Technical Papers
Nov 9, 2021

Variations in Building-Resolving Simulations of Tsunami Inundation in a Coastal Urban Area

Publication: Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal, and Ocean Engineering
Volume 148, Issue 1

Abstract

The direct simulation of inundation in developed urban areas presents a much greater challenge than the more common bare earth simulations that use roughness, which are used in many tsunami studies. This study intercompares the performance of four longwave models for tsunami inundation on a detailed topographical model of Kainan, Wakayama, Japan, with laboratory results. All simulations include buildings, which have a large impact on overland flood propagation. Inter-model comparisons yield several apparent characteristics: (1) variations between models were small in areas that are always wet; (2) wetting, drying, and overland propagation increased inter-model variation in the inundation front arrival time, maximum water surface elevation, and overland flow velocities; (3) inundated areas and maximum water surface elevations show lower inter-model variation (V) than inundation front velocity and maximum current velocities. Sources for V appeared to occur from differences in wetting, drying, and detailed code implementation rather than major differences in model physics. Using published tsunami fragility models, V led to significant differences in the predicted damage. Differences were largest for fragilities that used velocity and lower for fragilities that only used maximum inundation depths. Based on these results, inundated areas and water levels from building-resolving simulations might be assigned relatively higher confidence, and all the predicted velocities should be considered to have a greater error and potentially should be considered only when using ensembles.

Get full access to this article

View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by MEXT/JSPS KAKENHI, by JSPS Research Fellow Grant (Fukui, 19J22429), by the Collaborative Research with DPRI, Kyoto University (Yasuda, 2019G-01), the Collaborative Research with DPRI-ERI (Satake, 2019-K-01 and Miyashita, 2021-K-01), JICA/JST SATREPS Mexico Project (Mori), the National Science Foundation under grant 166105 (Kennedy), and by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (Kennedy). The authors are also grateful to Professor T. Hiraishi, Dr. Che-Wei Chang, Mr. M. Kamo (DPRI, Kyoto University), Mr. A. Copp (past undergraduate student at the University of Notre Dame), and Mr. T. Yamamoto (past graduate student in Kansai University) for preparation and conducting of the physical experiment. The authors also acknowledge that anonymous reviewers gave many precious and important comments and suggestions.

Notation

The following symbols are used in this paper:
Bo
Bond number;
Fr
Froude number;
CD
drag coefficient;
g
gravitational acceleration (m/s2);
h
water depth of the flume (m);
i
building number;
j
SWE model number;
L
characteristic length (m);
Nb
total number of buildings;
Nmodel
total number of SWE models;
PD(x)
probability of the destruction;
PD,i,j
PD(x) for the ith building estimated by the jth SWE model;
PD,i,mean
arithmetic average of the probability for all SWE models and the ith building;
PD,all-mean
arithmetic average of the probability for all SWE models and buildings;
Re
Reynolds number;
T
appearance time of maximum surface elevation time (peak time) (s);
T¯
peak time normalized by the incident wave (s);
T0
h/g
U
characteristic velocity (m/s);
V
SWE model dimensionless variation in computed values, such as inundation depth or wave front velocity;
Vb
SWE model dimensionless variation in probability of destruction;
We
Weber number;
x
Tsunami intensity measure (e.g., maximum inundation depth or fluid velocity);
X
horizontal coordinate (m);
Y
vertical coordinate (m);
γ
surface tension (N/m);
η
surface elevation (m);
η¯
normalized surface elevation (m);
η0
surface elevation at the wave generator (WG1) (m);
λ
calibrated coefficients (one for each intensity measure x);
μ
SWE model mean of computed values;
ν
kinematic viscosity (m2/s);
ρ
water density (kg/m3);
ρa
air density (kg/m3);
Δρ = ρρa
difference in air and water density (kg/m3);
ξ
calibrated coefficients (two for each intensity measure x);
σ
SWE model standard deviation of computed values; and
Φ
standardized normal distribution function.

