Optimal Cross-Sectional Spacing in Preissmann Scheme 1D Hydrodynamic Models

Choosing a suitable set of cross sections for the representation of the natural geometry of a river is important for the efficiency of one-dimensional (1D) hydraulic models, but only few guidelines are available for the selection of the most suitable distance between cross sections, depending on the hydraulic problem at hand. This issue is investigated by examining models of a ∼55 km reach of the River Po, Italy, and a ∼16 km reach of the River Severn, United Kingdom, for both of which high quality laser scanning altimetry are available. The high-resolution digital terrain models of the two river reaches enabled the construction of a series of hypothetical topographical ground surveys with different spacing between cross sections, which could be used as input to a standard 1D model (UNET). Both historical and synthetic flood events for the two river reaches were simulated, and the results were then analyzed to quantify the accuracy associated with each resolution and to assess how survey resolution impacts the performance of standard 1D models. The study results agree with the available suggestions in the literature and provide useful guidelines for 1D hydrodynamic modeling.