A numerical research with different turbulence models for shallow water equations was carried out. This was done in order to investigate which model has the ability to reproduce more accurately the wakes produced by the shock of the water hitting a submerged island inside a canal. The study of this phenomenon is important for the numerical methods application advancement in the simulation of free surface flows since these models involve a number of simplifications and assumptions that can have a significant impact on the numerical solutions quality and thus can not reproduce correctly the physical phenomenon. The numerical experiments were carried out on an experimental case under controlled conditions, consisting of a channel with a submerged conical island. The numerical scheme is based on the Eulerian-Lagrangian finite volume method with four turbulence models, three mixing lengths (ml), and one joining -on the horizontal axis with a mixing-length model (ml) on the vertical axis. The experimental results show that a -with ml turbulence model makes it possible to approach the experimental results in a more qualitative manner. We found that when using only a -model in the vertical and horizontal direction, the numerical results overestimate the experimental data. Additionally the computing time is reduced by simplifying the turbulence model.

This work focuses on the effects of vegetation on a fluid flow pattern. In this numerical research, we verify the applicability of a simpler turbulence model than the commonly used k-ε model to predict the mean flow through vegetation. The novel characteristic of this turbulence model is that the horizontal mixing-length is explicitly calculated and coupled with a multi-layer approach for the vertical mixing-length, within a general three-dimensional eddy-viscosity formulation. This mixing-length turbulence model has been validated in previous works for different kinds of non-vegetated flows. The hydrodynamic numerical model used for simulations is based on the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations for shallow water flows, where a vegetation shear stress term is considered to reproduce the effects of drag forces on flow. A second-order approximation is used for spatial discretization and a semi-implicit Lagrangian-Eulerian scheme is used for time discretization. In order to validate the numerical results, we compare them against experimental data reported in the literature. The comparisons are carried out for two cases of study: submerged vegetation and submerged and emergent vegetation, both within an open channel flow.

In this study, empirical models were generated to estimate water quality parameters, with the objective of showing the benefits of the satellite remote sensing application in the characterization of coastal waters. The study area was Playa Colorada Bay, located in the northwest of Mexico, in the eastern part of the Gulf of California. In two seasons of the year, on-site and laboratory characterizations were carried out to determine the spatial and temporal variation of phosphates (PO4), electrical conductivity (EC), total suspended solids (TSS), turbidity, and pH of water. Samplings were selected to match Landsat 8 satellite overpass in the study area. Radiometric and atmospheric corrections were applied to the images, prior to the generation of the models. The models were generated using the linear regression technique of successive steps; water quality parameters and their logarithms were used as dependent variables, and as independent variables were used corrected reflectance values of Landsat images. The results showed that the concentration of PO4 in the analyzed water samples were higher than those recommended in the Mexican ecological criteria of water quality, to protect the aquatic life of marine water in coastal areas. In autumn, PO4 was correlated with turbidity, T, pH, and TSS. The highest correlation coefficients were presented by TSS with PO4 (r = − 0.979) and pH (r = 0.958). The water quality models that were generated had coefficients of determination (R 2) in the range of 0.637 to 0.955 and show the viability of the application of Landsat 8 images in the characterization of water quality parameters in Playa Colorada Bay. Models allowed the estimation of the distribution of water quality parameters over the whole bay instead of only at the sampling stations, favoring a better understanding of their spatial distribution.

This paper describes the development of a two-dimensional water quality model that solves hydrodynamic equations tied to transport equations with reactions mechanisms inherent in the processes. This enables us to perform an accurate assessment of the pollution in a coastal ecosystem. The model was developed with data drawn from the ecosystem found in Mexico’s southeast state of Tabasco. The coastal ecosystem consists of the interaction of El Yucateco lagoon with Chicozapote and Tonalá rivers that connect the lagoon with the Gulf of Mexico. The results of pollutants transport simulation in the coastal ecosystem are presented, focusing on toxic parameters for two hydrodynamic scenarios: wet and dry seasons. As it is of interest in the zone, the transport of four metals is studied: Cadmium, Chromium, Nickel, and Lead. In order to address these objectives, a self-posed mathematical problem is solved numerically, which is based on the measured data. The performed simulations show how to characterise metals transport with an acceptable accuracy, agreeing well with measured data in total concentrations in four control points along the water body. Although for the accurate implementation of the hydrodynamic-based water quality model herein presented boundary (geometry, tides, wind, etc.) and initial (concentrations measurements) conditions are required, it poses an excellent option when the distribution of solutes with high accuracy is required, easing environmental, economic, and social management of coastal ecosystems. It ought to be remarked that this constitutes a robust differential equation-based water quality model for the transport of heavy metals. Models with these characteristics are not common to be found elsewhere.

Climate change has unchained several natural extreme phenomena, including a major frequency and intensity of flooding episodes. From these, the ones of greatest importance are those which endanger human settlements as well as socioeconomic activities. This is the case of Tamuín city, settled in the shore of Tampaón River, in Mexico. In this work, we performed a detailed numerical modelling of the hydrodynamics of the zone, considering in situ topographic and bathymetric data as well as hydrodynamic parameters. Severe rainfall scenarios were simulated in order to determine the zones which are prone to flooding, as well as the potential periods of time between the beginning of the rainfall up to the flooding, considering the potential effects of climate change in the precipitation rate. The outcome of this research will help local governments undertake preventive actions to reinforce the identified risky zones, thus providing an adequate protection of rural and urban zones, as well as their inhabitants and their economical activities from current and future floods, considering potential climate change effects.