Two-dimensional flow modelling for river bar analysis

We are working with Richard Williams from Aberystwyth University to apply rapid two-dimensional hydrodynamic modelling to analyse river bar reworking.

Bars are key morphological units within river systems, fashioning the sediment regime and bedload transport processes within a reach. Reworking of these features underpins channel adjustment at larger scales, thereby acting as a key determinant of channel stability.

Dr Williams has secured funding from the Strategic Insight Programme to work with us using data collected from the Tongariro River in New Zealand. The Tongariro River dataset was acquired as part of Dr Helen Reid’s doctoral thesis (Auckland University). The dataset fuses together high-resolution topographic information from ground-based terrestrial laser scanning, airborne LiDAR and bathymetric mapping. The dataset also includes observations of depth and velocity, from acoustic Doppler current profiler surveys, which will be used to evaluate bed shear stress predictions.

We are grateful to JBA Consulting for hosting the project and providing access to the JFlow hydrodynamic modelling software and computing resources.