Dispersion in Sediment-Laden Stream Flow

A theory is developed to demonstrate the effects of sorptive exchange on the transport of a chemical in a sediment-laden open-channel flow. Based on the multiple-scale method of homogenization, a depth-averaged transport equation is deduced up to a long time-scale. The dispersion coefficient is the sum of a modified Taylor dispersion coefficient and a dispersion coefficient due to a finite rate of mass exchange between dissolved phase in the water column and sorbed phase on suspended particles. These coefficients are functions of the suspension number and the bulk solid-water distribution ratio. It is shown that, for sufficiently large particles and solid fractions, enhancement of the longitudinal dispersion coefficient due to the sorptive exchange can be significant and should be included in a comprehensive model.     

Vertical Mixing in the Fully Developed Turbulent Layer of Sediment-Laden Open-Channel Flow

Eulerian equations for the vertical flux and momentum of suspended particles in dilute sediment-laden open-channel flow in equilibrium have been derived using the two-fluid approach. Reynolds averaging has been applied in order to allow validation of individual terms with experimental data. Consideration of the various terms of the vertical momentum balance with experimental flume data indicates that the drag force has to be separated into a mean and a turbulent contribution with different timescales, respectively, the (gravitational) particle timescale and the integral turbulence timescale. The resulting formulation further provides a new theoretical closure for the turbulent Schmidt number.     

Prefabricated Vertical Drains Flow Resistance under Vacuum Conditions

The results of experimental research are presented and discussed with focus on the internal well resistance of prefabricated vertical drains (PVD) under vacuum-induced water flow. Measured results included fluid flow rates for two different cross-sectional hydraulic profiles (Types I and II PVDs). Experimental results indicated linear relationships, independent of the PVD widths, between extracted fluid velocity and the applied hydraulic gradient. Data showed a laminar flow regime to predominate for test velocities corresponding to hydraulic gradients <0.5. The larger nominal hydraulic radius of the Type II PVD is credited with providing a flow rate equal to approximately 3.2 times that of the Type I PVD at approximately the same operating total head. There was no apparent dependency of the transmissivity θ on the width or lengths (3, 4, and 5 m) of the PVDs tested. In the case of the 100-mm-wide Type I PVD, θ = 618 mm2∕s was estimated from the measured data versus θ = 1,996 mm2∕s for Type II PVD with the same dimensions.     

Experimental Study of Ice Jam Thickening under Dynamic Flow Conditions

River ice jams are a common occurrence on northern rivers, and their formation can present a severe flood risk to nearby communities. As more and more river regulation projects are developed to provide an alternative to fossil fuels for electrical power-generating capacity, our need to understand the mechanisms associated with ice jam formation under variable flow conditions becomes more vital. This is because, at present, hydropeaking operations are often severely curtailed during the ice-affected seasons due to concerns that sudden flow fluctuations might instigate ice jams and associated flooding. Here, an experimental investigation explores the effects of rapid increases in discharge on ice jam formation and evolution. It is found that the thickness of ice jams formed under highly dynamic flow conditions tend to be slightly thinner than those formed during steady carrier flows for comparable discharges. Also, despite the highly dynamic nature of these consolidation events, the resulting ice thicknesses appear reasonably well approximated by steady flow theory.     

Numerical Modelling of Semi‐Solid Flow under Processing Conditions

During the industrial process of semi‐solid forming (or thixoforming) of alloy slurries, typically the operation of die filling takes around 0.1s. During this time period the alloy slug is transformed from a solid‐like structure capable of maintaining its shape, into a liquid‐like slurry able to fill a complex die cavity: this involves a decrease in viscosity of some 6 orders of magnitude. Many attempts to measure thixotropic breakdown experimentally in alloy slurries have relied on the use of concentric cylindrical viscometers in which viscosity changes have been followed after shear rate changes over times above 1s to in excess of 1000 s, which have little relevance to actual processing conditions and therefore to modelling of flow in industrial practice. The present paper is an attempt to abstract thixotropic breakdown rates from rapid compression tests between parallel plates moving together at velocities of around 1m/s, similar to industrial conditions. From this analysis, a model of slurry flow has been developed in which rapid thixotropic breakdown of the slurry occurs at high shear rates.     

