Vertical Dense Effluent Discharge Modelling in Shallow Waters

Vertical dense effluent discharges are popular in outfall system designs. Vertical jets provide the opportunity to be efficient for a range of ambient currents, where the jet is pushed away so as not to fall on itself. This study focuses on the worst-case scenario of the dilution and mixing of such jets: vertical dense effluent discharges with no ambient current, in shallow water, where the jet impinges the water surface. This scenario provides conservative design criteria for such outfall systems. The numerical modelling of such jets has not been investigated before and this study provides novel insights into simulations of vertical dense effluent discharges in shallow waters. Turbulent vertical discharges with Froude numbers ranging from 9 to 24 were simulated using OpenFOAM. A Reynolds stress model (RSM) was applied to characterize the geometrical (i.e., maximum discharge rise Zm and lateral spread Rsp) and dilution μmin properties of such jets. Three flow regimes were reproduced numerically, based on the experimental data: deep, intermediate, and impinging flow regimes.