Nils Ruther

Professor

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty of Engineering

nils.ruther@ntnu.no +47 73594756 +47 95137746

Vassbygget, 405, Valgrinda, S. P. Andersens veg 5

I have over 15 years of experience in the field hydraulic and sediment transport engineering in rivers as well as hydro power reservoirs. My research activity is focused on the 3D numerical modelling of hydraulics and sediment transport in fluvial environment. I have also been contributing to advancements in measurement technology for sediment transport quantification in fluvial environment. I have been studying sediment transport processes from a basic research perspective and applying the knowledge to engineering projects related to river engineering and hydro power design. Recently i have been involved in project for sediment management at hydro power plants.
I have experience in leadership which i gained during my time as the Head of the Hydraulic Engineering research group at the department of Hydraulic and Environmental Engineering in 2011-2016. In addition i was leading and involved in strategic research planning groups at NTNU. During my academic career I have been supervising (and co-supervising) 1 post doctoral student 10 PhD students, 4 of them have successfully finished, and over 35 MSc and BSc students.
The outcome of my work was published in over 14 peer-reviewed journal publications and over 25 conference papers. He has been reviewer for journals like JHE, JHR, AWR, WWR, Flow measurement and instrumentation, Geomorphology, IJSR, JoH, and many more. He has also been in the local organizing committee of 2 conferences and several workshops, as well as in the scientific committee of 3 conferences.
I am responsible for 2 Master level courses, Hydraulic design of Hydro power plants as well as headworks and sedimentation engineering in the Hydro power development course at our department.

