A Numerical Model for the Entire River Ice Breakup and Jamming Process and Field Data Needs for its Verification
Qizhong Guo and Charles C. S. Song
Proceedings of the River Ice Seminar, National Weather Service, Minneapolis, Minnesota, November 1994
Abstract
A numerical model (RIBJAM) has been developed to simulate the ice jamming
process during the breakup season. In this model, the breakup process and the
jamming process are treated as a single ice breakup and jamming process, and
they are simulated simultaneously. Sub-process which are considered in the
modeling include unsteady water flow; breakup of ice covers; buckling of
broken ice covers; surface transport; submergence, sliding, rotating, and
shoveling of broken ice blocks; and breakup of ice cover at the toe of ice
jam, which leads to the release. The model treats water as a continuous
medium, but ice as discrete elements. An ice breakup and jamming process on
the Mississippi River at the city of Anoka, Minnesota, was used to calibrate
the model. With adjustment to only two parameters, the model results match well
with those measured in the field. However, it would be ideal to use at least
one independent field process to verify the model, which is lacking at this
time. Some guidance for the future field data collection is provided to
conclude the paper.