Modeling of Hyperconcentrated Sediment-Laden Floods in Lower Yellow River

This paper presents a rapid forecast model for simulating hyperconcentrated sediment-laden floods in the Lower Yellow River. The model is a hybrid of a conventional one-dimensional mathematical model for unsteady sediment-laden flow and an artificial neural networks model for encapsulation of numerical results. The former provides detailed river flood routing information under typical scenarios, whereas the latter extracts modeling outputs from the former and establishes a station-specific model for efficient flood forecasting. Three typical floods that occurred in the Lower Yellow River in 1977, 1982, and 1996 are simulated. Not only the hybrid model predictions are found to be in close agreement with measured data, but also the computational speed is significantly enhanced. It is found that sediment transport is of significance with regard to the flooding behavior of hyperconcentrated flows. Therefore, the model presented herein is of particular use for rivers with high sediment concentration.     

Laplace-Domain Solutions for Radial Two-Zone Flow Equations under the Conditions of Constant-Head and Partially Penetrating Well

A mathematical model is presented for a constant-head test performed in a partially penetrating well with a finite-thickness skin. The model uses a no-flow boundary condition for the casing and a constant-head boundary condition for the screen to represent the partially penetrating well. The Laplace-domain solutions for the dimensionless flow rate at the wellbore and the hydraulic heads in the skin and formation zones are derived using the Laplace and finite Fourier cosine transforms. The solutions of hydraulic heads have been shown to satisfy the governing equations, related boundary conditions, and continuity requirements for the pressure head and flow rate at the interface of the skin zone and undisturbed formation. In addition, an efficient algorithm for evaluating those solutions is also presented. The dimensionless flow rates obtained from new solutions have been shown to be better than those of Novakowski’s solutions, especially when the penetration ratio is large.     

Analysis of Velocity Lag in Sediment-Laden Open Channel Flows

Laboratory experiments have recently confirmed that the streamwise particle velocity is largely less than that of the fluid in sediment-laden flows. This velocity lag is investigated analytically in the present study based on the drag force exerting on a particle in the presence of other neighbors. The normalized drag force or the hindrance coefficient is found generally dependent on the particle concentration, particle Reynolds number, and specific gravity. The velocity lag is then derived by relating the hindrance coefficient to the shear stress distribution for uniform sediment-laden open channel flows. The analysis shows that the profile of the velocity lag, when normalized by the shear velocity, is associated with the shear Reynolds number, dimensionless particle diameter, and specific gravity. For the dilute condition, the velocity lag distribution varies only with the shear Reynolds number, and the lag can be ignored if the shear Reynolds number is less than unity. The theoretical predictions are comparable to limited experimental results.     

Minimum Specific Energy and Critical Flow Conditions in Open Channels

In open channels, the relationship between the specific energy and the flow depth exhibits a minimum, and the corresponding flow conditions are called critical flow conditions. Herein they are reanalyzed on the basis of the depth-averaged Bernoulli equation. At critical flow, there is only one possible flow depth, and a new analytical expression of that characteristic depth is developed for ideal-fluid flow situations with nonhydrostatic pressure distribution and nonuniform velocity distribution. The results are applied to relevant critical flow conditions: e.g., at the crest of a spillway. The finding may be applied to predict more accurately the discharge on weir and spillway crests.     

Self-Aeration and Friction over Rock Chutes in Uniform Flow Conditions

Interaction between the free surface and the bed material in flow over rock chutes under macroroughness conditions leads to a high air entrainment into the flow. The note reports on an experimental study about air diffusion features in the flow over a long rock chute. Air concentration profiles and water depths over a uniform bed material were measured. An empirical equation for the average air concentration in macroroughness condition for steep slopes is proposed. A new Darcy-Weisbach equivalent friction factor for long chutes as a function of the slope and the relative equivalent depth has also been found.     

