Hydrodynamics and secondary currents in an asymmetrical rectangular canal with streamwise beam

Abstract

While the literature on transverse beams in open channels is broad, there is comparatively less understanding of the hydrodynamics of channels with streamwise ribs. In the current study, an asymmetrical canal with a sidewall longitudinal beam was studied experimentally to gain some fundamental understanding of the implications in terms of turbulence and environmental applications. The sidewall beam induced regular losses along the canal, with a complicated velocity field and secondary currents. The data showed a contrasted longitudinal velocity map, with high and low velocity zones. The lowest velocities were typically recorded underneath the sidewall beam. Complicated secondary currents of Prandtl’s second kind developed in the inner and outer corners of the beams, as well as in the square cavity underneath.