SHARC Software
Identifying the region of the flow in the river upstream from an intake that will enter the intake
The SHARC software is the culmination of several years of research at HR Wallingford, funded by the British aid programme (DFID). The research focused on developing quantitative prediction and design methods for sediment management at intakes—principally for irrigation, though the methods are equally applicable to hydropower and water supply.
Edmund Atkinson was a key member of the research team and was responsible for integrating the research findings into the software suite. He has recently rewritten the code to ensure compatibility with modern computing environments.
The Toolkit
SHARC is a suite of tools designed to diagnose sedimentation problems at intakes and develop effective engineering solutions. The suite includes:
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DORC (Design Of Regime Canals): A menu of methods for assessing hydraulic conditions and sediment transport in channels. It includes modules for alluvial friction, fine sediment transport, and regime methods, helping engineers determine the required performance of sediment control measures to achieve a sediment balance in downstream canals.
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Intake Model: A simplified model to predict the origin of the region of upstream flow that will enter an intake. By predicting the split in sediment load enables engineers to quantify the exclusion performance and assess the impact of measures such as skimming weirs, excluders, or the improved siting of intakes.
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DOSSBAS (Design Of Sluiced Settling BASins): A method to design settling basins and desanding channels upstream from a weir or barrage (often termed ‘still pond regulation’). Applicable to both sluiced and mechanically excavated basins, DOSSBAS uses predictive models for deposition and sluicing to enable rapid iterative design.
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DACSE (Design Analysis of Canal Sediment Extractors): A tool for the design of vortex tubes and tunnel-type sediment extractors. DACSE predicts the impact of these extractors on overall sediment management and also includes design parameters for escape channels to carry sediment back to the river or to designated settling areas.
The toolkit allows for the prediction of both sediment concentrations and particle size distributions. This is critical for sediment balance calculations, as it accounts for the way sediment control measures tend to "fine-down" the sediment moving into the canal network. Size gradings can be routed through combinations of measures such as an excluder, then an extractor, a settling basin and finally into the canal network.
Finding the flow extraction ratio at a sediment extractor at which the required efficiency is achieved and so the canal will have a sediment balance
Predictions of the sediment build up and then removal from a settling basin using the Deposition Model and then the Sluicing Model in DOSSBAS
User Focus
SHARC is specifically designed for engineers familiar with hydraulics and sediment management. It has a proven history of application in diverse geographic and technical contexts.
Download & Access
SHARC is hosted by HR Wallingford and will be available to use in the near future.
Please fill in the form below to be notified when you can have full access.