Development and verification of a new simulation tool for water quality prediction in the Ebro River

摘要

The implementation of the new EU Water Framework Directive (EU-WFD) is demanding the stakeholders to develop appropriate modelling tools to improve water quality and to optimise ecological resources. Based on these key points and on its experience in mathematical modelling, the research Centre CEIT and EPTISA, in collaboration with the Confederacion Hidrografica del Ebro (CHE), has developed a new water quality simulator as a first step towards the modelling of Integrated River basin Water Quality Management. Some of the main features of the developed simulator are presented in the paper. The hydraulic model is based on the resolution of the complete Saint Venant's equations. The four-point implicit finite difference algorithm solves these well-known equations numerically. The water quality model is based on the latest IWA River Water Quality Model Number 1 and presents some clear differences with respect to other existing models such as consistency, closed mass balances and easy integration with the Waste Water Treatment Plant models. The experimental validation that includes the calibration in winter time of the main model coefficients from both the hydraulic and the water quality models has been assessed on the basis of the experimental campaign carried out in a 75 Km branch of the Ebro River in Zaragoza (Spain). Some results of this experimental campaign are also presented.