CEME 3004 - Hydrology for Engineers

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2021

The course serves as an introduction to the field of engineering hydrology. It covers fundamentals such as the hydrological cycle, catchment, losses, hydrographs and hyetographs. Design topics covered will be selected from: flood frequency analysis, determination of design rainfall intensity and hyetographs, peak flow estimation, design hydrograph estimation, groundwater process and modelling, and drought risk analysis/yield hydrology.

  • General Course Information
    Course Details
    Course Code CEME 3004
    Course Hydrology for Engineers
    Coordinating Unit School of Civil, Environmental & Mining Eng
    Term Semester 1
    Level Undergraduate
    Location/s North Terrace Campus
    Units 3
    Contact Up to 4 hours per week
    Available for Study Abroad and Exchange Y
    Assumed Knowledge C&ENVENG 1012, C&ENVENG 2068, C&ENVENG 2071, C&ENVENG 2070
    Assessment Includes online quizzes, a design project and a final exam
    Course Staff

    Course Coordinator: Dr Mark Thyer

    Engineering North, N107a
    Phone: +61 8 8313 0770
    e-mail: mark.thyer@adelaide.edu.au
    Profile: http://researchers.adelaide.edu.au/profile/mark.thyer

    Information on office hours and other course staff (tutors etc) will be made available via myUni course


    Course Timetable

    The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

  • Learning Outcomes
    Course Learning Outcomes
    On successful completion of this course students will be able to:

     
    1 Outline the physical processes in the context of flood hydrology, including the hydrological cycle in general, and rainfall, loss and groundwater transport mechanisms. Knowledge of the methods that can be used to measure rainfall and flow, as well as their relative advantages and disadvantages;
    2 Define and comprehend key concepts related to flood hydrology, such as relative and cumulative frequency, the use of statistical data distributions, time of concentration, major / minor systems, risk-cost tradeoffs, runoof hydrographs, rainfall hyetographs, model calibration, catchment storage, flood routing, actual versus design rainfalls and flows and the value of data;
    3 Apply a range of common techniques, such as flood frequency analysis, probabilistic rational, regional methods to estimate design peak flows in rural areas;
    4 Apply runoff-routing methods (such as the industry standard software RORB), rainfall hyetograph estimation, and model calibration and prediction to estimate flood hydrographs,
    5 Compare and evaluate (e.g. how they work, what their limitations are) a number of methods for determining peak flows and flood hydrographs for urban and rural areas, including flood frequency analysis, the probabilistic and deterministic rational methods, the regional method and runoff routing methods;
    6 Solve an engineering design problem in the context of the conceptual design of a small urban drainage system by applying the deterministic rational method to estimate peaks flow in urban areas and comparing various urban drainage design options;
    7 Define and comphrehend key concepts related to drought risk assessment, including the use of stochastic models, such as the lag-one autogressive model, and yield estimation methods for water supply systems, including water storage behaviour analysis;
    8 Apply and evaluate stochastic modelling techniques and water storage behaviour analysis to estimate the yield of a small rural water supply system; and

     
    The above course learning outcomes are aligned with the Engineers Australia Stage 1 Competency Standard for the Professional Engineer.
    The course is designed to develop the following Elements of Competency: 1.1   1.2   1.3   1.4   1.5   1.6   2.1   2.2   2.3   3.1   3.2   3.3   3.4   3.5   3.6   

    University Graduate Attributes

    This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

    University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s)
    Deep discipline knowledge
    • informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies
    • acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1
    • accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)
    1,2,5,7
    Critical thinking and problem solving
    • steeped in research methods and rigor
    • based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development
    • demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment
    3,4,5,6,8
    Teamwork and communication skills
    • developed from, with, and via the SGDE
    • honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies
    • encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning
    6
    Career and leadership readiness
    • technology savvy
    • professional and, where relevant, fully accredited
    • forward thinking and well informed
    • tested and validated by work based experiences
    3,4,5,6,7
    Intercultural and ethical competency
    • adept at operating in other cultures
    • comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts
    • able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes
    • demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges
    3,4,5,6
    Self-awareness and emotional intelligence
    • a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal
    • open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers
    • able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate
    5,6
  • Learning Resources
    Required Resources
    Lecture Notes:
    Lecture notes are available through the new On-line shop just log-in to Unified on the University's website.  Once your lecture notes are purchased take your receipt to Image and Copy Centre to collect your notes. Due to copyrighted material in the lecture notes, the notes cannot be made available on the course MyUni site.

    Course Information:
    This Course Information document is a required resource. It can be downloaded from the “Course Information” section of the course MyUni site.

    Online Learning Units:
    See online learning section below
    Recommended Resources
    Online Module “Slide Handouts”:
    Handouts of the slides for the Online Learning Units will be made available to downloaded from the “Resources” section of the course MyUni site.

