An improved two-layer shallow water model for simulation of gravity currents on both flat and up-sloping beds

This paper investigates gravity current’s dynamics by numerical simulations and lock exchange experiments varying the bed’s angle. An improved version of the shallow water model proposed by Adduce et al. (2012) is tested. Unlike the original model, the present one account for spatial and temporal variations of the current’s density and an improved velocity scale is used to define the entrainment coefficient. The comparison between experimental and numerical results show that the present model reproduce the current’s shape and the front’s position better than the original model