Numerical study on the hydrodynamic load of a new large-scale floating barrage pump station with a single-gate configuration

Abstract

The water gates and pump stations of traditional pump gate water conservancy hubs are usually nonintegrated, facing difficulties in occupying large waterway areas, inconvenient integrated intelligent control, and poor urban construction aesthetics. Therefore, the floating pump station at the mouth of Suzhou River was taken as an example and proposes a new type of integrated pump gate: a large-scale floating barrage pump station with a single-gate configuration. However, the lateral thrust power of the pump station and its impact on riverbed silt during operation are not yet clear. Therefore, this study calculates the hydrodynamic load of the pump station from the perspective of flow analysis, and the numerical simulation study was conducted using the RANS solver in conjunction with the VOF multiphase flow model. This research aimed to predict the force conditions experienced by the pump station during shut-down, start-up, and door-closed dredging operations, as well as to analyze the characteristics of the upstream and downstream flow fields. The findings revealed that: during the uniform closure process of the pump station, its hydrodynamic load shows a nonlinear increase; enlarging the gap between the bottom of the vessel and the riverbed can reduce the hydrodynamic load; the side thrust required for the pump station′s door-opening process is positively correlated with the water level of the river; during the pump station′s dredging process, the greater the distance between the bottom of the floating vessel and the riverbed, the larger the effective dredging range that can be achieved. The result indicate that the clearance between the bottom of the pump station, the flap of the water pump, and the lateral thrust power need to be adjusted and coordinated in a timely manner during the process of opening and closing the valve. At the same time, the conclusion can provide reference for risk assessment and resource management of similar engineering projects.

Keywords

floating ship pump station / numerical simulation / hydrodynamic load / flow field characteristics