Flood simulation using an open source quadtree grid shallow water flow solver

We carry out performance testing of Gerris for flood simulation. Gerris Flow Solver is open source software and has the capability of adaptive quadtree grid generation. In particular, the shallow water flow solver within Gerris Flow Solver implements second-order accurate Gudunov type numerical schemes, with preserving the balance of source and flux terms on quadtree cut cell grids. The combination of quadtree grids with the cut cell method improves the flexibility of quadtree grids for grid generation. In addition, the model has the capacity of adaptive meshing in an easy and effective way, which can improve computational efficiency in 2D modeling. Pre- and post-processors are already well equipped for users. Finally, an extension such as bed erosion or sediment transport can be added if needed. Two flood events, Malpasset dam break in France and Baeksan levee failure in Korea, are simulated using Gerris, with adaptively refining meshes near water fronts and the river boundary. Simulation results are compared with survey data, experimental data as well as simulation results by other researchers. The simulation results demonstrate that the adaptive quadtree model can save approximately 95% of the computational cost while preserving the accuracy. Gerris is a very attractive alternative for flood managers given the favorable features demonstrated in this paper.