A weir or low-head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of lakes, ponds, and reservoirs.
There are many weir designs, but commonly water flows freely over the top of the weir crest before cascading down to a lower level.Weirs look like simple structures, but they are crucial engineering structures in open channel flow. I hope you you benefitted something out of this video. Watch the video from Lesics for more info:
Commonly, weirs are used to prevent flooding, measure water discharge, and help render rivers more navigable by boat. In some locations, the terms dam and weir are synonymous, but normally there is a clear distinction made between the structures. Usually, a dam is designed specifically to impound water behind a wall, whilst a weir is designed to alter the river flow characteristics.
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A common distinction between dams and weirs is that water flows over the top (crest) of a weir or underneath it for at least some of its length. Accordingly, the crest of an overflow spillway on a large dam may therefore be referred to as a weir. Weirs are commonly used to control the flow rates of rivers during periods of high discharge.
