Direct numerical simulation of sediment transport in turbulent open channel flow using the lattice Boltzmann method

Abstract

The lattice Boltzmann method is employed to conduct direct numerical simulations of turbulent open channel flows with the presence of finite-size spherical sediment particles. The uni-form particles have a diameter of approximately 18 wall units and a density of ρp = 2.65ρf, where ρp and ρf are the particle and fluid densities, respectively. Three low particle volume fractions φ = 0.11%, 0.22%, and 0.44% are used to investigate the particle-turbulence interactions. Simulation results indicate that particles are found to result in a more isotropic distribution of fluid turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) among different velocity components, and a more homogeneous distribution of the fluid TKE in the wall-normal direction. Particles tend to accumulate in the near-wall region due to the settling effect and they preferentially reside in low-speed streaks. The vertical particle volume fraction profiles are self-similar when normalized by the total particle volume fractions. Moreover, several typical transport modes of the sediment particles, such as resuspension, saltation, and rolling, are captured by tracking the trajectories of particles. Finally, the vertical profiles of particle concentration are shown to be consistent with a kinetic model.