Scientific, academic and artistic work

Displaying a selection of activities. See all publications in the database

Journal publications

Aleixo, Rui; Guerrero, Massimo; Nones, Michael; Ruther, Nils. (2020) Applying ADCPs for Long‐Term Monitoring of SSC in Rivers. Water Resources Research. vol. 56 (1).
Conevski, Slaven; Alexio, Rui; Guerrero, Massimo; Ruther, Nils. (2020) Bedload Velocity and Backscattering Strength from Mobile Sediment Bed: A Laboratory Investigation Comparing Bistatic Versus Monostatic Acoustic Configuration. Water. vol. 12 (12).
Conevski, Slaven; Guerrero, Massimo; Winterscheid, Axel; Rennie, Colin; Ruther, Nils. (2020) Acoustic sampling effects on bedload quantification using acoustic Doppler current profilers. Journal of Hydraulic Research. vol. 58 (6).
Conevski, Slaven; Guerrero, Massimo; Ruther, Nils; Rennie, Colin. (2019) Laboratory investigation of the apparent bedload velocity measured by ADCPs under different transport conditions. Journal of Hydraulic Engineering. vol. 145 (11).
Karmacharya, Sanat Kumar; Bishwakarma, Meg; Shrestha, Usha; Ruther, Nils. (2019) Application of 'Structure from Motion' (SfM) technique in physical hydraulic modelling. Journal of Physics: Conference Series (JPCS). vol. 1266 (1).
Karmacharya, Sanat Kumar; Henry, Pierre-Yves T; Bishwakarma, Meg Bahadur; Aberle, Jochen; Ruther, Nils. (2019) Physical modelling of pressurized flushing of non-cohesive sediment using lightweight material. Journal of Physics: Conference Series (JPCS). vol. 1266.
Pedersen, Øyvind; Aberle, Jochen; Ruther, Nils. (2019) Hydraulic scale modelling of the rating curve for a gauging station with challenging geometry. Hydrology Research. vol. 50 (3).
Pedersen, Øyvind; Ruther, Nils. (2019) CFD modeling as part of a hybrid modeling case study for a gauging station with challenging hydraulics. Engineering Applications of Computational Fluid Mechanics. vol. 13 (1).
Pedersen, Øyvind; Fleit, Gabor; Pummer, Elena; Tullis, Blake P.; Ruther, Nils. (2018) Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes Modeling of Submerged Ogee Weirs. Journal of irrigation and drainage engineering. vol. 144 (1).
Aleixio, Rui; Guerrero, Massimo; Ruther, Nils; Stokseth, Siri. (2018) Development of a method for suspended sediment transport monitoring by means of ADCP measurements. E3S Web of Conferences. vol. 40.
Conevski, Slaven; Winterscheid, Axel; Ruther, Nils; Guerrero, Massimo; Rennie, Colin. (2018) Evaluation of an acoustic Doppler technique for bed-load transport measurements in sand-bed Rivers. E3S Web of Conferences. vol. 40.
Foerst, Markus; Ruther, Nils. (2018) Bank Retreat and Streambank Morphology of a Meandering River during Summer and Single Flood Events in Northern Norway. Hydrology. vol. 5 (4).
Henry, Pierre-Yves T; Aberle, Jochen; Navaratnam, Christy Ushanth; Ruther, Nils. (2018) Hydraulic physical model production with Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) manufacturing techniques. E3S Web of Conferences. vol. 40.
Ruther, Nils; Aleixio, Rui; Guerrero, Massimo; Sørås, Sigurd; Stokseth, Siri. (2018) Towards an establishment of a rating curve for suspended sediment transport by means of ADCP measurements. E3S Web of Conferences. vol. 40 (8).
Esmaeili, Taymaz; Sumi, Tetsuya; Kantoush, Sameh A; Kubota, Y; Haun, Stefan; Ruther, Nils. (2017) Three-Dimensional Numerical Study of Free-Flow Sediment Flushing to Increase the Flushing Efficiency: A Case-Study Reservoir in Japan. Water. vol. 9 (11).
Guerrero, Massimo; Ruther, Nils; Haun, Stefan; Baranya, Sandor. (2017) A combined use of acoustic and optical devices to investigate suspended sediment in rivers. Advances in Water Resources. vol. 102.
Török, Gergerly; Baranya, Sandor; Ruther, Nils. (2017) 3D CFD modeling of local scouring, bed armoring and sediment deposition. Water. vol. 9 (1).
Esmaeili, Taymaz; Sumi, Tetsuya; Kantoush, Sameh A; Haun, Stefan; Ruther, Nils. (2016) Three-dimensional numerical modelling of flow field in shallow reservoirs. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers : Water Management. vol. 169 (5).
Feit, Gábor; Baranya, Sándor; Rüther, Nils; Bihs, Hans; Kramer, Támas; Józsa, János. (2016) Investigation of the effects of ship inducedwaves on the littoral zone with field measurements and CFD modeling. Water. vol. 8:300 (7).
Guerrero, Massimo; Ruther, Nils; Szupiany, Ricardo; Haun, Stefan; Baranya, Sandor; Latosinski, Francisco. (2016) The acoustic properties of suspended sediment in large rivers: Consequences on ADCP methods applicability. Water. vol. 8 (1).
