Application of Turbulence Models to Separated Flow Over Rough Surfaces

Abstract

Principal results of classical experiments on the effects of sandgrain roughness are briefly reviewed, along with various models that have been proposed to account for these effects in numerical solutions of the fluid-flow equations. Two models that resolve the near-wall flow are applied to the flow in a two-dimensional, rough-wall channel. Comparisons with analytical results embodied in the well-known Moody diagram show that the k–ω model of Wilcox performs remarkably well over a wide range of roughness values, while a modified two-layer k–ε based model requires further refinement. The k–ω model is applied to water flow over a fixed sand dune for which extensive experimental data are available. The solutions are found to be in agreement with data, including the flow in the separation eddy and its recovery after reattachment. The results suggest that this modeling approach may be extended to other types of surface roughness, and to more complex flows.