SonTek RS5 ADCP

SonTek RS5 ADCP

The SonTek RS5 is a compact Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) designed for high-accuracy river, stream and open-channel discharge measurement. Combining five acoustic transducers with SonTek SmartPulse+® technology, the RS5 provides water velocity profiling, bottom tracking and depth measurement in a highly portable system.

Designed particularly for shallow-water hydrology, the RS5 can profile water velocity and measure depth from approximately 0.1 to 6 m, subject to environmental conditions. Its compact size, shallow minimum measurement depth and velocity cell sizes from 2.5 cm make it particularly effective where larger ADCP systems can be more difficult to deploy.

When combined with optional DGNSS or RTK positioning and a suitable deployment platform such as the Surfbee, the RS5 provides a flexible solution for routine discharge measurement, hydrometric surveys and shallow-water channel assessment.

Key Benefits

• Compact and lightweight ADCP platform

• Water velocity profiling from approximately 0.1 to 6 m

• High-resolution velocity measurements with cell sizes from 2.5 cm

• SmartPulse+® adaptive acoustic technology

• Integrated bottom tracking

• Dedicated vertical acoustic depth measurement

• Integrated compass, pitch and roll measurement

• Optional DGNSS and RTK positioning

• Wireless Bluetooth communication

• Suitable for tethered or remotely operated deployment

Applications

The SonTek RS5 is particularly suited to:

• River and stream discharge measurement

• Open-channel flow measurement

• Hydrometric gauging

• Rating-curve development and verification

• Index-velocity calibration

• Ground-truthing continuous flow-monitoring stations

• Velocity profiling and mapping

• Shallow bathymetric and channel cross-section surveys

• Flood and drought monitoring

• Irrigation, abstraction and environmental research

Discharge Measurement & Positioning

During a discharge transect, the RS5 simultaneously measures water velocity, instrument movement, water depth and instrument orientation to calculate discharge across the channel cross-section.

Bottom tracking provides the conventional reference for instrument movement, while optional DGNSS or SonTek-RTK positioning provides an alternative where bottom tracking may be unreliable. This is particularly useful in moving-bed conditions, where sediment movement can introduce bias into bottom-track-based discharge measurements.

RTK positioning can also provide centimetre-level horizontal positioning under suitable conditions, supporting georeferenced measurements and shallow-water channel surveys.

RS5 or M9?

The RS5 is particularly suited to shallow and moderate-depth rivers and channels where portability, rapid deployment and high-resolution shallow-water measurement are priorities.

For deeper rivers, reservoirs and more demanding bathymetric applications, the SonTek M9 provides substantially greater velocity-profiling and depth-measurement capability.

Flux Enviro can assist with selecting the appropriate ADCP based on water depth, channel width, velocity, deployment requirements and survey objectives.

Complete ADCP Solutions

Flux Enviro can provide complete SonTek RS5 systems including the ADCP, Surfbee deployment platform, DGNSS or RTK positioning, field accessories and supporting equipment.

We can also provide technical support covering equipment selection, configuration, field deployment, measurement methodology and data interpretation.

Where a moving-boat ADCP is not the most appropriate approach, alternative SonTek solutions include the M9 ADCP, FlowTracker2 handheld ADV, SonTek-SL side-looking systems and SonTek-IQ area-velocity flow meters.

*Additional notes 1 Maximum range will vary with environmental conditions. 2 Bottom velocity accuracy. 3 When Using provided SonTek USB radio with antenna.