Evening Star Newspaper, October 18, 1931, Page 94

BY HUDSON GRUNEW ALD. LEVEE on the Mississippi breaks and the mighty current rushes forth to destroy life and property; a dam bursts and we have a Johunstown flood; the ocean gnaws endlessly at its shores and 'whole sections of valuable coastline are ruined; a canal slowly fills its channel; a river changes its course; even the small stream pursuing its peaceful way periorms queer antics that men are at a loss to explain and cannot control, and the mere flow of water through the pipes of in- dustry present phenomena of which little is actually known. Water, the simplest and most universal of all clements, remains the most baflling to science. Hygdraulic engineers have worked wonders in stemming tides and harnessing waters for the use of mankind, but there are still today many fundamental problems which remain unsclved. A factor of uncertainty still enters into the construction of dykes, levees and spillways; dams calr for costly and expensive margins of safety; piers and bulkheads wash away; the laws of beach erosion have never becen written, and numerous other hydraulic prin- ciples have been found wanting. For generations the hydraulic engineer had been handicapped by incomplete knowledge in the science upon which his skill is based. But be has come to realize that solution of the vast problems which lay ahead of him depends upon his being armed with basic rules, formulas anrd measurcments which he does not now ssess, that basic research is needed “io make exact th2 knowledge of the flow of water,” and that new tacts must be sought and more accurate coefficients determined. To supply this need the United States Gov- ernment has created the National Hydraulic Laboratory at the Burcau of Standards in Washington, and has now under construction an amazing new building where facilities such as have never before existed anywl n the world for similar study will be provided. IN this urique structure, now lifting the stecl skeleton of its framework at the foot of a hillp on the bureau grounds, nine powerful pulaps totaling 1,200 horsepower wvill deliver a flow of water for experimental purposes which will be more than twice the volume normally sunvlied to the District of Cclumbia. This water, drawn from a storage reservoir in the building, will race through pipes, troughs and flumes in quantities varying from the volume of & great waterfall to the trickle of a faucet, and, kept in constant circulation, it will be returned thrcugh any one of five different channels to its source tank. In this building there will be numerous valves, by-passes and sluice gates, meters, gauges and pipelines for distributing and controlling the water flow and broad, deep’ basins for vol- umetric tests. The visitor will see long. wide stretches of open floor space, light and well ventilated, with every provision for the moving and placing of hydraulic machinery and the delivery of water in various quantities and at different pressures. He will sece a wide con- crete flume, over 200 feet long, bearing a swift current of water; he will witness batteries of mammoth pumps at work, ingenious constant- level reservoirs and accurate models of dams, hydro-electric plants and river beds of every character and description. And he will stand in mystifying corridor-like basement chambers, with the rush and roar of great forces of water in his ears, watching profound experi- ments that might revoluticnize the whole science of hydraulics. It is planned that this great laboratory be a clearing house of hydraulic information to work in liaison with foreign laboratories, and that there will be available the most complete list of references of hydraulic investigation both at home and abroad. According to Director George K. Burgess of the Bureau of Standards, “the laboratory will be active in studying proposed designs of hydraulic structures for such departments of the Government as may need this help. Such studies will be intended to make improvements in the configuration of particular designs in order to obtain the best and the most econom- ical structure for a given service. From tests of an engineering nature such as these, scien- tific information may also be obtained—for ex- ample, an understanding of the laws which govern scale effects, and a more exact knowl- edge of the nature of flow. Numerous specific problems have been suggested by the Bureau of Reclamation, such as the Hoover Dam and the Cle Elum Spillway, and some more general in nature, such as a study of the hydraulic jump on sloping surfaces, of flow in chutes and in transition sections, and a study of means for preventing erosion below spillways.” In this laboratory hydraulicians will study flood control problems by delving deeper into the mysteries of the flow of water and the action of river currents, supplementing the work now being done by the corps of engineers of the War Department in the Mississippi Valiey. ABORATORY research and experimentation - axtended over a long period may answer the question of whether straightening the course of the Mississippi by eliminating its great bends will increase the force of its cur- rent, scour a decper river bed and thus carry floodwater within lower levees with far greater safety to life and property than