References

ASCE. 2016. Minimum design loads and associated criteria for buildings and other structures. ASCE/SEI 7-16. Reston, VA: ASCE.
Baba, T., N. Takahashi, Y. Kaneda, K. Ando, D. Matsuoka, and T. Kato. 2015. “Parallel implementation of dispersive tsunami wave modeling with a nesting algorithm for the 2011 Tohoku tsunami.” Pure Appl. Geophys. 172 (12): 3455–3472. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00024-015-1049-2.
Bagherizadeh, E., Z. X. Zhang, A. Farhadzadeh, D. Angelidis, M. G. Arabi, S. Moghimi, and A. Khosronejad. 2021. “Numerical modelling of solitary wave and structure interactions using level-set and immersed boundary methods by adopting adequate inlet boundary conditions.” J. Hydraul. Res. 59 (4): 559–585. https://doi.org/10.1080/00221686.2020.1818303.
Casulli, V. 2009. “A high-resolution wetting and drying algorithm for free-surface hydrodynamics.” Int. J. Numer. Methods Fluids 60 (4): 391–408. https://doi.org/10.1002/fld.1896.
Charvet, I., A. Suppasri, H. Kimura, D. Sugawara, and F. Imamura. 2015. “Fragility estimations for Kesennuma City following the 2011 Great East Japan Tsunami based on maximum flow depths, velocities and debris impact, with evaluation of the ordinal model’s predictive accuracy.” Nat. Hazard. 79 (3): 2073–2099. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-015-1947-8.
Chow, V. T. 1959. Open-channel hydraulics. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Cox, D. T., T. Tomita, P. Lynett, and R. Holman. 2008. “Tsunami inundation with macro-roughness in the constructed environment.” In Proc., 31st Int. Conf. on Coastal Eng., 1421–1432. Reston, VA: ASCE.
Goto, C., Y. Ogawa, N. Shuto, and F. Imamura. 1997. Numerical method of tsunami simulation 644 with the leap-frog scheme (IUGG/IOC time project). IOC Manual, Rep. No. 35. London: UNESCO.
Hayashi, S., Y. Narita, and S. Koshimura. 2013. “Developing tsunami fragility curves from the surveyed data and numerical modeling of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake tsunami.” [In Japanese.] J. Jpn. Soc. Civ. Eng. Coast. Eng. 69 (2): I_386–I_390. https://doi.org/10.2208/kaigan.69.I_386.
Hiraishi, T., T. Yasuda, N. Mori, R. Azuma, H. Mase, A. Prasetyo, and S. Okura. 2015. “Characteristics of tsunami generator newly implemented with three generation modes.” [In Japanese.] J. Jpn. Soc. Civ. Eng. Coast. Eng. 71 (2): I_349–I_354. https://doi.org/10.2208/kaigan.71.I_349.
Kennedy, A. B., D. Wirasaet, A. Begmohammadi, T. Sherman, D. Bolster, and J. C. Dietrich. 2019. “Subgrid theory for storm surge modeling.” Ocean Model. 144: 101491. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocemod.2019.101491.
Kotani, M., F. Imamura, and N. Shuto. 1998. “Tsunami run-up simulation and damage estimation by using GIS.” [In Japanese.] Proc. Coast. Eng., JSCE 45: 356–360. https://doi.org/10.2208/proce1989.45.356.
Le, T. A., H. Takagi, M. Heidarzadeh, Y. Takata, and A. Takahashi. 2019. “Field surveys and numerical simulation of the 2018 Typhoon Jebi: Impact of high waves and storm surge in semi-enclosed Osaka Bay, Japan.” Pure Appl. Geophys. 176 (10): 4139–4160. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00024-019-02295-0.
Lynett, P. 2016. “Precise prediction of coastal and overland flow dynamics: A grand challenge or a fool’s errand.” J. Disaster Res. 11 (4): 615–623. https://doi.org/10.20965/jdr.2016.p0615.
Lynett, P. J., et al. 2017. “Inter-model analysis of tsunami-induced coastal currents.” Ocean Model. 114: 14–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocemod.2017.04.003.
Mizobata, Y., T. Yasuda, Y. Okumura, N. Mori, H. Mase, and H. Shimada. 2014. “Resistance capacity assessment of local communities against tsunami inundations by continuous increase in tsunami intensity.” [In Japanese.] J. Jpn. Soc. Civ. Eng. Coast. Eng. 70 (2): I_1326–I_1330.
Mori, N., D. T. Cox, T. Yasuda, and H. Mase. 2013. “Overview of the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake Tsunami damage and its relation to coastal protection along the Sanriku coast.” Earthquake Spectra 29 (S1): 127–143. https://doi.org/10.1193/1.4000118.
