Curve‐Number/Green–Ampt mixed procedure for streamflow predictions in ungauged basins: Parameter sensitivity analysis

A procedure combining the Soil Conservation Service-Curve Number (SCS-CN) method and the Green–Ampt (GA) infiltration equation was recently developed to overcome some of the drawbacks of the classic SCS-CN approach when estimating the volume of surface runoff at a sub-daily time resolution. The rationale of this mixed procedure, named Curve Number for Green–Ampt (CN4GA), is to use the GA infiltration model to distribute the total volume of the net hyetograph (rainfall excess) provided by the SCS-CN method over time. The initial abstraction and the total volume of rainfall given by the SCS-CN method are used to identify the ponding time and to quantify the hydraulic conductivity parameter of the GA equation. In this paper, a sensitivity analysis of the mixed CN4GA parameters is presented with the aim to identify conditions where the mixed procedure can be effectively used within the Prediction in Ungauged Basin perspective. The effects exerted by changes in selected input parameters on the outputs are evaluated using rectangular and triangular synthetic hyetographs as well as 100 maximum annual storms selected from synthetic rainfall time series. When applied to extreme precipitation events, which are characterized by predominant peaks of rainfall, the CN4GA appears to be rather insensitive to the input hydraulic parameters of the soil, which is an interesting feature of the CN4GA approach and makes it an ideal candidate for the rainfall excess estimation at sub-daily temporal resolution at ungauged sites. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

[1]  E. C. Childs,et al.  The vertical movement water in stratified porous material: 1. Infiltration , 1969 .

[2]  W. Green,et al.  Studies on Soil Phyics. , 1911, The Journal of Agricultural Science.

[3]  Andrea Petroselli,et al.  Green‐Ampt Curve‐Number mixed procedure as an empirical tool for rainfall–runoff modelling in small and ungauged basins , 2013 .

[4]  D. L. Brakensiek,et al.  Estimating the effective capillary pressure in the Green and Ampt Infiltration Equation , 1977 .

[5]  F. De Paola,et al.  ANALYSIS OF SPATIAL VARIABILITY FOR STORMWATER CAPTURE TANK ASSESSMENT , 2012 .

[6]  C. A. Onstad,et al.  Parameter estimation of the Green and Ampt Infiltration Equation , 1977 .

[7]  Andrea Petroselli,et al.  Design hydrograph estimation in small and ungauged watersheds: continuous simulation method versus event-based approach , 2012 .

[8]  L. Ahuja,et al.  Effective Soil Properties of Heterogeneous Areas For Modeling Infiltration and Redistribution , 2010 .

[9]  Nunzio Romano,et al.  Parameterization of a bucket model for soil-vegetation-atmosphere modeling under seasonal climatic regimes , 2011 .

[10]  Walter J. Rawls,et al.  Green‐ampt Infiltration Parameters from Soils Data , 1983 .

[11]  K. Beven.  Infiltration into a class of vertically non-uniform soils , 1984 .

[12]  D. Hamby.  A review of techniques for parameter sensitivity analysis of environmental models , 1994, Environmental monitoring and assessment.

[13]  Andrea Petroselli,et al.  A continuous simulation model for design-hydrograph estimation in small and ungauged watersheds , 2012 .

[14]  D. L. Brakensiek,et al.  Agricultural Management Effects on Soil Water Processes Part II: Green and Ampt Parameters for Crusting Soils , 1983 .

[15]  Curtis L. Larson,et al.  Modeling infiltration during a steady rain , 1973 .

[16]  Andrea Petroselli,et al.  Flow time estimation with spatially variable hillslope velocity in ungauged basins , 2010 .

[17]  Miguel A. Mariño,et al.  Determination of ponding condition and infiltration into layered soils under unsteady rainfall , 2005 .

[18]  D. A. Barry,et al.  Green–Ampt approximations , 2005 .

[19]  J. Parlange,et al.  Calculating parameters for infiltration equations from soil hydraulic functions , 1996 .

[20]  L. Ahuja.  APPLICABILITY OF THE GREEN‐AMPT APPROACH TO WATER INFILTRATION THROUGH SURFACE CRUST , 1974 .

[21]  David C. Garen,et al.  CURVE NUMBER HYDROLOGY IN WATER QUALITY MODELING: USES, ABUSES, AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS 1 , 2005 .

[22]  P. E. O'connell,et al.  IAHS Decade on Predictions in Ungauged Basins (PUB), 2003–2012: Shaping an exciting future for the hydrological sciences , 2003 .

[23]  Daniel Hillel,et al.  TRANSIENT INFILTRATION INTO CRUST‐TOPPED PROFILES , 1970 .

[24]  Richard H. Hawkins,et al.  Discussion of "Modifications to SCS-CN Method for Long-Term Hydrologic Simulation" , 2010 .

[25]  S. Grimaldi,et al.  A parsimonious geomorphological unit hydrograph for rainfall–runoff modelling in small ungauged basins , 2012 .

[26]  R. Eli,et al.  Curve Numbers and Urban Runoff Modeling—Application Limitations , 2010 .

[27]  H. Bouwer.  Infiltration of Water into Nonuniform Soil , 1969 .

[28]  Giuseppe De Martino,et al.  Pollution Reduction in Receivers: Storm-Water Tanks , 2011 .

[29]  J. Philip,et al.  AN INFILTRATION EQUATION WITH PHYSICAL SIGNIFICANCE , 1954 .

[30]  J. Verdin,et al.  EXTENSION OF THE SOIL CONSERVATION SERVICE RAINFALL-RUNOFF METHODOLOGY FOR UNGAGED WATERSHEDS , 1981 .

[31]  R. H. Brooks,et al.  Hydraulic properties of porous media , 1963 .

[32]  V. Ponce,et al.  Runoff Curve Number: Has It Reached Maturity? , 1996 .