Padilla Ortiz, Christian

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    Modeling open channel flow at the confluence of lateral discharging pipes into receiving channels
    (2024-07-10) Padilla Ortiz, Christian; Silva Araya, Walter; College of Engineering; Aponte Bermúdez, Luis; Pagán Trinidad, Ismael; Department of Civil Engineering; George, Dibin
    Storm runoff from major and minor systems is often discharged into water bodies through lateral conduits, mimicking natural river confluence phenomena. This forms a flowing body of water with new hydraulic conditions. The interaction between storm sewer outlets and receiving water bodies presents challenges in engineering design, particularly regarding flow conditions and elevation changes. Few storm sewer design manuals consider and regulate the confluence due to the lateral drainage pipe. Despite the availability of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software, which is accurate but varies in terms of time and computational power costs, practical solutions for engineers remain limited. The objective of this study is to determine the hydraulic behavior of storm sewer discharges in receiving water bodies flowing like open channels. By leveraging advancements in computer processing power, the research seeks to develop practical guidelines and design aids for engineers to assess storm sewer outlets’ hydraulics at junctions using more accessible 1D models. Confluence flow behavior was captured using the OpenFOAM CFD model. The results are presented as normalized contour maps for three junction angle configurations: 30, 60, and 90 degrees. These show how a change in the confluence angle affects the overall water levels within the channel by increasing and decreasing them in certain critical areas around the confluence point. Velocities and water levels downstream show change depending on the initial flow regime where subcritical flow increases the Froude number at lower angles and supercritical flow decreases the Froude number at higher angles. Given these findings, increases in channel wall shear stress and overtopping can occur depending on the confluence angle.