Numerical simulation of sandy bed erosion by 2D vertical jet

A two-dimensional numerical model of vertical jet scour was developed based on the turbulent flow theory and jet scour mechanism. In this model, drag force acts as the main reference variable and the critical Shields number acts as the incipient motion criteria of sediment. The morphological change in the bed caused by bed-load transport is simulated using the moving mesh method and the suspended-load is not considered. An experiment investigating vertical clear water jet scour was conducted in the laboratory, and some effective experimental results, such as flow patterns and distribution characteristics of scour pits, were obtained. Numerical simulation of the 2D jet scour was conducted using the same parameters as were used in the flume experiment. The evolution process of the jet scour observed in the experiment was simulated by the new model; validation of the numerical model and the algorithm was conducted. Semi-empirical formulas of the characteristic length of the equilibrium scour hole were deduced based on the results of the experiment and simulation.