Culvert Scour

Smaller and generally less visible than bridges, culverts are susceptible to scour as well—some designs more than others. Natural-bottom culverts, increasingly popular as they present a smaller barrier to aquatic life at the stream crossing, are particularly susceptible to scour.

Scour experiments with natural-bottom culvert designs.

Recent research at the Federal Highway Administration's Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center J. Sterling Jones Hydraulics Research Laboratory has focused on scour at these culverts.  While they can have ecological benefits, their footings can be undermined by scour holes. The laboratory's research looked at the roles shape, size, and approach flow conditions play in the geometry of the scour holes.