Angel Monsalve, Ph.D.

Angel Monsalve Sepúlveda joined the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Idaho in August 2024, following his postdoctoral fellowship at the university's Center for Ecohydraulics Research. He specializes in fluvial geomorphology and hydraulic engineering, focusing on understanding the complex interactions between water and sediment flow dynamics in mountain streams, with particular emphasis on how spatial variability affects sediment transport and riverbed evolution. His work combines advanced numerical modeling techniques, including Computational Fluid Dynamics, with extensive laboratory experimentation to study the effects of spatial distribution of flow and sediment grain sizes on river systems.

Dr. Monsalve Sepúlveda's expertise spans from theoretical modeling to practical applications, integrating the effects of free-surface, turbulence, and surface-subsurface interaction into the understanding of river flow dynamics. His current research includes studying the impact of morphological changes induced by macro-roughness elements on hyporheic exchange, developing equations to predict pier scour in gravel-bed rivers, and investigating hyporheic flow related to nitrous oxide dynamics. He has made significant contributions to the field through his work on sediment transport predictions and bed surface adjustments in spatially variable flow conditions.

Prior to joining the University of Idaho, he served as a Lecturer and Researcher at Universidad de la Frontera in Chile, where he established the hydraulics laboratory and led various research initiatives. His commitment to both research and education is evidenced by his extensive publication record and his recognition as an Outstanding Professor. With over ten years of experience in Hydraulic Engineering consulting from Chile, he brings a valuable practical perspective to his academic work. Dr. Monsalve Sepúlveda's research aims to advance our understanding of river systems while developing practical applications for engineering challenges in water resources management.

• Fluvial geomorphology
• Sediment transport
• Channel evolution
• Fluid dynamics
• Surface-subsurface water interactions
• Turbulence
• Computational fluid dynamics
• Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics

The role of streambed morphological changes induced by macro-roughness elements on hyporheic nitrous oxide generation.

• Yager, E. M., Shim, J., Hodge, R., Monsalve, A., Tonina, D., L. Johnson, J. P., & Telfer, L. (2024). Pro+: Automated protrusion and critical shear stress estimates from 3D point clouds of gravel beds. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 49(7), 2155-2170. https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.5822
• Heidi E. J. Smith, Angel D. Monsalve, Jens M. Turowski, Dieter Rickenmann, and Elowyn M. Yager (2023). Controls of local grain size distribution, bed structure and flow conditions on sediment mobility. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms. doi.org/10.1002/esp.5599
• Angel Monsalve, Elowyn M. Yager, and Daniele Tonina (2023). Evaluating Apple iPhone LiDAR measurements of topography and roughness elements in coarse bedded streams. Journal of Ecohydraulics. doi.org/10.1080/24705357.2023.2204087
• Dudunake, T., Tonina, D., Reeder, W. J., & Monsalve, A. (2020). Local and reach‐scale hyporheic flow response from boulder‐induced geomorphic changes. Water Resources Research, 56, e2020WR027719. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020WR027719
• Monsalve, A., Segura, C., Hucke, N., and Katz, S.(2020): A bed load transport equation based on the spatial distribution of shear stress – Oak Creek revisited, Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 825–839, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-825-2020, 2020.