Numerical Hydrodynamic Modelling

As estuaries are three dimensional and time dependent, numerical models have been developed to overcome the simplifications inherent to the already studied analytical models (simple geometry, steady-state) and calculate estuarine circulation and salinity distributions. These models can be numerically integrated at selected grid points spatially distributed in the system domain; the governing partial differential equations use methods of finite-difference or finite-elements in curvilinear horizontal coordinates or sigma vertical coordinates, respectively.