Analysis of the Vertical Profile of Concentration in Sediment-Laden Flows

From a theoretical investigation of the sediment concentration distribution in sediment-laden flows, a relationship between the profile of sediment concentration and the intensity of vertical fluctuation of particles was established and indirectly verified using experimental data obtained in a vertical rectangular duct flow. It is shown that sediment suspension and the profile of sediment concentration are significantly influenced by the particle fluctuation. This leads to a new explanation for the mechanism of two patterns of sediment concentration profiles.     

Soil Moisture Flow Modeling with Water Uptake by Plants (Wheat) under Varying Soil and Moisture Conditions

A variably saturated soil moisture flow model is developed for planted soils with depth varying properties by incorporating a nonuniform macroscopic root water uptake function. The model includes spatial and temporal variation of the root density with dynamic root growth for simulating water uptake by plants along with the impact of soil moisture availability. The governing partial differential moisture flow equation integrated over the depth with a plant water uptake term is solved numerically by the implicit finite difference method using an iterative scheme. The model is first tested for barren soils for two profiles considering constant and depth varying soil characteristics under constant inflow condition. The results obtained are later tested with experimental data available in the literature. A nonuniform plant water uptake term is subsequently incorporated in the model and water uptake by wheat plants under different soil moisture availability conditions is studied. Finally, the moisture flow model is validated with field data of rain fed wheat (Triticum aestivum) using a dynamic root growth model for a layered root zone soil profile. The simulated soil moisture regime of the layered root zone shows a reasonably good agreement with the observed data.     

Flow Conditions of Undular Hydraulic Jumps in Horizontal Rectangular Channels

The flow conditions of undular jumps for fully developed inflow condition have been investigated systematically. If the inflow Froude number is larger than 1.2, an undular jump has lateral shock waves near the toe of the jump. For a narrow channel, the shock waves cross upstream of the first wave crest, and the flow conditions of undular jumps depend on the aspect ratio and the inflow Froude number. In contrast, for a wide channel the shock waves do not cross upstream of the first wave crest, and the flow conditions of undular jumps are independent of the aspect ratio. The flow conditions of undular jumps are classified by considering the cross position of the lateral shock waves and the inflow Froude number. Also, the hydraulic conditions for the formation of nonbreaking and breaking undular jumps are determined. The effect of the Reynolds number on undular-jump formations is discussed, and changes of the flow conditions with the Reynolds number are described.     

LBM-LES Simulation of the Transient Asymmetric Flow and Free Surface Fluctuations under Steady Operating Conditions of Slab Continuous Casting Process

Metallurgical and Materials Transactions B - Transient flow structures in a continuous casting mold can strongly influence the slag entrainment in liquid steel and the bubbles capture in the...     

Simultaneous Flow over and under a Gate

This paper reports the results of an investigation carried out to establish the stage-discharge relationship for a flow simultaneously discharging over and under a sluice or a broad-crested gate. The stage-discharge relationship is deduced by a theoretical analysis, based on the application of the Π-theorem of the dimensional analysis and the incomplete self-similarity theory, coupled with an experimental investigation carried out by using a laboratory flume.     

Combined Flow over Weir and under Gate

Problems related to sedimentation and deposition can be minimized by using a system where weirs and gates are combined. Given its applications, the hydraulics of simultaneous flow over weir and under gate, in particular, the determination of the stage–discharge relationship, is of interest. Although previous approaches have been based on regression or dimensional analysis, the current work describes a physically based approach. Models of sharp-edged weirs and gates with no lateral contraction are combined. To calibrate and validate the proposed model, experiments have been carried out in a laboratory flume applying different submergence conditions. It was found that the model is able to predict the stage–discharge relationship with reasonable accuracy.