Numerical algorithm of distributed TOPKAPI model and its application

The TOPKAPI (TOPographic Kinematic APproximation and Integration) model is a physically based rainfall-runoff model derived from the integration in space of the kinematic wave model. In the TOPKAPI model, rainfall-runoff and runoff routing processes are described by three nonlinear reservoir differential equations that are structurally similar and describe different hydrological and hydraulic processes. Equations are integrated over grid cells that describe the geometry of the catchment, leading to a cascade of nonlinear reservoir equations. For the sake of improving the model’s computation precision, this paper provides the general form of these equations and describes the solution by means of a numerical algorithm, the variable-step fourth-order Runge-Kutta algorithm. For the purpose of assessing the quality of the comprehensive numerical algorithm, this paper presents a case study application to the Buliu River Basin, which has an area of 3 310 km², using a DEM (digital elevation model) grid with a resolution of 1 km. The results show that the variable-step fourth-order Runge-Kutta algorithm for nonlinear reservoir equations is a good approximation of subsurface flow in the soil matrix, overland flow over the slopes, and surface flow in the channel network, allowing us to retain the physical properties of the original equations at scales ranging from a few meters to 1 km