Representation of Linear Terrain Features in a 2D Flood Model with Regular Cartesian Mesh

Abstract

Highly transient floods resulting from the failure of dams and levees can lead to loss of life and property damage. Two-dimensional (2D) numerical simulations that use modern shock-capturing schemes are particularly suited to simulate these mixedregime floods for flood mapping, consequence analysis and emergency management planning. The Digital Elevation Models (DEM) are often used as a regular computational mesh. Unfortunately, linear terrain features, such as road and railroad embankments and dikes, which may influence flood patterns, are not adequately captured in DEMs. This study describes a two-sided cut-cell boundary method for representing linear terrain features on a regular Cartesian mesh. The proposed method is briefly described and some test simulations are presented.