Mori, N., T. Takahashi, T. Yasuda, and H. Yanagisawa. 2011. “Survey of 2011 Tohoku Earthquake Tsunami inundation and run-up.” Geophys. Res. Lett. 38 (7): L049210. https://doi.org/10.1029/2011GL049210.
Park, H., D. Cox, P. J. Lynett, D. M. Wiebe, and S. Shin. 2013. “Tsunami inundation modeling in constructed environments: A physical and numerical comparison of free-surface elevation, velocity, and momentum flux.” Coastal Eng. 79: 9–21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coastaleng.2013.04.002.
Prasetyo, A., T. Yasuda, T. Miyashita, and N. Mori. 2019. “Physical modeling and numerical analysis of tsunami inundation in a coastal city.” Front. Built. Environ. 5: 46. https://doi.org/10.3389/fbuil.2019.00046.
Pringgana, G., L. S. Cunningham, and B. D. Rogers. 2021. “Influence of orientation and arrangement of structures on tsunami impact forces: Numerical investigation with smoothed particle hydrodynamics.” J. Waterway, Port, Coastal, Ocean Eng. 147 (3): 04021006. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WW.1943-5460.0000629.
Qin, X., M. Motley, R. LeVeque, F. Gonzalez, and K. Mueller. 2018a. “A comparison of a two-dimensional depth-averaged flow model and a three-dimensional RANS model for predicting tsunami inundation and fluid forces.” Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci. 18 (9): 2489–2506. https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-2489-2018.
Qin, X., M. R. Motley, and N. A. Marafi. 2018b. “Three-dimensional modeling of tsunami forces on coastal communities.” Coastal Eng. 140: 43–59. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coastaleng.2018.06.008.
Roshko, A. 1961. “Experiments on the flow past a circular cylinder at very high Reynolds number.” J. Fluid Mech. 10 (3): 345–356. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022112061000950.
Sarjamee, S., I. Nistor, and A. Mohammadian. 2017. “Large eddy simulation of extreme hydrodynamic forces on structures with mitigation walls using OpenFOAM.” Nat. Hazard. 85 (3): 1689–1707. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-016-2658-5.
Sogut, E., D. V. Sogut, and A. Farhadzadeh. 2019. “Effects of building arrangement on flow and pressure fields generated by a solitary wave interacting with developed coasts.” Adv. Water Resour. 134: 103450. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advwatres.2019.103450.
Sogut, E., D. V. Sogut, and A. Farhadzadeh. 2020. “Overland wave propagation and load distribution among arrays of elevated beachfront structures.” J. Waterway, Port, Coastal Ocean Eng. 146 (4): 04020016. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WW.1943-5460.0000579.
Suppasri, A., I. Charvet, K. Imai, and F. Imamura. 2015. “Fragility curves based on data from the 2011 Tohoku-Oki tsunami in Ishinomaki city, with discussion of parameters influencing building damage.” Earthquake Spectra 31 (2): 841–868. https://doi.org/10.1193/053013EQS138M.
Tomiczek, T., A. Prasetyo, N. Mori, T. Yasuda, and A. Kennedy. 2016. “Physical modelling of tsunami onshore propagation, peak pressures, and shielding effects in an urban building array.” Coastal Eng. 117: 97–112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coastaleng.2016.07.003.
Tomita, T., and T. Kakinuma. 2005. “Storm surge and tsunami simulation in oceans and coastal areas (STOC).” [In Japanese.] Rep. Port Airport Res. Inst. 44 (2): 83–98.
Wang, H., A. Mostafizi, L. A. Cramer, D. Cox, and H. Park. 2016. “An agent-based model of a multimodal near-field tsunami evacuation: Decision-making and life safety.” Transp. Res. Part C Emerging Technol. 64: 86–100. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trc.2015.11.01.
Yasuda, T., T. Miyaue, A. Prasetyo, M. Kamo, N. Mori, and T. Hiraishi. 2016. “Tsunami inundation experiment using coastal city model.” [In Japanese.] J. Jpn. Soc. Civ. Eng. Coast. Eng. 72 (2): I_385–I_390. https://doi.org/10.2208/kaigan.72.I_385.

