We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
Decoding the Drowning Machines: Using CFD Modeling to Predict and Design Solutions to Remediate the Dangerous Hydraulic Roller at Low Head Dams.
- Authors
DEVADASON, BENJAMIN ISRAEL; SCHWEIGER, PAUL
- Abstract
Hundreds of deaths have occurred at low head dams throughout the United States because of improper understanding of the hazardous hydraulic condition at these dams. A transient recirculating current (submerged hydraulic jump) can develop immediately downstream that can trap and drown victims. More than 50 deaths have occurred at low head dams in the US within the past two years alone. Some dams, like the Dock Street Dam in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, have claimed more than 30 lives. With an increasing number of fatalities occurring at these dams, the need for dam owners and engineers to identify and mitigate hydraulic hazards at low head dams is urgent. Public safety at low head dams starts with a proper awareness and understanding of the hydraulic hazards at the site. Once identified and defined, these hazards can be addressed with a variety of strategies ranging from creating exclusion zones using warning signs and buoys, to eliminating the hazard with structural modifications. Until recently the only way to evaluate the complex three-dimensional flow conditions at a low head dam was with a physical model study. Conventional numerical hydraulic analyses using one-dimensional and two-dimensional models are unable to simulate the three-dimensional complex transient flow conditions that occur at these dams. Structural modification to eliminate the hazards was therefore often based on rules of thumb or best judgment. Recent advances in three-dimensional Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) now provide a powerful and economical approach to simulate complex hydraulic conditions that occur at low head dams. A feature of CFD modeling is the ability to simulate floating objects, including human prototypes trapped in recirculating currents, and to provide visual output that can display complex hydraulic data in a manner that is easily understood by first responders, government officials, and the public. This paper demonstrates how CFD modeling can be used to evaluate the complex hazardous hydraulic environment at low head dams. A CFD modeling case study at a low head dam that has claimed 30 lives is presented to illustrate the hydraulic hazard. CFD modeling used as a tool to confirm the effectiveness of structural modifications to remediate hydraulic hazards is also discussed.
- Subjects
HARRISBURG (Pa.); DAM failures; EARTH dams; DAMS; HYDRAULIC jump; COMPUTATIONAL fluid dynamics; THREE-dimensional flow; TWO-dimensional models
- Publication
Journal of Dam Safety, 2020, Vol 17, Issue 1, p20
- ISSN
1944-9836
- Publication type
Article