NEWFLUME: A numerical water flume for two-dimensional turbulent free surface flows

Abstract

A computer model has been developed to simulate general turbulent free surface flows. The model solves Reynolds equations for turbulent flows and employs the volume-of-fluid method to track free surfaces. Being the extension of the earlier works for simulating breaking waves [e.g., J. Fluid Mech. 359 (1998) 239; J. Waterway Port Coastal Ocean Engng. 125 (1999) 322], the current model has been generalized to simulate a wider range of free surface flows (e.g., surface waves, jets, and open channel flows) and their interaction with different types of bodies, impermeable or porous, stationary or in motion. The model essentially serves as a two-dimensional NumErical Water FLUME (NEWFLUME) for simulation of various flow phenomena. Compared with a physical wave flume, NEWFLUME is more efficient in problem setup and data acquisition. In this paper, the applications of NEWFLUME to different hydraulic problems are demonstrated with the use of a series of selected case studies. These case studies cover the fields of wave dynamics (e.g., wave overtopping over a seawall and wave forces on a submarine pipeline), open channel flows (e.g., dam break flows and hydraulic jumps), jet phenomena (e.g. plunging and submerged wall jets), and environmental flows (e.g., pollutant transport). It is proved that NEWFLUME is an accurate and useful tool for both scientific research and engineering design. © 2006 International Association of Hydraulic Engineering and Research.