Simulation of Supercritical Bend Flow through an Open Channel

The present work investigates turbulent supercritical (Froude Number>1) bend flow through an open channel. The CFD-based model, ANSYS FLUENT version 13.0, is used to solve the threedimensional (3D) continuity and Navier-Stokes equations. The standard k =ε turbulence model is considered for the investigation. The model is applied to the channel bend geometry as described in a published experimental work. Results in the form of velocity profiles and non-dimensional water depths are obtained and compared with the already published experimental findings. The results obtained through the present work as compared to the published ones indicate that three-dimensional modelling technique plays a significant role in the entire endeavour and, thus, the three-dimensional approach makes highly-improved predictions. Also, the three-dimensional simulation indicates the existence of a nonlinear gradient of water depth as the water flows through the bend.