Part I Data to perform a sediment transport analysis Unsteady vs Quasi-Steady flow Quasi-Steady Flow Computations • Sequence of steady state computations • Apply results over specified time to compute sediment transport • More stable than fully unsteady • Uses backwater flow equations • Does not conserve flow or storage • Faster • Limited to simple boundary conditions (B.C.) and controls Flow Series • Required for each upstream B.C. • Flow Duration: • Flow duration/Computation Increment/Flow • Handle irregular time steps\ • Time step cannot be larger than the flow duration. • Flow duration for different B.C. do not need to match. • RAS uses the smallest duration of all. Computational Increment • Sediment transport is highly non-linear • Use 24 hrs for low flows • Smaller times for moderate of high flows • Model stability could be compromised with large times • “Re-computing geometry and hydraulics too infrequently is the most common source of model instability” Downstream B.C. (for water) • Stage Time Series • Duration vs stage table. • Reach should be in morphological quasi-equilibrium. • Rating Curve • Relation between stage vs flow. • Assume morphological quasi-equilibrium. • Normal Depth • Requires the friction slope. • Is popular but introduces uncertainty. • Makes water surface elevation independent of computed elevation introducing numerical and unrealistic results. Downstream B.C. (for water) Temperature • Fall velocity is sensitive to temperature. • Sediment transport analyses require temperature data. • Specify a temperature time series. • Irregular time series could be specified • Options: • Constant temperature: For coarse systems • Interpolation: Annual highs and lows values • Use monthly averages Sediment Data • HEC-RAS uses four files for Quasi-Unsteady quasi-steady sediment flow data transport analysis Sediment data • Hydraulics input • Geometry • Flow (quasi-steady or unsteady) • Plan Perform a sediment • Sediment transport transport simulation • Sediment data file: Is mandatory after the geometry file is complete. Sediment Transport Data Editor • Three tabs: • Initial conditions & transport parameters (mandatory) • Sediment B.C. (mandatory) • USDA-ARL Bank Stability and Toe Erosion Model (BSTEM) (Optional) • Initial conditions & transport parameters • Sediment transport functions • 8 sediment transport functions • All produce very different results • Must be chosen with care and knowledge of river engineering HEC-RAS Hydraulic Reference Manual Sediment Transport Data Editor • Initial conditions & transport parameters • Sorting Method • To keep track of the bed gradation by classes and to simulate the armoring processes • Three Sorting Methods • Thomas (Ex.5) (Default in HEC-6) • Copeland (Ex. 7) For sand bed rivers mainly • Active Layer: simple two-layer model. Uses d90 as layer thickness. Only appropriate for gravel beds. • Do not combine Thomas/Copeland armoring with Wilcox-Crowe transport function. Both account for armoring. Sediment Transport Data Editor • Initial conditions & transport parameters • Sorting Method • To keep track of the bed gradation by classes and to simulate the armoring processes • Three Sorting Methods • Thomas (Ex.5) (Default in HEC-6) • Copeland (Ex. 7) For sand bed rivers mainly • Active Layer: simple two-layer model. Uses d90 as layer thickness. Only appropriate for gravel beds. • Do not combine Thomas/Copeland armoring with Wilcox-Crowe transport function. Both account for armoring. Fall velocity • Five methods for computing fall velocity • User should select the most appropriate • Ruby • Toffaleti • Van Rijn • Report 12 (HEC-6) • Solutions are iterative: Cd(Re) Re(v) Maximum Depth or Minimum Elevation • User must specify two movable bed limits and either a depth or elevation for bed degradation (movable sediment reservoir) Mobile Cross Section Limits • Specify movable bed limits stations at the right and left sides • These are the last nodes to move • Select then carefully. Used in some transport functions • Not always correspond to channel bank stations Multiple Movable Bed Limits • “Veneer method” is a method of computing bed change, raising or lowering all wetted nodes within the movable bed limits an equal distance to convert mass change into cross section changes. Multiple Movable Bed Limits (MMBL) • The MMBL feature allows to select several “active channels” that can erode, producing “islands” in the river. • This is mostly for flow splits or modeling of river deltas. Bed Gradations • Each cross-section requires initial bed gradation data • User define sediment gradations in a database • HEC-RAS uses bed-gradation templates • Requires: • % Finer • Uses a cumulative bed gradation curve with %finer defined by the upper bound of each grain size. • 50% must be input as 50 • Grain class fraction/weight • This is the sample fraction of each grain class (example: fine sand, coarse sand, fine gravel, etc). Bed Gradations • Requires: • Selecting a template • This is a way to associate a bed sample with one or several cross-sections • Bed gradations can be interpolated between cross sections • HEC-RAS has specific menu for cohesive soil parameters