Computational fluid dynamics modelling of boundary roughness in gravel‐bed rivers: an investigation of the effects of random variability in bed elevation

Results from a series of numerical simulations of two‐dimensional open‐channel flow, conducted using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code FLUENT, are compared with data quantifying the mean and turbulent characteristics of open‐channel flow over two contrasting gravel beds. Boundary roughness effects are represented using both the conventional wall function approach and a random elevation model that simulates the effects of supra‐grid‐scale roughness elements (e.g. particle clusters and small bedforms). Results obtained using the random elevation model are characterized by a peak in turbulent kinetic energy located well above the bed (typically at y/h = 0·1–0·3). This is consistent with the field data and in contrast to the results obtained using the wall function approach for which maximum turbulent kinetic energy levels occur at the bed. Use of the random elevation model to represent supra‐grid‐scale roughness also allows a reduction in the height of the near‐bed mesh cell and therefore offers some potential to overcome problems experienced by the wall function approach in flows characterized by high relative roughness. Despite these benefits, the results of simulations conducted using the random elevation model are sensitive to the horizontal and vertical mesh resolution. Increasing the horizontal mesh resolution results in an increase in the near‐bed velocity gradient and turbulent kinetic energy, effectively roughening the bed. Varying the vertical resolution of the mesh has little effect on simulated mean velocity profiles, but results in substantial changes to the shape of the turbulent kinetic energy profile. These findings have significant implications for the application of CFD within natural gravel‐bed channels, particularly with regard to issues of topographic data collection, roughness parameterization and the derivation of mesh‐independent solutions. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Characterization of the Structure of River-Bed Gravels Using Two-Dimensional Fractal Analysis

This paper is concerned with the application of fractal analysis to understand the structure of water-worked gravel-bed river surfaces. High resolution digital elevation models, acquired using digital photogrammetric methods, allowed the application of two-dimensional fractal methods. Previous gravel-bed river studies have been based upon sampled profiles and hence one-dimensional fractal characterisation. After basic testing that bed elevation increments are Gaussian, the paper uses two-dimensional variogram surfaces to derive directionally dependent estimates of fractal dimension. The results identify mixed fractal behavior with two characteristic fractal bands, one associated with the subgrain scale and one associated with the grain scale. The subgrain scale characteristics were isotropic and sensitive to decisions made during the data collection process. Thus, it was difficult to differentiate whether these characteristics were real facets of the surfaces studied. The second band was anisotropic and not sensitive to data collection issues. Fractal dimensions were greater in the downstream direction than in other directions suggesting that the effects of water working are to alter the level of surface organisation, by increasing surface irregularity and hence roughness. This is an important observation as it means that water-worked surfaces may have a distinct anisotropic signal, revealed when using a fractal type analysis.     

Estimation of drag coefficient over the western desert sector of the Indian summer monsoon trough

In the estimation of momentum fluxes over land surfaces by the bulk aerodynamic method, no unique value of the drag coefficient (C _D) is found in the literature. The drag coefficient is generally estimated from special observations at different parts of the world. In this study an attempt is made to estimate drag coefficient over the western desert sector of India using data sets of Monsoon Trough Boundary Layer Experiment (MONTBLEX) during the summer monsoon season of 1990. For this purpose, the fast and slow response data sets obtained simultaneously from a 30 m high micro-meteorological tower at Jodhpur are used. All the observations used in this study are confined to a wind speed regime of 2.5–9.0 ms⁻¹. A comparison of momentum fluxes computed by eddy correlation (direct estimation) with profile and bulk aerodynamic (C _D = 3.9 × 10⁻³, Garratt, 1977) methods revealed that though the nature of variation of the fluxes by all these methods is almost similar, both the indirect methods give an under-estimated value of the fluxes. The drag coefficient is estimated as a function of wind speed and surface stability by a multiple regression approach. An average value of the estimated drag coefficient is found to be of the order of 5.43 × 10⁻³. The estimated value ofC _D is validated with a set of independent observations and found to be quite satisfactory. The recomputed momentum fluxes by bulk aerodynamic method using the estimated drag coefficient are in close agreement with the directly estimated fluxes.     

The value ofC efor the Arabian Sea during summer monsoon

We estimate, from the moisture budget the bulk aerodynamic coefficient for latent heat flux (C _e) during the monsoon season over the central Arabian Sea. The average value ofC _eunder active monsoon conditions was found to be 2.25 × 10⁻³ which is nearly 60% higher than those previously used.     

