Practical Hydraulics

To use water wisely requires a basic understanding of hydraulics - how water is stored, pumped and controlled in pipes and channels. Hydraulics is no longer just the domain of engineers but an essential tool for environmentalists, geographers, agriculturalists and planners - all of whom are involved in making important decisions about how water resources are allocated and managed. Hydraulics has a reputation for being a complex, even intimidating subject but it need not be so. This fully revised second edition of Practical Hydraulics recognises that not everyone has strong maths skills or wants to be an engineer. It breaks with the tradition of a maths-based approach by adopting a descriptive style with many illustrations and examples to help the reader develop a sound understanding of how water behaves in practice. It also introduces numbers' should the reader wish to go further. Melvyn Kay has over 25 years experience teaching hydraulics to students from non-engineering' backgrounds, therefore Practical Hydraulics will appeal to a wide range of professionals and undergraduate students who want a thorough yet easy-to-understand introduction to the subject. It will also suit young engineers who are looking for an alternative approach to the more traditional mathematical texts. Melvyn Kay , formerly Senior Lecturer in Hydraulics and Irrigation at Cranfield University, UK, currently practices as a consultant in irrigation water management.Kay, Melvyn is the author of 'Practical Hydraulics', published 2007 under ISBN 9780415351157 and ISBN 0415351154.