under present uncertain conditions; it may solve the problem of river-bed erosion and sand-bar formation; it may develop satisfactory means for regu- lating harbor currents; perfect siphon spill- ways: improve high-speed turbine runners and m‘a the efficiency of high-lift centrifugal pumps. Experiments made remgy at Princeton Wniversity for the Steve Creek Dam in THE SUNDWY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, OCTOBER 18, 1931. UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT IS BUILDING W ORLD'’S GREATEST HYDRAULIC LABORATORY IN WASHINGTON With Pumps Delivering More Than Twice the Volume of Water S upplied to the Entire District of Columbia, the New Workshop Will Provide Facilities for Experiments I hich May Solve the Most Baffling Problems of Flood Control and Revo- lutionize the Science of Hydraulics. Artist’s conception of the main flume on the ground floor of the Government’s new hydraulic laboratory, now under construction at the Bureau of Standards, through which a powerful stream 12 feet deep and 200 feet long, will be forced. This cross-section of a mighty river, together with a battery of gigantic pumps and other amazing devices, will provide facilities for studying the flow of water unequaled anywhere in the world. California in which mercury instead of water was used to produce the pressure against a celluloid dam model of one-fortieth scale proved that models can be used satisfactorily in predicting performance of full-scale struc- tures of this type, and tests such as these will be conducted at the new hydraulic laboratory. Here also will be made a study of the laws of transportation of silt and sediment by rivers, canals and flumes, a knowledge of which is needed for the successful solution of many river and flood control problems and for the benefit of industry. “Much work has been done on this difficult subject both abroad and in the United States, states Director Burgess, “but as yet we have only touched the surface of the problem.” Another phase of the laboratory’'s work, the director points out, will be the testing and development of hydraulic instruments and ac- cessories. “At present the omly tests of hy- draulic instruments which the Bureau of Standards is equipped to make are calibra- tions of current meters in still water and tests of water meters up to one and one-half inch in size. These existing facilities will not be dupli- cated in the new laboratory, but will be ex- tended to enable tests of current meters to be made in running water, with or without arti- ficially produced eddies, and the other type of disturbances. The new laboratory will also make possible the testing of water meters up to six inches in size, and of venturi meters, orifice meters and the like {n moderate sizes. “Routine or special tests of hydraulic instru- ments and accessories will e made for de- partment and dent agencies of the Federal Government; for tates and their political subdivisions, and als» for private indi~ viduals and firms on the payment of a suitable fee, providing the necessary facilities for making such tests exist in the laboratory and R ¢ » tye Vet INET % s cannot be found elsewhere. Scientific investi- gations and model studies of hydraulic struc- tures will be made for governmental agencies up to the capacity of the laboratory.” By including the hydraulic laboratory in the Bureau of Standards “Research Associate Plan,” Director Burgess anticipates that arrangements will be made to permit governmental agencies to send their engineers and investigators to the bureau to work in co-operation with the . staff of the laboratory omn the problems in which they are interested. Hydraulic laboratories have been established in many engineering colleges throughout the country, although these have been small and used principally for instruction, and various Government departments have established field laboratories for specific studies in hydraulic problems, but the new laboratory equipped with a main flume to carry from 112,000 to 135,000 gallons of water per minute and pro- visions for circulating more than twice the volume of water available in any other labora- tory under cover will open the door to a new and deeper realm of investigation in hydraulics. Functioning under the administration of the Bureau of Standards, the Government's won- derland of science, which has paid back into American business $200 for every $1 the United States has appropriated, not too much em- phasis can be placed on the new laboratory’s possible benefit to industry and to the nation. What the proposed new 200-inch telescope offers astronomy in greatly extending the reach of its study, the new hydraulic laboratory offers in its own realm, and there is no way of telling what new wonders lie in store for the research worker whose discoveries may turn science of hydraulics into new and broader fields. - 1 LTHOUGH the need of a national hydraulic laboratory in the United States has long been stresced, nine years elapsed between the introduction in Congress by Senator Ramsdell of Louisiana of the resolution to provide for it and the final signature of the bill by President Hoover on May 14, 1930. The bill called for an appropriation of $350,000 for the construc- tion of the laboratory, and an additional $52,000 will