Pedersen, Øyvind; Rüther, Nils. (2016) Hybrid Modeling of a Gauging Station Rating Curve. Procedia Engineering. vol. 154.
Haun, Stefan; Ruther, Nils; Baranya, Sandor; Guerrero, Massimo. (2015) Comparison of real time suspended sediment transport measurements in river environment by LISST instruments in stationary and moving operation mode. Flow Measurement and Instrumentation. vol. 41.
Ruther, Nils; Spiller, Stephan Mark; Baumann, Benjamin. (2015) Form-induced stress in non-uniform steady and unsteady open channel flow over a static rough bed. International Journal of Sediment Research. vol. 30 (4).
Spiller, Stephan Mark; Ruther, Nils; Friedrich, Heide. (2015) Dynamic lift on an artificial static armor layer during highly unsteady open channel flow. Water. vol. 7 (9).
Casas-Mulet, Roser; Alfredsen, Knut; Boissy, Thibault; Sundt, Håkon; Rüther, Nils. (2014) Performance of a one-dimensional hydraulic model for the calculation of stranding areas in hydropeaking rivers. Rivers Research and Applications: an international journal devoted to river research and management. vol. 31 (2).
Guerrero, Massimo; Ruther, Nils; Archetti, Renata. (2014) Comparison under controlled conditions between multi-frequency ADCPs and LISST-SL for investigating suspended sand in rivers. Flow Measurement and Instrumentation. vol. 37.
Ruther, Nils; Pedersen, Øyvind. (2014) 3D numerical modeling of the flow over a gravel river bed due to hydropower peaking. Flow simulation in hydraulic engineering : Dresdner wasserbauliche Mitteilungen. vol. 50.
Eilertsen, Raymond; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe; Ruther, Nils; Zinke, Peggy. (2013) Channel-bed changes in distributaries of the lake Oyeren delta, southern Norway, revealed by interferometric sidescan sonar. Norsk Geologisk Tidsskrift. vol. 93 (1).
Foerst, Markus; Ruther, Nils. (2012) Post Processing Methods of Moving Boat ADCP Measurements Time Averaging vs. Distance Averaging. Berichte des Lehrstuhls und der Versuchsanstalt für Wasserbau und Wasserwirtschaft. vol. 125.
Guerrero, M; Ruther, Nils; Szupiany, RN. (2012) Laboratory validation of acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) techniques for suspended sediment investigations. Flow Measurement and Instrumentation. vol. 23 (1).
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils; Killingtveit, Ånund. (2012) Physical Effects of Load Fluctuations in Rivers. Berichte des Lehrstuhls und der Versuchsanstalt für Wasserbau und Wasserwirtschaft.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils; Belete, Kiflom Wasihun; Strellis, Brendon. (2011) Assessing environmental effects of hydropower peaking by 3D numerical modeling. Flow simulation in hydraulic engineering : Dresdner wasserbauliche Mitteilungen. vol. 1 (1).
Fischer-Antze, Tim; Rüther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe; Gutknecht, D. (2010) Discussion on: Three-dimensional (3D) modeling of non-uniform sediment transport in a channel bend with unsteady flow. Journal of Hydraulic Research. vol. 48 (6).
Rüther, Nils; Jacobsen, Jens; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe; Vatne, Geir. (2010) Prediction of the three-dimensional flow field and bed shear stresses in a regulated river in mid-Norway. Hydrology Research. vol. 41 (2).
Stoesser, T; Rüther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe. (2010) Calculation of primary and secondary flow and boundary shear stresses in a meandering channel. Advances in Water Resources. vol. 33 (2).
Zinke, Peggy; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe; Bogen, Jim; Rüther, Nils. (2010) 3D modelling of the flow distribution in the delta of Lake Oyeren, Norway. Hydrology Research. vol. 41 (2).
Fischer-Antze, Tim; Rüther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe; Gutknecht, D. (2009) Three-dimensional (3D) modeling of non-uniform sediment transport in a channel bend with unsteady flow. Journal of Hydraulic Research. vol. 47 (5).
Rüther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe. (2007) Modelling free-forming meander evolution in a laboratory channel using three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics. Geomorphology.
Ruther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe. (2005) Three dimensional modeling of sediment transport in a narrow 90° channel bend. Journal of Hydraulic Engineering.
Ruther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe. (2005) Three-dimensional modelling of sediment transport at water intakes. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers : Water and maritime engineering.

