Complex dam break simulation using the 2-D depth-averaged SPH flow model: a validation for tsunami application

Abstract

Dam break flow has a similar characteristic to the tsunami surge after the breaking wave. Therefore, it is often used in laboratory-scale experiments to study tsunamis and can be used as a benchmark for validating a numerical model. This paper presents a simulation of a complex dam break flow to validate the two-dimensional (2-D) depth-averaged Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) flow model which involves a non-submersible obstacle in the domain. The method can also be referred to as shallow-water equations SPH (SWE-SPH). With SPH, the wetting and drying interfaces are automatically solved without any additional trick or handling. Therefore, a dry bed dam break is specifically tested here. The numerical results are validated using experimental data from the literature. The model shows the ability to reproduce the flow fields, shocks, vortices and flow region transitions with reasonable accuracy compared to the experimental data, despite the vertical averaging process in the formulation. This model can be a robust tool for predicting the hazards caused by extreme floodings, such as dam breaks, flash floods and tsunamis in development planning.