Why use a hydrograph for debris flow modelling?Answer: There a several good reasons. Firstly, hazard mitigation experts are often interested in the flow behaviour only near the fan. Calculating the movement of the debris flow in the torrent is a time consuming and often useless task. Therefore using a hydrograph can often cut calculation times dramatically. Another reason is that it is impossible to describe the initial conditions of debris flows as a "block release". There are cases where block release is a good approximation of reality (e.g. dam breaks), but, in general, it does not accurately reflect the starting conditions of flows from intense precipitation. Read this publication for more information on this issue: |