Part of book/report

Guerrero, Massimo; Antonini, Alessandro; Ruther, Nils; Stokseth, Siri. (2017) Suspended load monitoring for sustainable hydropower development. River Sedimentation: Proceedings of the 13th International Symposium on River Sedimentation.
Omelan, Marc; Ruther, Nils; Visscher, Jan Hendrik; Stokseth, Siri. (2017) Sediment management for sustainable Hydropower development. River Sedimentation: Proceedings of the 13th International Symposium on River Sedimentation.
Szabo-Meszaros, Marcell; Ruther, Nils; Alfredsen, Knut. (2017) Correlation between the shelter of juvenile salmonids and bed substrate. River Sedimentation: Proceedings of the 13th International Symposium on River Sedimentation.
Pedersen, Øyvind; Ruther, Nils. (2016) Numerical modeling of submerged flow over ogee-weirs. River Flow 2016.
Friedrich, Heide; Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils. (2014) Near-bed flow over a fixed gravel bed. Proceedings of the River Flow 2014 International Conference on Fluvial Hydraulics.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils; Casas-Mulet, Roser; Friedrich, Heide. (2014) Pore Water Exchange In Gravel Bed Rivers During Hydropower Peaking Events. 10th International Symposium on Ecohydraulics (ISE 2014).
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils; Friedrich, Heide. (2014) Mitigation measures for unsteady flow effects on riverbeds during hydropower peaking. Proceedings of the River Flow 2014 International Conference on Fluvial Hydraulics.
Török, G.T.; Baranya, S; Ruther, Nils; Spiller, Stephan. (2014) Laboratory analysis of armor layer development in a local scour around a groin. Proceedings of the River Flow 2014 International Conference on Fluvial Hydraulics.
Ruther, Nils; Huber, Sonja; Spiller, Stephan; Aberle, Jochen. (2013) Verifying a Photogrammetric Method to Quantify Grain Size Distribution of Developed Armor Layers. Proceedings of the 35th IAHR World Congress.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils; Baumann, Benjamin. (2013) PIV Measurements of Steady Flow over an Artificial Static Armor Layer. Proceedings of the 35th IAHR World Congress.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils; Koll, Klaus; Koll, Katinka. (2012) Bed load movement over a fully developed armor layer – A tracer experiment. River Flow 2012.
Rüther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe. (2006) 3D modeling of transient bed deformation in a sine-generated laboratory channel with two different width to depth ratios. River Flow 2006.

Report/dissertation

Thorarinsdottir, Thordis Linda; Engeland, Kolbjørn; Lawrence, Deborah; Pedersen, Øyvind; Tveito, Ole Einar; Hellton, Kristoffer Herland; Dyrrdal, Anita Verpe; Eide, Vidar; Førland, Eirik; Holmqvist, Erik; Kobierska, Florian; Jørgensen, Sigrid; Midttømme, Grethe Holm; Moore, Richard; Nordtun, Kristian Strand; Orthe, Nils Kristian; Randen, Frode; Reitan, Trond; Ruther, Nils; Schlichting, Lena; Skaugen, Thomas; Steinbakk, Gunnhildur Högnadóttir; Voksø, Astrid; Væringstad, Thomas; Wang, Thea; Wilson, Donna; Ødemark, Karianne. (2018) Nytt rammeverk for flomestimering i Norge: Sluttrapport fra forskningsprosjektet FlomQ. 2018. ISBN 978-82-436-1048-4.
Killingtveit, Ånund; Solvang, Eivind; Alfredsen, Knut; Lia, Leif; Ruther, Nils; Harby, Atle; Jaehnert, Stefan; Walseth, Eve; Storli, Pål-Tore Selbo; Bråtveit, Kari; Vereide, Kaspar. (2017) Utfordringer og muligheter for norsk vannkraft ved integrasjon med vind- og solkraft i Europa. En oppsummering fra HydroPEAK-prosjektet. 2017. ISBN 978-82-426-3070-4. NINA temahefte (71).
Bakken, Tor Haakon; Forseth, Torbjørn; Harby, Atle; Alfredsen, Knut; Arnekleiv, Jo Vegard; Berg, Ole Kristian; Casas-Mulet, Roser; Charmasson, Julie; Greimel, Franz; Halley, Duncan John; Hedger, Richard David; Larsen, Bjørn Mejdell; Leo, Florian; Melcher, Andreas; Puffer, Michael; Pulg, Ulrich; Reitan, Ole; Ruther, Nils; Saltveit, Svein Jakob; Sauterleute, Julian Friedrich; Schneider, Matthias; Skoglund, Helge; Sundt, Håkon; Timalsina, Netra Prasad; Ugedal, Ola; van Dijk, Jiska Joanneke; Vollset, Knut Wiik; Zakowsky, Tania; Zinke, Peggy. (2016) Miljøvirkninger av effektkjøring: Kunnskapsstatus og råd til forvaltning og industri. 2016. ISBN 978-82-426-2834-3. NINA temahefte (62).
Thorarinsdottir, Thordis Linda; Alfredsen, Knut; Borsanyi, Peter; Hisdal, Hege; Lawrence, Deborah; Lundquist, Dan; Løland, Anders; Melkersen, Daniel; Midttømme, Grethe Holm; Rüther, Nils; Tingvold, Jens Kristian; Tveito, Ole Einar; Wilson, Donna. (2013) A robust flood estimation framework for Norway. 2013. NR-notat (SAMBA/22/13).

