Hydrodynamic modelling of a regulated Mediterranean coastal lagoon, the Albufera of Valencia (Spain)

Coastal lagoon hydrodynamics are strongly influenced by sea water exchange, especially when the connection between the lagoon and the sea is artificially regulated. These situations increase the complexity of the hydrodynamic regime, requiring the use of numerical models to understand their behaviou...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of hydroinformatics 2014-09, Vol.16 (5), p.1062-1076
Main Authors: ALBA, Javier García, GOMEZ, Aina G, DEL BARRIO FERNANDEZ, Pilar, GOMEZ, Andrés García, DIAZ, César Alvarez
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Chemical analysis
Coastal environments
Coastal lagoons
Computational fluid dynamics
Dynamics
Earth sciences
Earth, ocean, space
Exact sciences and technology
Fluid flow
Hydrodynamics
Lagoons
Marine and continental quaternary
Mathematical models
Modelling
Physical simulation
Seawater
Shallow water
Sluice gates
Surficial geology
Three dimensional models
Two dimensional analysis
Two dimensional models
Water analysis
Water exchange
Water levels
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Summary:Coastal lagoon hydrodynamics are strongly influenced by sea water exchange, especially when the connection between the lagoon and the sea is artificially regulated. These situations increase the complexity of the hydrodynamic regime, requiring the use of numerical models to understand their behaviour. Traditionally, one-dimensional models have been used, although in recent years, the development of two-dimensional shallow water models and advanced numerical techniques have increased notably. However, most of the existing bi-dimensional models consider the connection to the sea as a boundary condition, and they do not take into consideration the sea-lagoon exchange. In this paper, a fully two-dimensional hydrodynamic model of a heavily regulated coastal lagoon, which includes the artificial connection with the sea, is presented. The model allows the characterization of water level variation in the lagoon, taking into account the combined effect of different forcings. This model consists of two hydrodynamic modules: a long wave module (two-dimensional depth-averaged) which includes the analysis of a system of sluice gates, and a wind module (quasi three-dimensional). The model was successfully calibrated and validated with real data, showing its ability to accurately describe the hydraulic dynamics of regulated coastal lagoons.
ISSN:1464-7141
1465-1734
DOI:10.2166/hydro.2014.071