File Generation and Interpolation for Tidal Pond Network Analysis

Analysis of a network of tidal ponds connected by hydraulically complex conduits requires special conduit file generation and interpolation techniques. Hydraulically complex in this context means that computer-intensive calculations are required to adequately determine flow through each connecting conduit for each combination of headwater and tailwater elevations (e.g., for unsubmerged culverts). Such file generation and interpolation techniques were developed for a specific application that enabled the successful analysis of a network of tidal ponds connected by culverts and bridges. The techniques decreased computational times of an otherwise optimized program by orders of magnitude. Without such techniques, such modeling would not be feasible in terms of required computational time. The computer run times (Pentium-133) of the final model runs ranged from about 10 h or 8.8 times real time to about 3 days or 0.67 times real time, depending on the tide conditions considered and the hydraulic complexity of the interconnecting conduits. The techniques are general and have application to other similar problems.