be required annually for operation. The designing of the new laboratory was a difficult undertaking, as there was no precedent on which it might be based and as it encom- passed a structure planned to meet a wide variety of novel and continually changing problems. To facilitate this task an advisory committee, consisting of representatives of various governmental units which have to do with hydraulic problems and prominent hy- draulic engineers nominated by council, was formed with the puipose of obtaining the best judgment available in the country before the final design was completed. The committee held meetings over a period of six months, presenfing its recommendations to the staff of the Bureau of Standards, which under the direction of S. M. Woodward, pro- fessor of mechanics and hydraulics of the State University of Iowa, and of William I. Deming of Washington, D. C., who was appointed architect, completed the final design and sent it out for bids. The general features stressed in the com- mittee design called for maximum flow, free floor space, flexibility of equipment and large surface arca for the supply basins. It was considered desitable to provide the maximum amount. of free floor space, as much of the work in the leboratory involved the construc- tion of models with special apparatus, and large surface areas in the supply basins was held important in order to reduce the change in pumping head when the measuring basin is - filling, and to remove air bubbles carried by the water returning from experiment. The contract was finally let to Stofflet and Tillotson of Philadelphia and construction was begun this past April. “In the design of this laboratory,” states Director Burgess in a recent article in Ciyil Engineering. “advantage has been taken of ex- perience both here and abroad, and it is be- lieved that the reguirements of the several governmental field services, as expressed by their representatives, can be met. Provision has been made for circulating more than twice the volume of water in any existing laboratory under cover. “In the design, provision has been made for useful, large-scale fundamental research of wide scope and the highest attainable pre- cision, for improving the economy and accu- racy of measurements of water by weirs and orifices. Adequate provision has also been made for fundamental research covering the hydraulic laws governing the flow of water, and for experiments on models with a range in size sufficient to determine scale effects. For the $350.000 available I bclieve we shall have a laboratory that will render to the nation the maximum possible return on the invest- ment. 11 THE building proper is to be of brick-and- steel construction, to match architectu- rally the other buildings at the Bureau of Standards. The substructure is of concrete with footings carried to firm rock in order to reduce settlement to the smallest possible amount. The greatest care was taken in the design of the substructure and water basins and in the specifications for the concrete so that the walls and floors in contact with water may be as free from settlement and shrinkage cracks as possible. “To reduce changes in deflection under varying loads to a very small amount, the floors are to be of very heavy construction. Such deflections would interfere seriously with experimental work, particularly when long models buili with accurate slopes were being used. “From -its three-story rectangular head (82 feet long and 93 feet wide) at the east end, it extends westward for 204 feet at a height of two stories and a width of 60 feet. Thus the the building has a total length of 286 feet. The supply basins at the east end and the measur- ing basin at the west end extend beyond the limits of the building proper. Including supply and measuring basins the building has a con- tent of 1,336,000 cubic feet. “Extending under the entire building there will be a basement containing two large supply basins at the east end of the building, with connecting channels six feet wide extending to the opposite end. At the west end there will be a tumble bay to take the discharge from the main flume and to carry the water to the several return channels and venturi meter lines, all of which will lead back to the supply basins, thus completing the circulation. k “West of the tumble bay will be a measuring basin capable of holding 30,000 cubic feet of water. This basin can be used to measure volumetrically at least two-thirds of the maxi- mum flow of from 112,500 to 135,000 gallons per minute, for which provision has been made, but it is hoped that it will be possible to enlarge the basin at some future date to make more adequate provisions for very ac- curate measurement of the highest flows of which the laboratory is capable. “Two »turn pipe-lines connzcting the tumble bay with one of the supply basins and con- taining venturi meters for measuring the flow of water are planned. One of these lines is to be eight feet in diameter and will afford a means of measuring flows up to at least 90,000 gallons per minute. The other line to be three feet in diameter will provide for the measurement of flows up to about 27,000 gal- per minute., “There will be a straight run of about 100 Continued on Fourteenth Page A1 &N 13 Tus 3 Y 3 U2 L TURE T B 8