Others

Conevski, Slaven; Guerrero, Massimo; Ruther, Nils; Rennie, Colin. (2017) ADCP’s capabilities in measuring the bed load velocity: A confirmation by means of image velocimetry under controlled conditions. HMEM (HYDRAULIC MEASUREMENTS & EXPERIMENTAL METHODS CONFERENCE) . EWRI ASCE; University of New Hampshire. 2017-07-09 - 2017-07-12.
Guerrero, Massimo; Conevski, Slaven; Baranaya, Sandor; Ruther, Nils. (2017) Combining backscatter and attenuation measurements for suspended sediment concentration assessment. Hydrosensoft, International Symposium and Exhibition on Hydro-Environment Sensors and Software, Madrid, spain . IAHR Experimental Methods and Instrumentation Technical Comm; MAdrid. 2017-02-28 - 2017-03-03.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils; Casas-Mulet, Roser; Friedrich, Heide. (2014) Pore Water Exchange In Gravel Bed Rivers During Hydropower Peaking Events. 10th International Symposium on Ecohydraulics (ISE 2014) . Sintef, NTNU; Trondheim. 2014-06-23 - 2014-06-27.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils; Friedrich, Heide. (2014) Mitigation measures for unsteady flow effects on riverbeds during hydropower peaking. IAHR Riverflow 2014 . IAHR; Lausanne. 2014-09-03 - 2014-09-05.
Foerst, Markus; Ruther, Nils; Hahn, Felix. (2013) Measuring Bank Retreat in Fluvial Environments with Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS). RCEM ; Santander. 2013-06-09 - 2013-06-13.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils. (2013) Armor layers in regulated rivers during unsteady flows. 3rd Nordic Seminar on Hydropower and Sediment Transport ; Trondheim. 2013-05-29 - 2013-05-30.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils. (2013) The Impact of Hydropower Peaking on Gravel Beds. Hydro2013 International Conference . The International Journal of Hydropower and Dams; Innsbruck. 2013-10-07 - 2013-10-09.
Foerst, Markus; Ruther, Nils. (2012) Mean and turbulent flow structures in two consecutive meander bends. 2nd IAHR Europe Conference . TU Munich; Munich. 2012-06-27 - 2012-06-29.
Foerst, Markus; Ruther, Nils. (2012) Post Processing Methods of Moving Boat ADCP Measurements Time Averaging vs. Distance Averaging. Treffen Junger WissenschaftlerInnen an Wasserbauinstituten . TU München; München. 2012-06-25 - 2012-06-26.
Foerst, Markus; Ruther, Nils; Hahn, Felix. (2012) Terrestrial Laser Scan (TLS) Measurement and Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers (ADCP) – a new Method to Understand Bank Retreat in Natural River Bends?. Vannets vei i landskapet - hydrologiens betydning for miljøstatus . Norsk hydrologiråd; Ås. 2012-09-20 - 2012-09-20.
Roberts, Marc; Ruther, Nils; Vollmer, Stefan; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe. (2012) 3D MODELLING OF CHANGES IN SEDIMENT TRANSPORT, BED COMPOSITION AND POROSITY DURING A FLOOD EVENT AT THE RIVER ELBE. 10th International Conference on Hydroinformatics . TU Hamburg Harburg; Hamburg. 2012-07-14 - 2012-07-18.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils; Baumann, Benjamin. (2012) Artificial Reproduction of the Surface Structure in a Gravel Bed. 2nd European IAHR Congress . Technische Universität München; München. 2012-06-27 - 2012-06-29.