Abstract
Multi-site optimization of two adapted event-based geomorphologic rainfall-runoff models was presented using Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm (NSGA-II) method for the South Fork Eel River watershed, California. The first model was developed based on Unequal Cascade of Reservoirs (UECR) and the second model was presented as a modified version of Geomorphological Unit Hydrograph based on Nash’s model (GUHN). Two calibration strategies were considered as semi-lumped and semi-distributed for imposing (or unimposing) the geomorphology relations in the models. The results of models were compared with Nash’s model. Obtained results using the observed data of two stations in the multi-site optimization framework showed reasonable efficiency values in both the calibration and the verification steps. The outcomes also showed that semi-distributed calibration of the modified GUHN model slightly outperformed other models in both upstream and downstream stations during calibration. Both calibration strategies for the developed UECR model during the verification phase showed slightly better performance in the downstream station, but in the upstream station, the modified GUHN model in the semi-lumped strategy slightly outperformed the other models. The semi-lumped calibration strategy could lead to logical lag time parameters related to the basin geomorphology and may be more suitable for data-based statistical analyses of the rainfall-runoff process.
Highlights
An accurate simulation of the rainfall-runoff process can play a significant role in urban and environmental planning, land use, flood and water resources management of a watershed as well as mitigation of drought impacts on water resources systems
Nash [3] proposed a conceptual model composed of a cascade of linear reservoirs with equal storage coefficients, which has been one of the most popular models since it provides an explicit equation for the Instantaneous Unit Hydrograph (IUH) of a watershed wherein reservoirs have a quasi-physical meaning
The South Fork Eel River watershed near Miranda (USGS ID = 11476500) with a drainage area of 1390.8 km2 is located between 39°36'11" N and 40°10'55" N latitude and 123°25'32" W and 123°57'54" W longitude
Summary
An accurate simulation of the rainfall-runoff process can play a significant role in urban and environmental planning, land use, flood and water resources management of a watershed as well as mitigation of drought impacts on water resources systems. The main property of distributed model is the spatially distributed nature of the inputs, which leads to the utilization of physically based parameters In this case, a model may be physically based in a theory, but sometimes it may not be consistent with observations because of the mismatch of scales, in which case a dimensional analysis might be required to solve the problem. To overcome the above-mentioned problems regarding fully distributed and conceptual models, new generations of models, semi-distributed models, have been and are still being developed (e.g., [4,5]) Many of these models introduce routing on the basis of the basin geomorphology and lead to the Geomorphological Unit Hydrograph (GUH)
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