Numerical Modeling Of The Free Surface Flow Near The Mouth Of The Balsas River And Comparison With A Physical Model

Since 1978, several works of channeling and protection have been proposed and built along the final reach of the Balsas River, especially near its mouth, on the Pacific Ocean. These works have produced important morphological changes near the outlet, where an island has increased its size and the sand bar is constantly moving. In order to evaluate the behavior of the river and to provide the basis to propose protection works and defense provisions, a numerical model for the simulation of the flow in the final reach of the river was developed. The flow was considered as bidimensional and modeled over a curvilinear grid. The continuity and momentum equations were discretized by finite differences and an alternating directions scheme was applied. The presence of the island near the mouth was also considered within boundary conditions. The numerical model yields to the velocity field and the free surface level, with which the actual shear stresses can be estimated and zones susceptible to erosion detected. The results are compared to those obtained by a physical lab model.