Comparative analysis of a geomorphology-based instantaneous unit hydrograph in small mountainous watersheds

Abstract

A conceptual insytnataneous unit hydrograph (IUH) based on geomorphologival association of linear reservoirs (GR) previously developed by the authors has been compared with other IUH models: a distributed GR variation (GR(v)), the Nash IUH, the Chutha and Dooge IUH, and the Troutman and Karlinger IUH for the analysis of direct runoff hydrographs recorded in three experimental watershed of the north of Spain. The comparison was made through a calibration-validation process in which a leave-one-out cross-validation method was applied. The results indicate the satisfactory performance of all the models, with the advantage for the GR model of the dependence on only one parameter, which can be identified from the watershed and event characteristics. This property makes its use easier than that of other models. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.