For the Outflow Structures Routing Method, the routing is computed by evaluating all outlets defined by the user. After the routing is complete, the program will compute the elevation, surface area, and storage for each time interval.

An initial condition is given to set the amount of storage in the reservoir at the beginning of a simulation. The storage can be simply set as a reservoir elevation or volume of water. If an elevation is set, the elevation-storage curve is used to interpolate a storage volume. Some storage methods permit the specification of Elevation as the initial condition. The initial condition can also be set using discharge; in this case, the storage is interpolated from the storage-discharge curve. The initial condition options depend on the selected storage method.

Applicability and Limitations of the Outflow Structures Method

The Outflow Structures Routing Method is ideal for XXX. Further, if the reservoir is gated, and the gate operation is not uniquely a function of storage, then a reservoir system simulation model, such as HEC-ResSim (USACE, 2013), should be used.