Author(s): Zijun Hu; Lingling Wang; Gaofeng Cheng; Hongwu Tang
Linked Author(s): Hongwu Tang, Zijun Hu, Lingling Wang
Keywords: Tidal river with crossed pond; Saint-Venant equation; Numerical simulation; Dimensional analysis; Empirical formul
Abstract: Rivers through crossed ponds are commonly encountered in river networks of South China Plain. The medium-sized rivers which function as channels to connect large lakes and main rivers play an important role in water cycle. The one-dimensional (1D) Saint-Venant equation has been employed to predict water elevations and discharges of a 60km meandering river with a crossed pond. In the simulations, an unsteady discharge process and a constant water level were deployed at the upstream boundary and the downstream outlet, respectively. The computational results show that: with the decreased distance between the pond location and the upstream entrance, the peak discharge at the downstream outlet and water level at the upstream boundary decrease substantially. Based on the computational results, four factors are found to be able to affect the storage capacity of the pond: pond area, distance between upstream inlet and pond location, bed resistance and tidal period. Finally, empirical dimensionless formulas have been established to estimate the drainage capacity of tidal river with a crossed pond. These formulas could be useful for practical engineering applications.
Year: 2013