Investigation of Supercritical Flow and Shape of Flip Bucket Spillways on Coefficients of Dynamic Pressure

Abstract

Pressure fluctuation is one of the major turbulent flow characteristics. It may cause crucial problems for hydraulic structures. This research is based on experimental studies, and it focuses on the measurements of pressure fluctuations along flip bucket spillways with different geometrical characteristics. The function of the flip bucket spillway is discharging floods from reservoir dams which are energy storage source measurements of dynamic pressures on three different models of flip buckets that were performed for this investigation. Pressure fluctuation of the flip buckets have been measured within a range of Froude numbers from 5 to 13 (Fr = u/gy, where u is the flow speed, y is the depth, and g is 9.81 m/s2). Statistical characteristics of pressure fluctuations, the location, and the values of maximum and minimum fluctuations have also supplemented the study. The results show that the coefficients of pressure fluctuations (Cp = RMS/(0.5(u2/g)) where RMS is the root-mean-square of pressure fluctuation, u is the flow speed, and g is 9.81 m/s2) reduce as the Froude number (Fr) of flow increases, except a maximum Froude number. Pressure coefficients increase along the flip bucket with incremental mutations in the transformation area of the flip bucket. In the middle part of the flip bucket spillway, pressure coefficient values decrease. Additionally, as B/r (B is the width of the flip bucket and r is the radius of the flip bucket) ratio increases, pressure coefficients become larger and this process continues along the flip bucket.