Direct Numerical Simulation of Hortonian Runoff Resulting from Heterogeneous Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity
Publication: Journal of Hydrologic Engineering
Volume 13, Issue 10
Abstract
A two-dimensional rainfall-runoff model is used to systematically explore the aggregate effect of spatially heterogeneous saturated hydraulic conductivity, , on Hortonian runoff generation. The fully dynamic model integrates overland flow and infiltration to allow for the “interactive infiltration” process (run-on). Rainfall events varying in time and intensity were simulated on synthetic hillslopes with random and spatially correlated fields. Model grid size discretization recommendations are developed to fully capture the variation in and avoid limiting the spatial interactive infiltration opportunities as found in analysis of the effects of model grid size on spatially uncorrelated hillslopes. Our results show that on highly correlated fields, relative to the hillslope length, the infiltration due to interaction is less than half that of uncorrelated fields for low intensity events. Previous findings, are also substantiated and further explored, with explicit consideration of model discretization, that the variation in increases interaction by increasing the infiltration opportunity time, simultaneously, increasing runoff. Finally we investigate the rainfall durations, which produce maximum interaction, and find interaction peaks for rainfall events approximately 1.5 times longer than the hillslope average time to ponding.
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© 2008 ASCE.
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Received: Jul 25, 2007
Accepted: Jan 11, 2008
Published online: Oct 1, 2008
Published in print: Oct 2008
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