An extension of the authors' previous methods is presented for the optimal control of flood propagation via a dam gate, based on a combination of the finite element and gradient methods. It is assumed in previous papers that the control duration is the same as the duration of the flood. However, the duration of the control does not necessarily coincide with that of the flood flow. To overcome this difficulty, the gradient method is applied to solve the free terminal time-fixed terminal condition problem. It is shown that the water elevation can be controlled exactly the same as with the previously presented method. It is also shown that the computation can be terminated at a far shorter time than the terminal time of the flood.
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