Experimental investigation of dynamic pressure loads during dam break

The objective of this research work has been to conduct experimental measurements on a dam break flow over a horizontal dry bed in order to provide a detailed insight, with emphasis on the pressure loads, into the dynamics of the dam break wave impacting a vertical wall downstream the dam. The experimental setup is described in detail, comprising state of the art miniaturized pressure sensors, high sampling rate data acquisition systems and high frame-rate video camera. It is a 1:2 scale of the highly cited (Lee et al., 2002, Journal of Fluids Engineering, 124) article experimental apparatus. Kinematics has been analyzed focusing on the free surface and wave front evolution. Experimental observations regarding liquid height and wave front speed have found to be in agreement with existing literature. This agreement enables the authors, assuming a similar framework, to discuss the measured pressure loads as a consequence of the dam break wave front impacting on the downstream wall. These loads show a substantial variability which has been statistically characterized. The measured quantities have been compared with the scarce available data in the literature, whose consistency is discussed. Measurements have been conducted with two filling heights. Scaling effects for such heights are also analyzed. As a direct result of the present initiative, an extensive set of data for computational tools validation is provided as Supplementary Materials, including pressure signals, wave height measurements and experimental videos.     

Experimental measurements of flow and flame spread in the development of a fire testing facility

A fire testing facility named the “MSU Fire Tunnel” has been developed. The intent was to devise a testing apparatus that controlled the flow of oxidizing gas in the tunnel to an extent not heretofore accomplished. A novel approach was developed for mounting the flame-spread samples flush with the surface of an “airfoil”. This method avoids previous complications of determining the exact position of the leading edge of the velocity boundary layer. Data were gathered for the flow field using hot-wire anemometry. These data indicated that a zero-pressure gradient Blasius boundary layer flow was established along the airfoil and fuel sample surfaces. Opposed-flow flame-spread tests were conducted and correlations were produced that support the predictive capacity of this apparatus. It was shown that the opposed flow flame-spread data allowed distinctions to be made between correlations of previous researchers. No such comparisons were formerly possible. A finite-chemistry correlation was shown to be consistent with, and similar to, correlations derived in the previous work.     

On pressure separation algorithms (PSepA) for improving the accuracy of incompressible flow simulations

We investigate a special technique called ‘pressure separation algorithm’ (PSepA) (see Applied Mathematics and Computation 2005; 165 :275–290 for an introduction) that is able to significantly improve the accuracy of incompressible flow simulations for problems with large pressure gradients. In our numerical studies with the computational fluid dynamics package FEATFLOW ( www.featflow.de ), we mainly focus on low‐order Stokes elements with nonconforming finite element approximations for the velocity and piecewise constant pressure functions. However, preliminary numerical tests show that this advantageous behavior can also be obtained for higher‐order discretizations, for instance, with Q₂/P₁ finite elements. We analyze the application of this simple, but very efficient, algorithm to several stationary and nonstationary benchmark configurations in 2D and 3D (driven cavity and flow around obstacles), and we also demonstrate its effect to spurious velocities in multiphase flow simulations (‘static bubble’ configuration) if combined with edge‐oriented, resp., interior penalty finite element method stabilization techniques. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

逆压梯度边界层未分离情况下的湍流模式适用性研究Turbulence model applicability for boundary layer flow with adverse pressure gradient in attached case

边界层逆压梯度作用下的流动是许多工程中的一个基础问题,由于逆压梯度作用,流动形态复杂,使得数值模拟有很大的难度。基于雷诺平均纳维‐斯托克斯RANS（Reynolds Averaged Navier‐Stokes）方程对二维平板逆压梯度边界层作数值计算研究,选取6种代表性的湍流模式,得到局部摩擦系数的数值解,与实验值比较,发现k‐ω模式具有很好的精度。基于该湍流模式,给出了湍动能分布,该结果有助于认识逆压梯度边界层流动的复杂特征。     

Effect of the boundary layer on the base pressure in a two-dimensional flow with a Mach number M = 5

New data on the base pressure in a two-dimensional ow with a Mach number M = 5 are obtained for a wide range of variation of the normalized boundary-layer thickness in the flow-separation cross section. The test results are compared with Tanner’s theory, and a conclusion is made that this numerical model has to be corrected. __________ Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika i Tekhnicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 46, No. 3, pp. 23–28, May–June, 2005.     

Some new results of the observation on the coherent structures of turbulent boundary layer in flow with adverse pressure gradient

By a suitable manipulation of hydrogen bubble generation, some new results were obtained: (1) The long-streaks are generated along the interfaces between low and high-speed streaks. The long-streaks are generally stretching and are moving faster than its neighboring high-speed streaks. The hydrogen bubbles in long-streaks have longer life. (2) The stream-wise vortices are also generated along the interfaces. The project is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China.     

