title: Flow monitoring with a camera: a case study on a flood event in the Tiber River.
abstract: Monitoring surface water velocity during flood events is a challenging task. Techniques based on deploying instruments in the flow are often unfeasible due to high velocity and abundant sediment transport. A low-cost and versatile technology that provides continuous and automatic observations is still not available. Among remote methods, large-scale particle image velocimetry (LSPIV) is an optical method that computes surface water velocity maps from videos recorded with a camera. Here, we implement and critically analyze findings obtained from a recently introduced LSPIV experimental configuration during a flood event in the Tiber River at a cross section located in the center of Rome, Italy. We discuss the potential of LSPIV observations in challenging environmental conditions by presenting results from three tests performed during the hydrograph flood peak and recession limb of the event for different illumination and weather conditions. The obtained surface velocity maps are compared to the rating curve velocity and to benchmark velocity values. Experimental findings show that optical methods should be preferred in extreme conditions. However, their practical implementation may be associated with further hurdles and uncertainties.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento per l'Innovazione nei Sistemi Biologici, Agroalimentari e Forestali, University of Tuscia, Viterbo, Italy.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tauro
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento per l'Innovazione nei Sistemi Biologici, Agroalimentari e Forestali, University of Tuscia, Viterbo, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Olivieri
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie e Forestali, University of Tuscia, Viterbo, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Petroselli
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, NY, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Porfiri
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento per l'Innovazione nei Sistemi Biologici, Agroalimentari e Forestali, University of Tuscia, Viterbo, Italy. salvatore.grimaldi@unitus.i.|Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, NY, USA. salvatore.grimaldi@unitus.i.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Grimaldi
mesh_terms: D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D055868:Floods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D045483:Rivers / Q000737:chemistry*; D012384:Rome; D014872:Water Movements; D014887:Weather
keywords: Camera observations; Flow measurement; Flow monitoring; Flow velocity; Large-scale particle image velocimetry; Surface flow
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