岩石节理粗糙度系数的分形特征

岩石节理粗糙度系数JRC是估算节理抗剪强度和变形指标最重要的参数。通过对简易纵剖面仪获取的节理表面轮廓曲线的分形研究,讨论了节理表面轮廓曲线的自相似性和JRC的自相似性,并根据实测统计资料的分析,指出了分形理论研究JRC的适用条件和有效的使用方法。由实测统计资料的JRC尺寸效应自相似性分析,认为JRC尺寸效应具分形结构。本文介绍了一种确定JRC尺寸效应分维数D的方法,由此确定的分维数D具有明确的物理意义。     

On the Parameterisation of the Effective Roughness Length for Momentum Transfer over Heterogeneous Terrain

We develop a parameterisation for the effective roughness length of terrain that consists of a repeating sequence of patches, in which each patch is composed of strips of two roughness types. A numerical model with second-order closure in the turbulent stress is developed and used to show that: (i) the normalised Reynolds stress develops as a self-similar profile; (ii) the mixing-length parameterisation is a good first-order approximation to the Reynolds stress. These findings are used to characterise the blending layer, where the stress adjusts smoothly from its local surface value to its effective value aloft. Previous studies have assumed that this adjustment occurs abruptly at a single level, often called the blending height. The blending layer is shown to be characterised by height scales that arise naturally in linear models of surface layer flow over roughness changes, and calculations with the numerical model show that these height scales remain appropriate in the nonlinear regime. This concept of the blending layer allows the development of a new parameterisation of the effective roughness length, which gives values for the effective roughness length that are shown to compare well with both atmospheric measurements and values determined from the second-order model.     

Experimental analysis of reservoir release wave routing in upland boulder bed rivers

Reservoir release wave routing during 33 controlled reservoir releases, along 15 upland boulder bed river channel reaches, on five different regulated rivers were monitored to assess the importance of river channel roughness and reservoir release magnitude on reservoir release wave speeds. Wave speeds varied between 0.52 and 3.01 m s^?1. Reservoir release wave translation, steepening, and attenuation occurred. With high channel roughness values reservoir release wave arrival speed is retarded in comparison to peak stage and wave steepening occurs, but with a reduction in channel roughness reservoir release wave front arrival is accelerated producing attentuation. The threshold between reservoir release wave front attenuation and steepening occurs at a pre-release discharge/channel width of approximately 0.1, an index of channel roughness. The paper also demonstrates, via comparison of observed and calculated reservoir release wave speeds on the River Washburn, Yorkshire, the difficulty of accurately predicting flood wave movement in upland boulder bed channels using existing prediction equations. The calculated values, however, revealed systematic error with pre-release discharge and reservoir release magnitude. Apparently the equations fail to account for the effects of high channel roughness together with pressure gradient forces, induced by rapid rates of stage change on the rising limb of reservoir releases. In order to accurately predict reservoir release wave movement in regulated rivers, this paper demonstrates that hydraulic studies need to be undertaken and pre-release discharges prescribed to determine desired reservoir release wave routing behaviour. Manipulation of the reservoir release pattern at the dam alone, cannot dictate reservoir release wave front form downstream or wave speed.     

多频率多极化地表辐射参数化模型

发展了针对对地观测系统被动微波辐射计AMSR-E应用的裸露地表辐射模型。首先，利用1993年法国INRA地面试验数据对AIEM在宽波段高频率和大角度的辐射信号模拟能力进行评价。验证结果表明，AIEM模型模拟值与地面实测数据吻合很好，说明AIEM模型能很好模拟宽波段和大角度的辐射信号。在此基础上，用AIEM模型建立了一个针对AMSR-E传感器参数配置．包含各种地表粗糙度和介电特性的裸露地表辐射模拟数据库。利用AIEM模拟数据和地面实测数据对目前人们使用的半经验地表模型进行了比较和分析，发展了多频率多极化的地表辐射参数化模型——Qp模型。该模型中，地表粗糙度对辐射信号的影响通过粗糙度参数Qp来表示。参数Qp可简单表示为均方根高度与相关长度的比值（s／l）。从Qp模型与AIEM模型模拟的发射率比较结果来看，它们之间的绝对误差很小，不超过10^-3因而，本文发展的参数化模型可用作模拟地表辐射的前向模型，如用于估算AMSR-E传感器的亮温值，同时模型的发展有利于提高人们对辐射机制的理解和认识。     

Flow Over Hills with Variable Roughness

The effect of variable roughness length upon the flow characteristics over hills is investigated. The changes considered herein cover a range of flow configurations such as the change from a forested (rough) valley with a moderately smooth hilltop to a grassy valley (smooth) with a “spiky” (rough) mountain top. The effect of moving the roughness with respect to the hill is also considered. Although many of the flow features change when the position of the roughness change is varied with respect to the hill these changes have very little impact upon the global properties used within orographic drag parametrization schemes.     

Kinetics of bubble collision and attachment to hydrophobic solids: I. Effect of surface roughness

Influence of surface roughness of the Teflon plates on kinetics of the bubble attachment was studied. Phenomena occurring during collisions of the air bubble, rising in clean water, with Teflon plates, differing only in their surface roughness, were recorded and analysed using a high-speed camera. Variations of the local velocity of the bubble during the collisions and the time of the bubble attachment were determined. It was found that the Teflon surface roughness was the parameter of a crucial importance for the attachment time of the colliding bubble. Depending on degree of the surface roughness the time of the attachment varied by over order of magnitude (from 3 to over 80 ms). In the case the Teflon surfaces having roughness below 1 μm there were recorded four to five “approach–bounce” cycles prior to the bubble attachment. Moreover, after the first collision the rapid pulsations of the bubble shape (within fraction of millisecond) were recorded. For surfaces of roughness ca. 50 μm and larger the attachment always occurred during the first collision—there was no bouncing observed and the time of the attachment was below 3 ms. It was documented that presence of a micro-bubble at the surface facilitated attachment of the colliding bubble.