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TUFLOW Hydraulic Modelling Software

website·Indexed 33 days ago

https://docs.tuflow.com/classic-hpc/manual/2025.1

Documentation for TUFLOW hydraulic modelling software, including the FV manual and a comprehensive message reference for troubleshooting particle tracking, sediment transport, and water quality modules.

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What's inside TUFLOW

  1. Overview of WQ Module Simulation Architecture

    The WQ Module uses a four-tiered hierarchical architecture designed to allow users to rapidly initiate water quality simulations using library defaults, while providing the ability to customize specific components for more complex environmental modeling.

  2. Overview of TUFLOW FV (Flexible Mesh Solver)

    TUFLOW FV is a 2D and 3D capable flexible mesh solver using a 1st or 2nd order spatial finite volume solver. It supports triangular and quadrilateral cells.

    • Specialization: Coastal, estuarine, wetland, and lake hydrodynamic studies.
    • Environmental Processes: Used for rivers requiring sediment transport, water quality, Advection Dispersion (AD), and Particle Tracking (PT) assessments.
    • Integration: Can be linked to TUFLOW HPC via the TUFLOW CATCH Module.

  3. Overview of TUFLOW FV WQ Module usability features

    The WQ Module includes several design features to streamline water quality simulations:

    • Simulation Units: Users can choose between the mg/L (and μg/L for phytoplankton) system or the mmol/m³ system for initial conditions, boundary conditions, and computed variable parameters.
    • Library Defaults: A pre-populated library of default settings for all computed variable parameters is provided, allowing users to start simulations quickly and override specific values as needed.
    • Command Syntax: Uses the standard TUFLOW Command == Argument(s) format.
    • Log File Feedback: All simulation configuration details and warnings (such as parameters falling outside typical ranges) are reported in the log file.
    • Concentration Limits: Users can optionally specify minimum and maximum concentration limits for computed variables. If these limits are exceeded, the module resets the concentration and logs the event.
    • Descriptive Output: Output variables (e.g., WQ_DISS_OXYGEN_MGL) and diagnostic variables (e.g., WQ_DIAG_O2_ATMOS_EXCHANGE_MG_M2_D) include descriptive names and units.
    [Oxygen Benthic] == 4.0, 1.07

  4. Overview of TUFLOW Utilities

    TUFLOW Utilities are a collection of tools used to convert input data for TUFLOW models or to process and manipulate raw 2D result files from model simulations. These utilities are available as DOS executables, Excel macros, Python scripts, and GIS plugins (QGIS, ArcGIS, and MapInfo). Notably, TUFLOW Utilities do not require a TUFLOW license to use.

  5. Overview of Water Quality Boundary Condition Model Implementations

    TUFLOW FV provides several boundary model implementations for water quality simulations. These models define how concentrations or fluxes are handled at the boundaries of the simulation domain:

  6. Overview of TUFLOW CATCH Demonstration Model

    TUFLOW CATCH provides a demonstration model and simulation suite that serves as a template for constructing new simulations. These simulations encompass all supported TUFLOW CATCH configurations and can be run without a license for TUFLOW CATCH, TUFLOW HPC, or TUFLOW FV. The model is based on a New Zealand catchment (~55km²) and a receiving waterway (hypothetical lake, ~1km²), simulated for a one-week period from 01/01/2021 to 07/01/2021.

  7. Overview of the WQ Module Demonstration Model

    The WQ Module includes a demonstration model used to generate data for explaining module processes. This model is designed as a simplified, single-cell environment to isolate water quality variables. Its default specifications include:

    • Duration: 1 week (168 hours) with hourly output.
    • Geometry: A single 2D flat-bottomed cell (1m x 1m) with a depth of 0.5m.
    • Boundary Conditions: No flow boundaries (no inflows/outflows). Meteorological boundaries are applied hourly, with 24-row records repeated daily. Wind is disabled by default; air temperature, radiation, and humidity are typically constant or varied based on specific simulation needs.
    • Parameters: Includes salinity, temperature (with heat calculations), sediment, and various water quality computed variables. Initial conditions and parameterization are varied depending on the specific simulation goal.

  8. Overview of TUFLOW FV 2D HD Output Types

    TUFLOW FV supports several output implementations for 2D HD simulations to enable result review and visualization. These include:

    • Mesh: Full model cell output (map or sheet output).
    • Point: Cell output at discrete point locations.
    • Polyline: Flow integrated across discrete polylines (nodestrings).
    • Structure: Flow through hydraulic structures.
    • Mass Balance: Calculated model mass conservation outputs.
    • Mass: Total model volume output (subset of mass balance).
    • Transport File: NetCDF files containing depth and velocity fields for use as transport boundary conditions in advection dispersion simulations.
    • Restart File: Binary files saving hydrodynamic variables for use as initial conditions in subsequent simulations.

  9. Overview of the TUFLOW Advection Dispersion (AD) Module

    The TUFLOW AD Module is an add-on extension of the TUFLOW hydrodynamic engines used to simulate the advection, dispersion, and fate of water quality constituents. It supports both dissolved and particulate constituents, such as salinity, sediment, and catchment inflow pollutant concentrations.

    Key technical capabilities include:

    • Integration with depth and velocity fields computed by TUFLOW Classic or HPC solvers.
    • Simulation of both longitudinal dispersion and transverse turbulent diffusion.
    • Support for up to twenty individual constituents.
    • Application in coastal waters, estuaries, rivers, floodplains, and urban areas.
    • Support for transport through 1D elements linked by SX connections in linked 1D-2D domains (Note: transport through 1D elements linked by HX connections is NOT supported).

  10. Overview of TUFLOW 2D Solvers: Classic vs HPC

    TUFLOW provides two primary 2D fixed-grid solvers for simulating urban drainage, catchment runoff, and flooding:

    • TUFLOW Classic: A 2D ADI (Alternating Direction Implicit) 2nd order spatial finite difference CPU solver. It is the default solver for legacy reasons but is generally slower than HPC.
    • TUFLOW HPC (Heavily Parallelised Compute): A 2D explicit finite volume solver (2nd order spatial, 4th order temporal). It supports both CPU and GPU hardware acceleration. GPU acceleration can result in simulations running up to 100 times faster than TUFLOW Classic. It is preferred for its speed, unconditional stability, zero mass error, and high accuracy.

  11. Overview of 3D Hydrodynamic (3D HD) simulation class

    The 3D Hydrodynamic (3D HD) simulation class is an extension of the 2D hydrodynamic simulation class. It is used for hydrodynamic applications that do not require salinity, temperature, or density effects. Common use cases include hydraulic structure design and rudimentary scour assessment using bed shear stress outputs (excluding sediment transport). The 3D HD simulation class serves as the foundation for more advanced simulations, including 3D advection dispersion, 3D sediment transport, 3D water quality, and 3D particle tracking.

  12. Overview of TUFLOW 1D and 2D Domain Linking

    TUFLOW allows the dynamic linking of 1D and 2D domains to combine the efficiency of 1D schemes (best for culverts, pipe networks, and one-directional river flow) with the flexibility of 2D schemes (best for floodplains and coastal waters).

    Supported 1D solvers include:

    • TUFLOW 1D (ESTRY): Integrated within the TUFLOW executable.
    • EPA SWMM: Integrated within the TUFLOW executable.
    • 12D Dynamic Drainage (DDA): Linked via the 12D GUI.
    • Flood Modeller (formerly ISIS): Linked via the Flood Modeller TUFLOW Link and TUFLOW_LINK.dll.
    • XPSWMM: TUFLOW is embedded and operated internally by XPSWMM.