Reliability of hydrological model parameters in representing the physical condition of Jiangwan River Basin

Abstract

Many developed hydrological models are found today due to the necessity of hydrological information. Various studies have been conducted to find the appropriate hydrological model among lot to simulate catchment response. This study, therefore, is aimed to examine the performance of three hydrological models (NAM, HBV96, & Xinanjiang) based on each model quantitative performance and parameter reliability to represent the actual conserved catchment physical condition. By using Jiangwan river basin as the study catchment, it is found that all models deliver satisfying simulation with average NS values for NAM, Xinanjiang and HBV96 respectively are 0.63, 0.47 and 0.59, all categorized as satisfactory simulation. Moreover, the average RVE values are also satisfying at 0.21, 0.06 and 0.21. However, considering the model parameter suitability to the actual condition, NAM and Xinanjiang model are more reliable to deliver better representation of the catchment physical condition than HBV96 model. Their model parameter tends to be consistent, while on the other hand, HBV96 model parameter values are fluctuated. It shows disagreement with the actual catchment conservation, which leads to unreliable model parameters.