Publications by Michael Pfister

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Bottom chute aerators are installed to prevent cavitation damages and they have been studied in detail on smooth spillways. In parallel, stepped spillways became widespread in the past decades. Research has shown that stepped spillways may be endangered ev ...

In parallel to their most frequent application as an auxiliary dam spillway, piano key weirs (PKWs) are also installed on low-head barrages in combination with run-off-the-river power plants. Their efficient rating curve, advantageous behavior under driftw ...

Tsunamis, impulse-waves and dam-break waves have affected humanity in recent decades and the construction of vertical shelters can provide safety to people. However, for non-critical infrastructures, typically residential houses of lower height, overtoppin ...

Chute aerators are applied to high-velocity spillways to entrain air into the flow so that cavitation damage is avoided. Air entrainment occurs locally at the aerator, whereas further downstream the flow is deaerated. This process is relevant because it de ...

The drainage network of the city of Cossonay (Switzerland) is currently being adapted for future needs. In particular, it is required to drain increased storm discharges due to a population augmentation and to provide an adequate concept to overcome unfavo ...

Two-phase air-water flows occur frequently in hydraulic engineering. Their characteristics, particularly the depth-averaged air concentrations, are of relevance for design. These must be known, for instance, to provide an adequate chute freeboard, or to av ...

The West Fork of Eno River Reservoir Dam is located near Hillsborough, North Carolina, USA. The earthen embankment dam provides an impoundment used by the town for water supply. The project was originally completed in 2000 with forethought by the owner for ...

Systematic physical model tests are performed on a stepped spillway equipped with a bottom aerator at the beginning of the stepped part. A deflector is used to issue a jet in order to initiate air entrainment into the flow. A horizontal slot located in the ...

Side-channels are a typical element of earth or rockfill dams to discharge floods sideways instead frontally, such as normally adopted for concrete dams. The side channel received attention from the hydraulics community from the 1920s, once the first large ...

Hydraulic scale effects on physical Piano Key weir (PKW) models were so far rarely discussed in literature, even though almost all prototypes are model-tested before construction. In parallel, physical weir models are generally known to include significant ...

Recent studies showed that a speciﬁc design can reduce the impact of water waves on structures, thus limiting the damages. Herein the impact of waves on buildings is addressed, pointing out the inﬂuence of orientation on the hydrodynamic process. ...

The interest in Piano Key weirs (PKW) was increasing over the past years, both in terms of application and hydraulic research. Several systematic model test series were per-formed and published so far, originating from different hydraulic laboratories arou ...

Numerous stepped spillways were built during the last decades. In particular, a stepped spillway may be integrated economically into the downstream face of a RCC gravity dam, or on valley flanks besides embankment or rockfill dams, where slope changes may ...

Tsunamis, impulse waves, and dam failures are disasters that challenge humanity, often leading to massive casualties and extreme economic losses. The highly unsteady flow conditions generated by such events are often in the form of turbulent bores. The pur ...

Forum papers are thought-provoking opinion pieces or essays founded in fact, sometimes containing speculation, on a civil engineering topic of general interest and relevance to the readership of the journal. The views expressed in this Forum article do not ...

The Piano Key weir (PKW) is a hydraulically attractive alternative to linear overflow weirs, increasing the unit discharge for similar heads and spillway widths. This advantage allows operating dam reservoirs on an increased level and provides thereby an e ...

L’obstruction de l’évacuateur de crue d’un barrage par des bois flottants peut réduire sa capacité hydraulique. Pour limiter cet effet, un râtelier peut être installé pour retenir les bois en amont de la section critique d’écoulement. Sur la base d’une mod ...

Le transport de bois flottants peut induire des obstructions aux ouvrages hydrauliques et limiter leurs fonctionnalités et leurs capacités de décharge. Le blocage de l’entrée d’un évacuateur de crue d’un barrage par des bois flottants représente un risque ...

Michael Pfister

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Comparison of chute aerator effect on stepped and smooth spillways

Mobile Riverbed Scour Downstream of a Piano Key Weir

Effect of building overtopping on induced loads during extreme hydrodynamic events

Chute Aerators : Steep Deflectors and Cavity Subpressure

Junction chamber at vortex drop shaft: case study of Cossonay

History and significance of the Morton number in hydraulic engineering

Piano Key Weir for Enlargement of the West Fork of Eno River Reservoir

Effect of deflector aerator on stepped spillway flow

Historical development of side-channel spillway in hydraulic engineering

Scale effects related to the rating curve of cylindrically crested Piano Key weirs

Wave impact on oriented impervious buildings

Overview of Piano Key weir prototypes and scientific model investigations

Air Entrainment in Skimming Flow on Stepped Spillways: the Effect of an Abrupt Slope Change

Closure to "Reservoir Level Rise under Extreme Driftwood Blockage at Ogee Crest" by Loic Benet, Giovanni De Cesare, and Michael Pfister

Experimental Study of Tsunami-Like Waves Generated with a Vertical Release Technique on Dry and Wet Beds

Approaches to reduce friction losses in headrace waterways of hydropower plants

Estimation of A-type Piano Key weir rating curve

Force imposée sur un râtelier en amont d’un évacuateur de crue par des bois flottants, et concept pour favoriser le passage des bois flottants

Review on pressure distribution on stepped spillways

Effet des bois flottants obstruant un évacuateur de crue dans des conditions extrêmes