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils; Killingtveit, Ånund. (2012) Physical Effects of Load Fluctuations in Rivers. 14. Treffen junger WissenschaftlerInnen an Wasserbauinstituten . Technische Universität München; Munchen. 2012-06-25 - 2012-06-26.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils; Koll, Klaus; Koll, Katinka. (2012) Bed load movement over a fully developed armor layer - A tracer experiment. IAHR River Flow 2012 ; San José. 2012-09-05 - 2012-09-07.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils. (2011) HydroPEAK: Physical effects of load fluctuations in rivers. Measuring turbulence and sediment concentrations in particle-laden flow . NTNU - Institutt for vann- og miljøteknikk; Trondheim. 2011-03-22 - 2011-03-22.
Spiller, Stephan; Ruther, Nils. (2011) Physical effects of load fluctuations in rivers and reservoirs. CEDREN-HydroPEAK researcher meeting . NTNU; Trondheim. 2011-10-25 - 2011-10-26.
Rüther, Nils; Guerrero, Massimo; Alberto, Lamberti. (2010) Modelling alluvial channel dynamics in a river reach dominated by alternate bars. 5th International Conference on Fluvial Hydraulics, River Flow 2010 . IAHR; Braunschweig. 2010-09-08 - 2010-09-10.
Zinke, Peggy; Rüther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe. (2010) A tool to assess morphological changes in a delta due to hydropower regulation. Renewable energy research conference . NTNU; Trondheim. 2010-06-07 - 2010-06-08.
Zinke, Peggy; Rüther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe; Eilertsen, Raymond. (2009) 3D MODELLING OF MORPODYNAMICS IN DELTAS DUE TO HYDRO POWER REGULATION. Proc. of the Annual Conference on Hydraulic Engineering . Technical University of Dresden; Dresden. 2009-03-12 - 2009-03-13.
Rüther, Nils; Weitbrecht, Volker. (2009) Laboratory and Numerical Model Study on Sediment Transfer Processes in an Expanding River Reach. 33rd IAHR Congress . IAHR; Vancouver. 2009-08-09 - 2009-08-14.
Eilertsen, Raymond; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe; Rüther, Nils; Zinke, Peggy. (2008) River bed changes in the Lake Øyeren delta distributaries over a three-year period (2004 - 2007) as revealed by interferometric multibeam. International Geological Congress (IGC2008) ; 2008-08-06.
Rüther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe; Eilertsen, Raymond. (2008) 3D modeling of flow and sediment transport over natural dunes. RiverFlow 2008 ; 2008-09-03.
Stoesser, Thorsten; Rüther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe. (2008) Near-Bed Flow Behavior in a Meandering Channel. RiverFlow 2008 ; 2008-05-03.
Zinke, Peggy; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe; Rüther, Nils. (2008) 3D Modelling of the flow distribution in the delta of Lake Øyern (Norway). International Conference on Hydroscience and Engineering ; 2008-09-09.
Rüther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe. (2006) Towards the prediction of free-forming meander formation using 3D computational fluid dynamics. Flow simulation inf hydraulic engineering . Technical University of Dresden; Dresden. 2006-03-09 - 2006-03-10.
Ruther, Nils; Olsen, Nils Reidar Bøe. (2005) Advances in 3D modeling of free-forming meander formation from initially straight alluvial channels. 31st. IAHR Congress ; 2005-09-11.

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