Preview of the new Finite-Volume Approach for 1D Reaches

One of the most anticipated new features soon to come in the next major version of HEC-RAS (Version 5.1) is the option of running unsteady 1D reaches with a finite volume solution scheme.  This will be a fantastic addition to HEC-RAS.  Gary Brunner recently gave me a brief overview of the new finite volume feature […]

Read More

Combining Two Reaches or Splitting One

Suppose you have two separate HEC-RAS rivers and wish to combine them.  There is no “combine two rivers” option in HEC-RAS, but it can be done using the Move Points/Objects option.  Take the very simple reach presented below: I wish to combine the Upper Tualatin with the Clackamas reach of the Willamette River.  In the […]

Read More

Modeling Junctions for Unsteady Flow Analysis

In the current version of HEC-RAS (v 4.1.0) there are two methods of modeling the hydraulics at a junction for unsteady flow. By default RAS selects the Force Equal WS Elevations (Forced) method, which forces the upstream bounding cross-sections’ water surface equal to the downstream water surface. This method may be adequate for some situations […]

Read More