Computational Modeling of a Scaled Structure with Skimming flow Using the Ansys - Fluent modeling Software

In this research, the results of the computational modeling of stepped structures using the Ansys - Fluent software are presented. Modeling was carried out in two and three dimensions for different configurations of footprint and riser of the structure and for different flow rates. This investigation allows to identify, quantify and define the main hydraulic characteristics of a flow through a stepped structure taking as reference the concepts of skimming flow. The study allows to analyze, for different flow rates, the pressure distributions in the steps, the variation of the flow profiles in the structure, the distribution of speeds, the quantification of the energy losses in each step and the variation of the energy at the end of the structure. The computational model was validated from experimental data from three physical models instrumented in the laboratory of the Centro de Estudios Hidráulicos de la Escuela Colombiana de Ingeniería. With the results obtained from physical and computational modeling, a general methodology is proposed to establish the most appropriate geometry of a stepped.