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Frontiers of Agricultural Science and Engineering >> 2014, Volume 1, Issue 4 doi: 10.15302/J-FASE-2014041

A review of hydrological/water-quality models

1. College of Information Science and Engineering, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai’an 271018, China.2. College of Information and Electrical Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China

Accepted: 2015-02-11 Available online: 2015-03-10

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Abstract

Water quality models are important in predicting the changes in surface water quality for environmental management. A range of water quality models are wildly used, but every model has its advantages and limitations for specific situations. The aim of this review is to provide a guide to researcher for selecting a suitable water quality model. Eight well known water quality models were selected for this review: SWAT, WASP, QUALs, MIKE 11, HSPF, CE-QUAL-W2, ELCOM-CAEDYM and EFDC. Each model is described according to its intended use, development, simulation elements, basic principles and applicability (e.g., for rivers, lakes, and reservoirs and estuaries). Currently, the most important trends for future model development are: (1) combination models—individual models cannot completely solve the complex situations so combined models are needed to obtain the most appropriate results, (2) application of artificial intelligence and mechanistic models combined with non-mechanistic models will provide more accurate results because of the realistic parameters derived from non-mechanistic models, and (3) integration with remote sensing, geographical information and global position systems (3S) —3S can solve problems requiring large amounts of data.

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