USA and many other countries

Example 6.2
In a 350 ha catchment the CN value was assessed as 70 for AMC –III.
a) Estimate the value of direct runoff volume for the following 4 days of rainfall. The AMC on July 1 st was of category
III. Use standard SC-CN equations.

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b) What would be the runoff volume if the CNIII value were 80?
Solution
a) Given CNIII = 70

 Total runoff volume over the catchment

b) What would be the runoff volume if the CNIII value were 80?
Given CNIII = 80

 Total runoff volume over the catchment:

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 Example 6.3
A small watershed is 250 ha in size has group C soil. The land cover can be classified as 30% open forest and 70% poor quality
pasture. Assuming AMC at average condition and the soil to be black soil, estimate the direct runoff volume due to a rainfall of 75
mm in one day.

Solution
AMC = II. Hence CN = CN (II). Soil = Black soil. Referring to Table 6.2(
a) for C- group soil.

Average CN = 7820/100 =78.2

The relevant runoff equation for Black soil and AMC –II is:

Total runoff volume over the catchment:

Assignment 6.2
The land use and soil characteristics of a 2500 ha catchment is as follows:
Soil: Not a black soil.
Hydrologic soil classification: 60% is Group B and 40% is Group C.

Land Use: Hard Surface areas = 10%

Waste Land = 5%
Orchard (without understory cover) = 40%
Cultivated (Terraced), poor condition = 45%
Antecedent rain: The total rainfall in past 5 days was 20 mm
The season is dormant season.
a) Calculate the runoff volume from a 100 mm rainfall in a day on the watershed
b) What would have been the runoff if the rainfall in the previous 5 days was 25 mm?
c) If the entire area is urbanized with 60% residential area (65% average impervious area), 10% of paved streets and 30%
commercial and business area (85% impervious), estimate the runoff volume under AMC-II condition for one day rainfall
of 100 mm.

Tutorials
1. The following table shows the observed annual rainfall and the corresponding annual runoff for a small catchment. Develop
the rainfall-runoff correlation equation for this catchment and find the correlation coefficient. What annual runoff can be
expected from this catchment for an annual rainfall of 100 cm? (Answer: R= 0.6163P – 21.513; 40.12 cm)
Year 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Annual Rainfall(cm) 90.5 111.0 38.7 129.5 145.5 99.8
Annual 30.1 50.2 55.3 61.5 74.8 39.9
Runoff(cm)
Year 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Annual Rainfall(cm) 147.6 50.9 120.2 90.3 65.2 75.9
Annual Runoff(cm) 64.7 6.5 46.1 36.2 24.6 20.0
2. The mean monthly rainfall and temperature in Nzoia river catchment are given below. Estimate the annual runoff volume and
the corresponding runoff coefficient by using Khosla’s runoff formula. (Answer: 0.144)

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3. For a 500 ha catchment with predominantly non-black cotton soil, the CNII has been estimated as 68.
a) If the total rainfall in the past 5 days is 25 cm and the season is dormant season, estimate the runoff volume due to 80
mm of rainfall in a day?
b) What would be the runoff volume if the rainfall in the past 5 days were 35 mm?

4. (a) Compute the runoff from a 2000 ha watershed due to 15 cm rainfall in a day. The watershed has 35% group B soil, 40%
group C soil and 25% group D soil. The land use is 80% residential that is 65% impervious and 20% paved roads. Assume
AMC II conditions.

(b) If the land were pasture land in poor condition prior to the development, what would have been the runoff volume under
the same rainfall? What is the percentage increase in runoff volume due to urbanization?
[Use standard CS –CN equation]
5. An urban catchment has an area of 85 ha. The slope of the catchment is 0.006 and the maximum length of travel of water is
950 m. The maximum depth of rainfall with a 25-year return period is as below:

If a culvert for drainage at the outlet of this area is to be designed for a return period of 25 years, estimate the required peak-
flow rate, by assuming the runoff coefficient as 0.3.
Solution
The time of concentration is obtained by the Kirprich formula as

By interpolation,
Maximum depth of rainfall for 27.4-min duration

Using Equation 6.8,

Qp = 0.278 CIA

6. A 500 ha watershed has the land use/cover and corresponding runoff coefficient as given below:

The maximum length of travel of water in the watershed is about 3000 m and the elevation difference between the highest and
outlet points of the watershed is 25 m. the maximum intensity duration frequency relationship of the watershed is given by

Where i = intensity in cm/h, T = Return period in years and D = duration of the rainfall in hours. Estimate the
i. 25 year peak runoff from the watershed and,
ii. The 25 year peak runoff if the forest cover has decreased to 50 ha and the cultivated lad has encroached upon
the pasture and forest lands to have a total coverage of 450 ha.

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