Flow in Sewers with Bottom Obstacles
Publication: Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 150, Issue 4
Abstract
This study conducted experiments to investigate the impact of bottom obstacles, specifically broad-crest weir-type and cylindrical obstacles, on the flow within a sewer pipe. It was observed that these two types of obstacles, when possessing the same cross-sectional area and length, exhibited nearly equivalent hydraulic responses for both supercritical and subcritical flows. The obstacle height was found to be the primary factor responsible for choking and the transition between different flow regimes. The results of the one-dimensional analysis show that the threshold value of obstacle height depends on the approaching flow conditions, including the Froude number and the filling ratio that is defined as the flow depth to the pipe diameter. In the context of a partially blocked sewer, the relationships established by using the one-dimensional model between the size of the bottom obstacle and the inflow characteristics enable the identification of flow regimes, assessment of reduced hydraulic capacity, and evaluation of local energy loss. The findings of this study elucidate the hydraulic behavior of obstructed sewers, contributing to the development of more effective strategies for the identification of obstructions through monitoring data.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.
Acknowledgments
This study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province (LY21E090003). The study was also partially funded by the National Key R&D Program of China (2022YFC3203200) and the Key Research and Development Program of Zhejiang Province (2020C03082). The authors express their gratitude to the anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments and suggestions.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 150 • Issue 4 • July 2024
Copyright
© 2024 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Apr 13, 2023
Accepted: Jan 4, 2024
Published online: Mar 25, 2024
Published in print: Jul 1, 2024
Discussion open until: Aug 25, 2024
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Barriers (by type)
- Engineering fundamentals
- Flow (fluid dynamics)
- Fluid dynamics
- Fluid mechanics
- Hydraulic engineering
- Hydraulic models
- Hydraulics
- Hydrologic engineering
- Infrastructure
- Lifeline systems
- Models (by type)
- One-dimensional flow
- Pipe blockage
- Pipeline management
- Pipeline systems
- Pipes
- Protective structures
- Sewer pipes
- Sewers
- Steel pipes
- Structural engineering
- Structures (by type)
- Water and water resources
- Weirs
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