A finite volume solution for a ring tank failure parametric study

Abstract

A dam break analysis of ring tanks was carried out using an advanced 2-dimensional (pseudo 3D depth-averaged) finite volume numerical modelling algorithm. The objective was to determine the maximum extent of the Failure Impact Zone (where water flow depth exceeded 300 mm) for a range of embankment heights, storage volumes, flood plain bed slopes and Manning roughness coefficients. Combining the ranges of these parameters resulted in 72 cases having been examined. The resulting data were analysed using a statistical package and a predictive equation was developed that allowed for the interpolation of the numerical experimental data.

Keywords:

• Dam break
• finite volume method
• numerical modeling
• ring tank

Additional information

Notes on contributors

A F Nielsen

Lex Nielsen graduated from the University of Sydney (BE Civil) in 1973 and the University of New South Wales (MEngSc Coastal) in 1984. He commenced his professional career with New South Wales Public Works Department in the Harbours Section of the Engineering Design Branch and, subsequently, undertook investigations in the Coastal Branch. For seven years from 1987 he was a director of GEOMARINE P/L, a specialist coastal engineering consulting practice. From 1994 to 2000 he was consulting through UNISEARCH at the UNSW Water Research Laboratory and, since January 2001, he has been Manager, Coastal and Fluid Dynamics at SMEC Australia.

C A Adamantidis

Chris Adamantidis holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Environmental) and a Master of Engineering Science (Water Engineering) from the University of New South Wales. Chris began his professional career in 1996 at the Water Research Laboratory UNSW and joined SMEC Australia in September 2001. His experience has incorporated hydrological, water quality, coastal and hydraulic studies involving both physical and numerical modelling.

S G Roberts

Stephen Roberts is Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematics at the Australian National University. His research area is the interaction of computational mathematics with application areas. In particular, he has investigated partial differential equation methods (PDE) for function estimation, methods for solving fluid flow problems, finite element methods for the solution of geometric flows as well as the implementation of algorithms for the solution of PDE’s on parallel computers. In 1985, he obtained his PhD in mathematics from the University of California, Berkeley.