Hydraulic simulation with 3D computational fluid dynamic modelling in a flood event

The concept of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and its applications can date back as early as the 1960s. Over the years, due to the development of both theoretical research and computer technologies, design engineers and researchers have found CFD to be a very useful tool for complex problems where manual calculations are neither sufficient nor possible.

This paper reveals an example of CFD modelling in Ansys CFX to simulate a 200-year return period for a river flood event at a powerhouse site where there are combined effects of a hydraulic jump at a wall fall and water backup by a narrow canyon. This paper also introduces the model assumption and methodology, explains meshing technology and boundary conditions and reviews model results. In addition, it covers model verification techniques.

Although this paper is an example of applying CFD in a river flood simulation, a similar methodology and concept have been applied in many other applications and industries, which are listed at the end of this paper.