Semester of Graduation

Summer 2026

Degree

Master of Science in Civil Engineering (MSCE)

Department

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

The runoff characteristics of precipitation and stream flow in a watershed change with variation in the land cover. Modeling the hydrologic response under various land cov ers that are feasible under a solar farm seems to be an important but challenging task for digital twin development of solar farms, given the potential for valuable ecosystem services including carbon storage, biodiversity, and soil health restoration. For example, if planted in the solar farm area, native C4 grasses would provide ecosystem benefits, and have dif ferent roughness and infiltration coefficients, resulting in modifications to the hydrology. The hydrologic behavior changes the inundation depth, the inundation time, and other flow properties. The species composition and hydrology affect soil health, which is essen tial for future crop production, among other things. The model uses the Hydrologic Engi neering Center’s River Analysis System (HEC-RAS) to understand the impacts of changes in land cover on the hydrology and soil health of the solar farm located in Oak Ridge, Louisiana. Firstly, the hydrologic inputs such as precipitation, river flow, land cover, etc. are defined, and calibrated using observed USGS flow downstream. Secondly, the rough ness coefficient is changed for each model run to observe different hydrologic flow profiles, water surface elevations and velocities over the watershed. The outputs from RAS Map per are later used to define the change in hydrology and soil health in the solar farm area. The results show that switchgrass performs better than bermudagrass at attenuating the hydrologic response, providing ecosystem benefits while maintaining soil health. Concur rently, the output scenarios from the model can be used to interpret the need for storm water management practices in order to preserve the soil under solar farms for later agri cultural use.

Date

7-17-2026

Committee Chair

Kees, Christopher E.

LSU Acknowledgement

1

LSU Accessibility Acknowledgment

1

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Available for download on Saturday, December 30, 2028

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