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HYDRODYNAMIC MODELLING IN LARGE RESERVOIRS FOR WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

Author(s): Alfredo Ribeiro Neto, Carlos Eduardo de Oliveira Dantas, José Almir Cirilo

Keyword(s): Hydrodynamic model, large reservoirs, mutiple use reservoirs

Article:

Poster:

Session: OS4i Water and energy

AbstractINTRODUCTION

In large reservoirs, one of the most important variables of the water balance is the volume

of water stored. In many situations, the volume of water in the reservoir is obtained by means of the elevation-area-

volume curve and it is used the elevation of a single point (generally, close to the dam). In this situation, when

reservoir presents a steep water surface slope, the volume estimation can present error, which causes damage for

reservoir operation and water resources management.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this work is to

evaluate the potential of the hydrodynamic modeling to supply information related to storage volume and to

determine the time variation of the flooded area in large reservoirs. In addition, the results obtained can help to

improve the understanding of the influence of the water surface slope in the estimation of the water balance in large

reservoirs.

METHODS

The study was accomplished at Sobradinho reservoir located at São Francisco

River in Northeast of Brazil. The reservoir has an area of 4,214 km2 and 350 km long. Sobradinho is the major

reservoir of the hydroelectric power plants system located at São Francisco River and it is responsible for generating

energy and regularizing the discharge. The drainage area at the Sobradinho dam is 498,425 km2.

We have

applied the hydrodynamic model Mike 11 HD developed by Danish Hydraulic Institute (DHI). This model uses

Saint Venant equations to predict the space and time variation of stage and discharge in rivers and reservoirs. For

geometric definition of the reservoir, it was used aerophotogrammetric and bathymetric survey and also data

obtained from Digital Elevation Model SRTM-90 (Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission). The floodplain was defined

by means of Landsat images.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION

The results showed that the volume

calculated with the hydrodynamic model is quite higher than to the volume estimated by the elevation-volume curve.

On the other hand, the model results are similar to the values obtained with water balance. The deviation of the

values estimated with the elevation-volume curve occurs because the water surface in reservoir is not horizontal. In

such kind of reservoir, the hydrodynamic model is able to represent this characteristic of the flow.

The dynamic

of the flooded area was also simulated by the model. This information can be used, for instance, for the definition of

the reservoir operation impact over the users located around it.

A Decision Support System (DSS) will be

soon built with the tools presented in this work, helping the decisions about the multiple water uses in Sobradinho

reservoir. The DSS will reduce the forecast errors, which are usual in operation of complex systems as

Sobradinho.

Events

The congress

Programme

Practical Infos

HYDRODYNAMIC MODELLING IN LARGE RESERVOIRS FOR WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT