Numerical Simulation of Levee Breach Flows Under Complex Boundary Conditions

Abstract

Levee or dam failure can cause a significant disaster in most cases. A good prediction of the flood process especially in a real complex terrain is necessary for working out emergency plans for levee or dam breaches. Numerical simulations of levee or dam breach flow were carried out often with constant flow parameters and in relatively simple channels rather than in natural rivers with complex boundaries. This article presents our dedicated studies on the 2-D numerical model of levee or dam breach hydraulics with finite difference schemes. The good performance of the model is demonstrated by comparisons with the theoretical solution of an idealized dam-break flow over a frictionless flat rectangular channel. The model is also validated through its stability and conservation properties. The model is applied to simulate the flood propagation under complex boundary conditions, and the unsteady flood process in a river and in the dry floodplain with a complex bed terrain simultaneously. Furthermore, with respect to engineering practice, the numerical solutions can give special guidance to the effects of parameters such as the flood depth at different sites and the inundated area at different time periods after the levee breach and the travel time of the flood waves, which may be very important for practicing engineers in an efficient flood management.