Numerical Modelling Of Navigable Rivers: Influence Of Navigation Structures In The Meuse River Flow

Patil, Amit Ravindra [UCL, SCKCEN] Fiengo Perez, Fabricio [SCKCEN] Lambrechts, Jonathan [UCL] Draoui, Insaf [UCL] Deleersnijder, Eric [UCL]

The numerical simulation of navigable rivers is a complex task due to the functioning of hydraulic structures that introduces alterations in the river flow dynamics. Therefore modules for simulation of hydraulic works such as weirs and underflow gates have been included in the finite element, discontinuous Galerkin SLIM modelling framework. In this study we evaluate the simulation capabilities of the new version of SLIM for representing the hydrodynamics of the highly regulated rivers. The case study selected for this evaluation is the Meuse River, in Belgium. The flow simulations were compared against measurements done along the Meuse River. The evaluation results shows Nash–Sutcliffe Efficiencies around 0.68 and 0.92 for water level and discharge respectively. Although, a good agreement for discharge was obtained, slightly lower efficiencies were observed for water levels. The main reason for this deviation are lack of information regarding operation rules.