Skip to main content

Research Repository

Advanced Search

An unstructured finite-volume method for coupled models of suspended sediment and bed load transport in shallow-water flows

Benkhaldoun, F.; Elmahi, I.; Sari, S.; Seaid, M.

An unstructured finite-volume method for coupled models of suspended sediment and bed load transport in shallow-water flows Thumbnail


Authors

F. Benkhaldoun

I. Elmahi

S. Sari



Abstract

The aim of this work is to develop a well-balanced finite-volume method for the accurate numerical solution of the equations governing suspended sediment and bed load transport in two-dimensional shallow-water flows. The modelling system consists of three coupled model components: (i) the shallow-water equations for the hydrodynamical model; (ii) a transport equation for the dispersion of suspended sediments; and (iii) an Exner equation for the morphodynamics. These coupled models form a hyperbolic system of conservation laws with source terms. The proposed finite-volume method consists of a predictor stage for the discretization of gradient terms and a corrector stage for the treatment of source terms. The gradient fluxes are discretized using a modified Roe's scheme using the sign of the Jacobian matrix in the coupled system. A well-balanced discretization is used for the treatment of source terms. In this paper, we also employ an adaptive procedure in the finite-volume method by monitoring the concentration of suspended sediments in the computational domain during its transport process. The method uses unstructured meshes and incorporates upwinded numerical fluxes and slope limiters to provide sharp resolution of steep sediment concentrations and bed load gradients that may form in the approximate solutions. Details are given on the implementation of the method, and numerical results are presented for two idealized test cases, which demonstrate the accuracy and robustness of the method and its applicability in predicting dam-break flows over erodible sediment beds. The method is also applied to a sediment transport problem in the Nador lagoon.

Citation

Benkhaldoun, F., Elmahi, I., Sari, S., & Seaid, M. (2013). An unstructured finite-volume method for coupled models of suspended sediment and bed load transport in shallow-water flows. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids, 72(9), 967-993. https://doi.org/10.1002/fld.3771

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Dec 5, 2012
Publication Date Jul 30, 2013
Deposit Date Dec 3, 2013
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids
Print ISSN 0271-2091
Electronic ISSN 1097-0363
Publisher Wiley
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 72
Issue 9
Pages 967-993
DOI https://doi.org/10.1002/fld.3771
Keywords Suspended sediment, Shallow-water equations, Bed load transport, Finite-volume method, Unstructured grids, Mesh adaptation, Nador lagoon.

Files

Accepted Journal Article (16.7 Mb)
PDF

Copyright Statement
This is the accepted version of the following article: Benkhaldoun, F., Elmahi, I., Sari, S. and Seaid, M. (2013), An unstructured finite-volume method for coupled models of suspended sediment and bed load transport in shallow-water flows. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids, 72(9): 967-993, which has been published in final form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/fld.3771. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance With Wiley Terms and Conditions for self-archiving.




You might also like



Downloadable Citations