A Digital Twin for the management of the urban drainage system and flooding events in the city of Palermo

Abstract

Assessing and managing flood risk in cities, especially those with large historical centers where interventions are often challenging or prevented by highly constrained contexts, is essential, especially considering the increase in the frequency of extreme rainfall events in recent years. A powerful tool that opens up a range of possibilities to address these critical issues can be the implementation of a Digital Twin (DT) that integrates the interaction between hydraulic models, internet-connected sensors, remote control organs of the systems, updating from GIS sources and the address of physical interventions by technicians on the physical system. The DT evolves with the physical system and addresses the managing infrastructures under both ordinary and critical situations, such as urban floods. In this study, a DT of the urban drainage system of the city of Palermo was developed using data and information provided by the Municipal Waterworks of Palermo (Azienda Municipalizzata Acquedotto di Palermo, AMAP), alongside the hydraulic solver InfoWorks ICM (Integrated Catchment Modeling). This effort aims to create a tool for analysing system responses, identifying hydraulic criticalities under different conditions and providing mitigation measures.