Lie-group method of solution for steady two-dimensional boundary-layer stagnation-point flow towards a heated stretching sheet placed in a porous medium

The boundary-layer equations for two-dimensional steady flow of an incompressible, viscous fluid near a stagnation point at a heated stretching sheet placed in a porous medium are considered. We apply Lie-group method for determining symmetry reductions of partial differential equations. Lie-group method starts out with a general infinitesimal group of transformations under which the given partial differential equations are invariant. The determining equations are a set of linear differential equations, the solution of which gives the transformation function or the infinitesimals of the dependent and independent variables. After the group has been determined, a solution to the given partial differential equations may be found from the invariant surface condition such that its solution leads to similarity variables that reduce the number of independent variables of the system. The effect of the velocity parameter λ, which is the ratio of the external free stream velocity to the stretching surface velocity, permeability parameter of the porous medium k ₁, and Prandtl number Pr on the horizontal and transverse velocities, temperature profiles, surface heat flux and the wall shear stress, has been studied.     

Outflow boundary conditions for one-dimensional finite element modeling of blood flow and pressure waves in arteries

Flow and pressure waves, originating due to the contraction of the heart, propagate along the deformable vessels and reflect due to tapering, branching, and other discontinuities. The size and complexity of the cardiovascular system necessitate a “multiscale” approach, with “upstream” regions of interest (large arteries) coupled to reduced-order models of “downstream” vessels. Previous efforts to couple upstream and downstream domains have included specifying resistance and impedance outflow boundary conditions for the nonlinear one-dimensional wave propagation equations and iterative coupling between three-dimensional and one-dimensional numerical methods. We have developed a new approach to solve the one-dimensional nonlinear equations of blood flow in elastic vessels utilizing a space-time finite element method with GLS-stabilization for the upstream domain, and a boundary term to couple to the downstream domain. The outflow boundary conditions are derived following an approach analogous to the Dirichlet-to-Neumann (DtN) method. In the downstream domain, we solve simplified zero/one-dimensional equations to derive relationships between pressure and flow accommodating periodic and transient phenomena with a consistent formulation for different boundary condition types. In this paper, we also present a new boundary condition that accommodates transient phenomena based on a Green’s function solution of the linear, damped wave equation in the downstream domain.     

Characteristics of the critical heat flux for downward flow in a vertical tube at low flow rate and low pressure conditions

The characteristics of the critical heat flux (CHF) for downward flow were studied experimentally with an Inconel 600 circular tube test section in a water test loop at low-flow rate (0 200 kg/m²s) and low-pressure (0.1 0.7 MPa) conditions. The attention was given to the effects of upstream conditions—upper plenum and inlet throttling. Two totally different kinds of CHF behaviors were observed. It seems appropriate to interpret them as flooding-type CHF and dryout in annular flow. The CHF in downward flow may vary from extremely unstable flow CHF as low as near the flooding CHF value to stable flow CHF as high as that of upflow, depending on the upstream conditions of the test section. The CHF correlation by Mishima and that by Weber were proposed for the presentation of the lower and upper limits of the CHF for downward flow in a vertical tube at low-flow rate and low-pressure conditions.     

Development of temporal and spatial high‐order schemes for two‐fluid seven‐equation two‐pressure model and its applications in two‐phase flow benchmark problems

Current existing main nuclear thermal‐hydraulics (T‐H) system analysis codes, such as RALAP5, TRACE, and CATHARE, play a crucial role in the nuclear engineering field for the design and safety analysis of nuclear reactor systems. However, two‐fluid model used in these T‐H system analysis codes is ill posed, easily leading to numerical oscillations, and the classical first‐order methods for temporal and special discretization are widely employed for numerical simulations, yielding excessive numerical diffusion. Two‐fluid seven‐equation two‐pressure model is of particular interest due to the inherent well‐posed advantage. Moreover, high‐order accuracy schemes have also attracted great attention to overcome the challenge of serious numerical diffusion induced by low‐order time and space schemes for accurately simulating nuclear T‐H problems. In this paper, the semi‐implicit solution algorithm with high‐order accuracy in space and time is developed for this well‐posed two‐fluid model and the robustness and accuracy are verified and assessed against several important two‐phase flow benchmark tests in the nuclear engineering T‐H field, which include two linear advection problems, the oscillation problem of the liquid column, the Ransom water faucet problem, the reversed water faucet problem, and the two‐phase shock tube problem. The following conclusions are achieved. (1) The proposed semi‐implicit solution algorithm is robust in solving two‐phase flows, even for fast transients and discontinuous solutions. (2) High‐order schemes in both time and space could prevent excessive numerical diffusion effectively and the numerical simulation results are more accurate than those of first‐order time and space schemes, which demonstrates the advantage of using high‐order schemes.