Laboratory evaluation of a numerical flood routing technique for channels subject to lateral inflows

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Abstract
As a result of advances in high speed digital computers, considerable interest has been shown in the use of a numerical solution of the complete equations of free surface flow to synthesize the unsteady channel and overland flow conditions that occur during a period of runoff. The advantage of this approach is that it provides a logical description of the phenomenon of local inflows entering along a stream flowing at either subcritical or supercritical velocities. This paper shows the feasibility of the approach by comparing the hydrographs and water surface profiles obtained from a numerical solution of the equations with those produced by introducing time varied and spatially varied lateral inflows along the length of a 72‐foot‐long experimental flume. One of the practical problems found with the numerical technique was a sensitivity to errors in the value of the Manning n used to describe the channel roughness. The difficulties imposed by this sensitivity are discussed and compared with the problems associated with traditional routing methods. (Key words: Flood routing; hydraulics; computers, digital; synthesis.)

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