    References
    A range of relevant references (journal papers, websites etc) will be made available from the Resources section of the course MyUni site. 
    Online Learning
    This course makes extensive use of online learning in the form of Online Learning Modules (OMs) for presenting key concepts, Online Quizzes (OQs) for formative assessment of key concepts and also online discussion boards to discuss application of key concepts to real-world engineering design problems.
  • Learning & Teaching Activities
    Learning & Teaching Modes
    This course utilises a blended learning approach, consisting of a combination of interactive online activities, face-to-face lectures and face-to-face design sessions.
    Workload

    The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

    Activity Contact Hours Private Study Hours (per person) Total
    Lectures 13 0 13
    Online Learning Units 0 22 (2h per module, allowing for quizzes, reading of lecture notes etc.) 22
    Design (Phase 1) 6 21 27
    Design (Phase 2) 6 28  36
    Design (Phase 3) 8 21 27
    Design (Phase 4) 4 14 18
    Total 37 106 143
    Learning Activities Summary
    This course consists of a set of integrated learning activities designed to motivate you to achieve the course learning outcomes in a supportive context. The centrepiece of the course is a Design Project on flood and groundwater hydrology, which consists of a number of phases. You will learn the fundamental principles / underlying theory required to complete the project as part of a number of learning cycles consisting of a series of Online Learning Modules (OMs), Online Quizzes (OQs) and Lectures. The Online Learning Modules and Quizzes provide you with a base level of knowledge that enables more in-depth material to be explored during Lectures. The Design Project provides you with the opportunity to gain an in-depth understanding of the material covered by applying it in a realistic context.
  • Assessment

    The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

    1. Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
    2. Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
    3. Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
    4. Assessment must maintain academic standards.

    Assessment Summary
    Assessment Task Weighting (%) Individual/ Group Formative/ Summative
    Due (week)*
    Hurdle criteria Learning outcomes
    Online Quizzes 1-10 5 Individual Formative Weeks 1-10 1. 2. 7.
    Design Project Phase 1 20 Individual Formative/Summative Week 5 1. 2. 3.
    Design Project Phase 2 30 Individual Formative/Summative Week 9 1. 2. 4. 5.
    Design Project Phase 3 30 Group Formative/Summative Week 11 1. 6.
    Design Project Phase 4 15 Individual Formative/Summative Week 13 7. 8.
    Total 100
    * The specific due date for each assessment task will be available on MyUni.
     
    This assessment breakdown complies with the University's Assessment for Coursework Programs Policy.
     
    This course has a hurdle requirement. Meeting the specified hurdle criteria is a requirement for passing the course.
     
    Rationale
    The assessment tasks have been developed to ensure that all course learning objectives are being assessed. The assessment tasks represent a mix of assessment types in order to maximise opportunities for individuals to demonstrate their knowledge of the course material in relation to the learning objectives. There is also a mixture of individual and group activities, as well as formative and summative assessment tasks, in an attempt to maximise learning outcomes, as group activities and formative tasks encourage interaction and discussion between students and between students and staff. Some assessment tasks, such as the online quizzes, are designed to provide students with the opportunity to test their knowledge and understanding of basic facts and principles and are primarily formative, with the added advantage of instant feedback. Other assessment tasks are more open ended and require a deeper understanding of the underlying concepts and principles and build on the knowledge gained through completion of the online quizzes. While these projects are summative in the sense that the mark for the final report counts towards a significant portion of the final course mark, the process of completing the tasks will result in significant learning and has therefore some formative elements to it.

    Feedback
    For online tasks details will be provided in relation to where and how many marks have been lost (marked on the submissions). In relation to reports for the design project, where detailed assessment criteria have been provided, feedback will be given against these criteria.

    Assessment
    All assessment is criterion-based (i.e. everybody who meets certain criteria will receive a certain mark, irrespective of the number of students in the class who achieve this standard) and detailed assessment criteria are provided for all assessment tasks. The assessment criteria for the assessment tasks in this course are based on the University’s general grade descriptors, which are available here.  It should be noted that according to the grade descriptors, a deep understanding of the subject matter beyond the core material is required in order to obtain Distinctions and High Distinctions and a Credit is generally awarded if everything is done “correctly” and “by the book”.
     
    Assessment Related Requirements
    Groupwork:
    This course includes assessment tasks undertaken within groups. These groups are self-selected. The same mark will be allocated to all group members and will be based on group output only. Group processes are not assessed explicitly in this course. To maintain the integrity of the assessment task(s) there is a requirement that all students within a group contribute to each assessment activity. Where there is evidence that group members have not sufficiently contributed to a group assessment task, the Academic Honesty policy may be applied. 

    Hurdles:
    In order to pass this course, students must obtain at least 50% for the design project component. Where this hurdle is not met students will receive a course result of the lesser of their calculated grade and the nominal grade of 45, Fail. An additional assessment exam will be available to eligible students. Students should refer to the Modified arrangements for coursework assessment policy for eligibility criteria.
    Assessment Detail
    Details about the assessment tasks, including due dates and assessment criteria will be made available on the MyUni site for the course.
    Submission
    The submisson time for all assessment tasks is 4pm on the due date, unless otherwise specified on myUni

    All written submissions should be submitted online via the Assessment section of the MyUni course site.

    Late submissions will only be accepted for the Design Project (not the online quizzes). However, there will be a loss of 10% of the marks obtained if the submission is less than 24 hours late, 20% if the submission is between 24 and 48 hours late and so on. Extensions will only be granted in special circumstances (e.g. illness) and must be sought for each assessment task individually. Extensions will not be granted less than 24 hours before the deadline for a given task, with the exception of a medical certificate.

    Submissions should follow the guidelines as provided on MyUni.

    Course Grading

    Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

    M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
    Grade Mark Description
    FNS   Fail No Submission
    F 1-49 Fail
    P 50-64 Pass
    C 65-74 Credit
    D 75-84 Distinction
    HD 85-100 High Distinction
    CN   Continuing
    NFE   No Formal Examination
    RP   Result Pending

    Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

    Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

    Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

  • Student Feedback

    The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

    SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

  • Student Support
  • Policies & Guidelines
  • Fraud Awareness

    Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

The University of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The University of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.