SMS is designed to serve as a pre- and
post-processor
for a wide range of numerical surface
water modeling systems. SMS addresses surface water problems from one
dimensional step backwater for profile computations to complex two and three
dimensional hydrodynamics for computing flow fields, inundated areas,
sedimentation and constituent migration (water quality). SMS is used at
thousands of sites including federal, state, private and, international
sites.
SMS includes
tools for developing conceptual models for one and two dimensional numerical
models. This allows the automatic creation of cross sectional data, finite
element networks and finite difference grids. SMS also provides tools for model
editing, calibration and visualization. Currently supported models include RMA2,
RMA4, SED2D-WES, HIVEL2D, RMA10, FESWMS-2DH, ADCIRC, CGWAVE, M2D, STWAVE, GHOST
and BOUSS2D.
Visit the SMS Image Gallery today and get
some great images of SMS applications!
SMS is
distributed commercially through Environmental Modeling Systems Incorporated
(EMS-I). EMS-I also sponsors regularly scheduled training
courses
featuring SMS. If you are interested in
downloading, evaluating, or purchasing SMS, please visit the EMS-I
site.
Overview
The SMS 9.2 is now available! We are
optimistic that the new features and enhancements will make SMS more productive
than ever!
The Surface Water Modeling System (SMS) is
a comprehensive environment for one-, two-, and three-dimensional hydrodynamic
modeling. A pre- and post-processor for surface water modeling and design, SMS
includes 2D finite element, 2D finite difference, 3D finite element modeling
tools. Supported models include the USACE-ERDC supported TABS-MD (GFGEN, RMA2,
RMA4, SED2D-WES, HIVEL2D), ADCIRC, CGWAVE, STWAVE, BOUSS2D, M2D, GENESIS, and
WABED models. A comprehensive interface has also been developed for facilitating
the use of the FHWA commissioned analysis package FESWMS. The TUFLOW numerical
model with powerful flood analysis, wave analysis, and hurricane analysis is now
supported. SMS also includes a generic model interface, which can be used to
support models which have not been officially incorporated into the
system.
The numeric models supported in SMS
compute a variety of information applicable to surface water modeling. Primary
applications of the models include calculation of water surface elevations and
flow velocities for shallow water flow problems, for both steady-state or
dynamic conditions. Additional applications include the modeling of contaminant
migration, salinity intrusion, sediment transport (scour and deposition), wave
energy dispersion, wave properties (directions, magnitudes and amplitudes) and
others.
New enhancements and developments continue
at the Environmental Modeling Research Laboratory (EMRL) at Brigham Young
University in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Waterways
Experiment Station (USACE-WES), and the US Federal Highway Administration
(FHWA).
Automated Mesh/Grid
Generation
SMS can be used to construct 2D and 3D
finite element meshes and finite difference grids of rivers, estuaries, bays, or
wetland areas. The tools include a sophisticated set of creation and editing
tools to handle complex modeling situations with relative ease. Several
methods of finite element mesh creation are available, allowing you to create
any combination of rectangular and triangular elements needed to represent your
model domain. Both cartesian and boundary-fitted grid creation tools are
available to allow representation of a model domain for finite difference
models. The powerful mesh/grid creation tools, coupled with GIS objects,
are what makes SMS such an easy-to-use and accurate modeling
system!
There are two main methods for building
models in SMS, the direct approach and the conceptual modeling approach. With
the direct approach, the first step is to create a mesh or grid. The model
parameters, source/sink data, and boundary conditions are assigned directly to
the nodestrings, nodes, and elements of the mesh. This approach is only suited
for very simple models.
The most efficient approach for building
realistic, complex models is the conceptual model approach. With this approach,
a conceptual model is created using GIS objects, including points, arcs, and
polygons. The conceptual model is constructed independently of a mesh or grid.
It is a high-level description of the site including geometric features such as
channels and banks, the boundary of the domain to be modeled, flow rates and
water surface elevations of boundary conditions, and material zones with
material properties such as Manning's n value. Once the conceptual model is
complete, a mesh or grid network is automatically constructed to fit the
conceptual model, and the model data are converted from the conceptual model to
the elements and nodes of the mesh network.
