Inclined porous gravity current ($\varphi h_t+{\partial }_x[uh-u\cot \theta h{h}_x]=0$)

For a thin buoyant layer beneath an inclined impermeable roof, the hydrostatic approximation and Darcy's law give $u=kg\Delta \rho \sin \theta /\mu$ and the volume flux per unit width $F=uh-u\cot \theta h{h}_x$. The first term transports fluid upslope; the second spreads the layer through its hydrostatic pressure gradient. The porosity multiplies the stored fluid volume, so the advection speed is $u/\varphi$, not the Darcy velocity $u$.

With constant porosity $P$ and $X=x\tan \theta$, $Y=y\tan \theta$, a translating frame $\xi =X-T$, $\eta =Y$ has area Jacobian determinant $dxdy={\cot }^2\theta d\xi d\eta$. Actual fluid volume is $P\iint hdxdy$, proving the displayed normalization. Replacing the cotangent factor by a tangent factor is incompatible with these coordinates except at a slope of $\pi /4$.

For porosity $P{z}^{\alpha -1}$ and permeability of a porous medium $K{z}^{\beta -1}$ above an inclined impermeable plane, stored liquid volume per area is $P{h}^{\alpha }/\alpha$. The depth-integrated Darcy flux is $\rho gK{h}^{\beta }(\sin \theta -\cos \theta h_x,-\cos \theta h_y)/(\beta \mu )$. Conservation of mass yields the displayed equation with $X=x\tan \theta$, $Y=y\tan \theta$ and $T=t\alpha \rho gK\sin \theta \tan \theta /(\beta \mu P)$.

In a slender steady porous gravity current, the dominant balance is $(h^{\beta }{)}_X=(h^{\beta }{h}_Y{)}_Y$. If its width and height scales are $W,H$, fixed downslope volume flux gives $H^{\beta }W=\text{constant}$, and transverse spreading gives $W^2\sim HX$. Eliminating $H$ yields the displayed width exponent. The porosity exponent affects transient storage but not this steady balance.

With exponentially decreasing injection, the advective approximation $\varphi h_t+u{h}_x=0$ and inlet condition $uh(0,t)=Q{e}^{-t/\tau }$ give $h_0=Q/u$ and the displayed solution along characteristic curves. It applies behind the advective nose $X=ut/\varphi$. The relative size of the discarded nonlinear spreading term for this profile is $2\varphi h\cot \theta /(u\tau )$. Smallness of that quantity, and matching through a narrow leading layer, are necessary qualifications: elapsed time alone does not make the approximation uniform at the nose. In a translating frame the full equation remains a porous medium equation with coefficient $u\cot \theta /\varphi$.