computer science

Storm Water Management Model

Storm Water Management Model is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Storm Water Management Model rather than just read about it. In short: The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Storm Water Management Model (SWMM) is a dynamic rainfall–runoff–subsurface runoff simulation model used for single-event to long-term (continuous) simulation of the surface/subsurface hydrology quantity and quality from primarily urban/suburban areas. It can simulate the rainfall-runoff, runoff, evaporation, infiltration and groundwater connection for roots, s…

Key takeaways

Storm Water Management Model belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Storm Water Management Model to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Storm Water Management Model from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Storm Water Management Model (SWMM) is a dynamic rainfall–runoff–subsurface runoff simulation model used for single-event to long-term (continuous) simulation of the surface/subsurface hydrology quantity and quality from primarily urban/suburban areas. It can simulate the rainfall-runoff, runoff, evaporation, infiltration and groundwater connection for roots, streets, grassed areas, rain gardens and ditches and pipes, for example. The hydrology component of SWMM operates on a collection of subcatchment areas divided into impervious and pervious areas with and without depression storage to predict runoff and pollutant loads from precipitation, evaporation and infiltration losses from each of the subcatchment. Besides, low impact development (LID) and best management practice areas on the subcatchment can be modeled to reduce the impervious and pervious runoff. The routing or hydraulics section of SWMM transports this water and possible associated water quality constituents through a system of closed pipes, open channels, storage/treatment devices, ponds, storages, pumps, orifices, weirs, outlets, outfalls and other regulators. SWMM tracks the quantity and quality of the flow generated within each subcatchment, and the flow rate, flow depth, and quality of water in each pipe and channel during a simulation period composed of multiple fixed or variable time steps. The water quality constituents such as water quality constituents can be simulated from buildup on the subcatchments through washoff to a hydraulic network with optional first order decay and linked pollutant removal, best management practice and low-impact development (LID) removal and treatment can be simulated at selected storage nodes. SWMM is one of the hydrology transport models which the EPA and other agencies have applied widely throughout North America and through consultants and universities throughout the world. The latest update notes and new features can be found on the EPA website in the download section. Recently added in November 2015 were the EPA SWMM 5.1 Hydrology Manual (Volume I) and in 2016 the EPA SWMM 5.1 Hydraulic Manual (Volume II) and EPA SWMM 5.1 Water Quality (including LID Modules) Volume (III) + Errata.

Program description The EPA storm water management model (SWMM) is a dynamic rainfall-runoff-routing simulation model used for single event or long-term (continuous) simulation of runoff quantity and quality from primarily urban areas. The runoff component of SWMM operates on a collection of subcatchment areas that receive precipitation and generate runoff and pollutant loads. The routing portion of SWMM transports this runoff through a system of pipes, channels, storage/treatment devices, pumps, and regulators. SWMM tracks the quantity and quality of runoff generated within each subcatchment, and the flow rate, flow depth, and quality of water in each pipe and channel during a simulation period divided into multiple time steps. SWMM accounts for various hydrologic processes that produce runoff from urban areas. These include:

time-varying rainfall evaporation of standing surface water snow accumulation and melting rainfall interception from depression storage infiltration of rainfall into unsaturated soil layers percolation of infiltrated water into groundwater layers interflow between groundwater and the drainage system nonlinear reservoir routing of overland flow capture and retention of rainfall/runoff with various types of low impact development (LID) practices. SWMM also contains a flexible set of hydraulic modeling capabilities used to route runoff and external inflows through the drainage system network of pipes, channels, storage/treatment units and diversion structures. These include the ability to:

handle networks of unlimited size· use a wide variety of standard closed and open conduit shapes as well as natural channels· model special elements such as storage/treatment units, flow dividers, pumps, weirs, and orifices· apply external flows and water quality inputs from surface runoff, groundwater interflow, rainfall-dependent infiltration/inflow, dry weather sanitary flow, and user-defined inflows utilize either kinematic wave or full dynamic wave flow routing methods· model various flow regimes, such as backwater, surcharging, reverse flow, and surface ponding· apply user-defined dynamic control rules to simulate the operation of pumps, orifice openings, and weir crest levels. Spatial variability in all of these processes is achieved by dividing a study area into a collection of smaller, homogeneous subcatchment areas, each containing its own fraction of pervious and impervious sub-areas. Overland flow can be routed between sub-areas, between subcatchments, or between entry points of a drainage system. Since its inception, SWMM has been used in thousands of sewer and stormwater studies throughout the world. Typical applications include:

design and sizing of drainage system components for flood control sizing of detention facilities and their appurtenances for flood control and water quality protection· flood plain mapping of natural channel systems, by modeling the river hydraulics and associated flooding problems using prismatic channels· designing control strategies for minimizing Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) and Sanitary Sewer Overflow (SSO)· evaluating the impact of inflow and infiltration on sanitary sewer overflows· generating non-point source pollutant loadings for waste load allocation studies· evaluating the effectiveness of BMPs and subcatchment LID's for reducing wet weather pollutant loadings. Rainfall-runoff modeling of urban and rural watersheds hydraulic and water quality analysis of storm, sanitary, and combined sewer systems master planning of sewer collection systems and urban watersheds system evaluations associated with USEPA's regulations including NPDES permits, CMOM, and TMDL 1D and 2D (surface ponding) predictions of flood levels and flooding volume EPA SWMM is public domain software that may be freely copied and distributed. The SWMM 5 public domain consists of C engine code and Delphi SWMM 5 graphical user interface code. The C code and Delphi code are easily edited and can be recompiled by students and professionals for custom features or extra output features.

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Storm Water Management Model: Figure 2. SWMM 5's QA/QC Master Example Network. This one network includes examples 1 through 7 from the SWMM 3 and SWMM 4 Manuals — Figure 2. SWMM 5's QA/QC Master Example Network. This one network includes examples 1 through 7 from the SWMM 3 and SWMM 4 Manuals

Storm Water Management Model: Intensive extensive green roofs — Intensive extensive green roofs

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Storm Water Management Model

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Storm Water Management Model claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Storm Water Management Model before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Storm Water Management Model ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Storm Water Management Model

In research: Storm Water Management Model appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Storm Water Management Model in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Storm Water Management Model is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Hydrology models, Public-domain software with source code, Stormwater management, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Storm Water Management Model outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Storm Water Management Model in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Storm Water Management Model means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Storm Water Management Model out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Storm Water Management Model in simple terms?

Why does Storm Water Management Model matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Storm Water Management Model?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Storm Water Management Model.