Environmental hydraulics research

Abstract

Environmental hydraulics research includes the different domains of hydrodynamics, such as the investigation and implementation of the physical and experimental applications, and research into the quantity, quality, modelling and simulation of the attributes associated with flowing water. This topic is studied both from a technical and environmental point of view, with the objective of protecting and enhancing the quality of the environment. It is a cross-disciplinary field of study which comprises open channel/river flows and pressurised systems, combining, among others, new technological, social, and environmental hydraulic challenges. It provides researchers and engineers working in water-related fields with available information, new concepts and tools, new design solutions, eco-friendly technologies, and the advanced materials necessary to address the increasing challenges of ensuring a sustainable water environment—that is, a water environment effectively managed and adequated for generations to come by promoting the adaptation, flexibility, integration and sustainability of recognised environmental solutions. Using advanced numerical and physical models in field experiments, and tests in different types of laboratory set-ups, specialists in environmental hydraulics produce the best analyses, concepts, techniques, tools, and solutions to environmental hydraulic problems, as well as in relation to the water, energy and environmental nexus.