Information & Authors

Information

Published In

Go to Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal, and Ocean Engineering
Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal, and Ocean Engineering
Volume 148Issue 1January 2022

History

Received: May 22, 2021
Accepted: Aug 28, 2021
Published online: Nov 9, 2021
Published in print: Jan 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Apr 9, 2022

Permissions

Request permissions for this article.

Authors

Affiliations

Nobuki Fukui [email protected]
Student, Dept. of Civil and Earth Resources Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto Univ., Kyoto 615-8530, Japan (corresponding author). Email: [email protected]
Yu Chida
Senior Researcher, Tsunami and Storm Surge Group, Port and Airport Research Institute, Yokosuka, Kanagawa 239-0826, Japan; Student, Dept. of Civil and Earth Resources Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto Univ., Kyoto 615-8530, Japan.
Zhongduo Zhang, S.M.ASCE
Student, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences, Univ. of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556.
Associate Professor, Dept. of Civil, Environmental and Applied Systems Engineering, Kansai Univ., Suita, Osaka 564-8680, Japan. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1443-7989.
Tung-Cheng Ho
JSPS Researcher, Disaster Prevention Research Institute, Kyoto Univ., Uji, Kyoto 611-0011, Japan.
Andrew Kennedy, M.ASCE
Professor, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences, Univ. of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556.
Nobuhito Mori, M.ASCE
Professor, Disaster Prevention Research Institute, Kyoto Univ., Uji, Kyoto 611-0011, Japan; Honorary Professor, Swansea Univ., Bay Campus, Fabian Way, Crymlyn Burrows, Swansea SA1 8EN, UK.

Metrics & Citations

Metrics

Citations

Download citation

If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.

Cited by

  • Tsunami Visualization Tool Using Numerical Simulation Utilizing 3D City Model, 2024 Joint 13th International Conference on Soft Computing and Intelligent Systems and 25th International Symposium on Advanced Intelligent Systems (SCIS&ISIS), 10.1109/SCISISIS61014.2024.10760205, (1-4), (2024).
  • Tsunami inundation and flow velocity within a partially sheltered structural array, Coastal Engineering Journal, 10.1080/21664250.2024.2380149, 66, 3, (452-466), (2024).
  • NUMERICAL MODELING OF TSUNAMI INUNDATION OVER A COASTAL CITY CONSIDERING BUILDING VOLUMES建物体積の影響を考慮した市街地における津波浸水計算, Japanese Journal of JSCE, 10.2208/jscejj.23-17025, 79, 17, (n/a), (2023).
  • Mitigating tsunami effects on buildings via novel use of discrete onshore protection systems, Coastal Engineering Journal, 10.1080/21664250.2023.2170690, 65, 1, (149-173), (2023).
  • Tsunami wave loading on a structural array behind a partial wall, Coastal Engineering, 10.1016/j.coastaleng.2022.104244, 179, (104244), (2023).
  • Numerical modeling of debris transport due to tsunami flow in a coastal urban area, Coastal Engineering, 10.1016/j.coastaleng.2022.104243, 179, (104243), (2023).
  • Giant tsunami monitoring, early warning and hazard assessment, Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, 10.1038/s43017-022-00327-3, 3, 9, (557-572), (2022).

View Options

Access content

Please select your options to get access

Log in/Register Log in via your institution (Shibboleth)
ASCE Members: Please log in to see member pricing

Purchase

Save for later Information on ASCE Library Cards
ASCE Library Cards let you download journal articles, proceedings papers, and available book chapters across the entire ASCE Library platform. ASCE Library Cards remain active for 24 months or until all downloads are used. Note: This content will be debited as one download at time of checkout.

Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.
ASCE Library Card (5 downloads)
$105.00
Add to cart
ASCE Library Card (20 downloads)
$280.00
Add to cart
Buy Single Article
$35.00
Add to cart

Access content

Please select your options to get access

Log in/Register Log in via your institution (Shibboleth)
ASCE Members: Please log in to see member pricing

Purchase

Save for later Information on ASCE Library Cards
ASCE Library Cards let you download journal articles, proceedings papers, and available book chapters across the entire ASCE Library platform. ASCE Library Cards remain active for 24 months or until all downloads are used. Note: This content will be debited as one download at time of checkout.

Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.
ASCE Library Card (5 downloads)
$105.00
Add to cart
ASCE Library Card (20 downloads)
$280.00
Add to cart
Buy Single Article
$35.00
Add to cart

Media

Figures

Other

Tables

Share

Share

Copy the content Link

Share with email

Email a colleague

Share