Finite Volume Method for Coupled Hydrodynamic Sediment Transport Model with Adaptive Mesh Refinement

International Journal of Mechanical Engineering

© 2026 by SSRG - IJME Journal

Volume 13 Issue 3

Year of Publication : 2026

Authors : Mohammed Frihessane, Ouafae Boulerhcha, Salah Daoudi

10.14445/23488360/IJME-V13I3P104

How to Cite?

Mohammed Frihessane, Ouafae Boulerhcha, Salah Daoudi, "Finite Volume Method for Coupled Hydrodynamic Sediment Transport Model with Adaptive Mesh Refinement," SSRG International Journal of Mechanical Engineering, vol. 13,  no. 3, pp. 44-53, 2026. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.14445/23488360/IJME-V13I3P104

Abstract:

A river flow with sediments of different sizes shows two modes of transport. Fine particles move in suspension, while coarse grains are transported as bedload. The process is governed by the Saint Venant equations for water flow, the advection-diffusion equation for suspended sediments, and the Exner equation for bedload. In our model, erosion and deposition are handled separately. The net sediment flux is found from the difference between the eroded and deposited masses. The full system is a set of nonlinear partial differential equations. It is solved with the finite volume method on unstructured meshes, using a second-order SRNH scheme in time and space. To make the computation more efficient, we use adaptive mesh refinement to add resolution where sediment concentration changes fast. The method is tested on several cases that combine flow and sediment transport, such as dam-break problems.

Keywords:

Sediment transport, Coupled model, Shallow water.

References:

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