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River Engineering
Flussbau
Last Updated: 2026-02-05 15:34:53
Abstract
The lecture addresses the fundamentals to quantitatively describe the flow of water, the transport of sediments and morphological changes like erosion or deposition in watercourses. Further addressed are the design and dimensioning of river engineering works to create and ensure sufficient capacity, channel stability as well as to ensure the ecological functions of the watercourse.
Objective
The students shall - be able to describe the interrelation between discharge, sediment transport and channel evolution quantitatively - know the fundamentals and be able to apply the approaches and methods to treat river engineering problems associated with flood protection and river restoration - be capable to design and dimension river engineering works needed to influence the processes in watercourses
Content
The first part of the lecture treats the fundamentals required to deal with river engineering problems. Sampling methods for the river bed material and methods to calculate the discharge in alluvial rivers are presented. The process of river bed armoring and the principles of incipient motion, initiation of erosion as well as sediment transport (bed load, suspended load) are treated. In the second part of the lecture, the procedures to quantify the sediment budget and the morphological changes (erosion, aggradation) in river systems are explained. Furthermore, the process of natural channel formation and the different plan forms of rivers (straight, meandering, braided) are discussed. Own chapters are dedicated to the topics of channel stability, bed forms, river morphology and scour. The last part of the lecture concentrates on the design and dimensioning of river engineering works. The topics focussed on are the stabilization of banks and of the longitudinal profile of rivers.
Resources
Lecture Notes
Lecture notes "River Engineering" (in German, 470 pages, including list of references)
Literature
The lecture notes contain a comprehensive list of references for further reading.
General Information
- Language
- German
- Levels
- MSC
- Frequency
- Yearly recurring
Examination
- Type
- session examination
- Mode
- oral 20 minutes
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| lecture with exercise |
Flussbau
FINDET AB 2. NOVEMBER ONLINE STATT
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2 h weekly |
Offered In
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River Systems (Remark: partly in German. Note: Students taking both of the modules LAND and RIVER must take the course 101-1250-00 Wildbach- und Hangverbau as replacment for for Fluival Systems that is listed in both modules.)
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Elective Modules (For all majors.)
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EM: River Systems (Elective Module for Majors "Environmental Technologies", "Resource Management", " Urban Water Management" and "Water Resources Management". Remark: partly in German. Note: Students taking both of the modules LAND and RIVER must take the course 101-1250-00 Wildbach- und Hangverbau as replacment for for Fluival Systems that is listed in both modules.)
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