Colorado State University's Hydraulics Laboratory is part of a unique research facility designed for hydraulic model studies, hydraulic performance testing and research in the fields of open channel and closed conduit hydraulics.

The laboratories are located at the Engineering Research Center on the Foothills Campus approximately four miles west of Fort Collins, Colorado. Studies that can be undertaken:

•   Scour and sediment transport studies
•   Channel stability of rivers
•   Porous media flow
•   River diversion structures
•   Spillways
•   Outlet works
•   Embankment and dam formation erosion
•   Energy dissipaters

Facilities and equipment on site can test valves, flow meters, and pumps for:

•   Flow capacity
•   Pressure loss
•   Energy output and efficiency

Indoor Hydraulics Lab

The main Hydraulics Laboratory is 280 ft long by 120 ft wide with a maximum ceiling clearance of 32 ft. Over 20,000 square feet (sq ft) of covered laboratory space is available in the Hydraulics Lab for model studies and recirculating flumes.

The largest sediment flume is 8 ft wide by 4 ft deep, and the entire 200 ft length can be tilted to different slopes with a discharge of up to 100 cubic feet per second (cfs).

Sedimentation Lab

The Sedimentation Lab is equipped to perform physical and mechanical analyses of sediment samples, such as:

•   Concentrations of suspended sediment in water samples
•   Size analysis by sieving
•   Percent clay/silt determination by wet sieving
•   Fines analysis by visual accumulation tube or by hydrometer