Numerical simulation of hydrodynamics in dual-drain aquaculture tanks with different tank structures

Abstract

This study aims to improve the flow field uniformity in the aquaculture tank; the right angle of the square tank was optimized with the arc angle. Moreover, the three-dimensional numerical simulations of the flow field characteristics in the dual-drain tanks were performed based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) technology. The hydrodynamic conditions in tanks with different relative arc to width ratios (R/B) were evaluated and compared to the same better flow pattern in octagonal tanks. The simulation results depicted that the hydrodynamic characteristics of square arc angle tanks with 0.2 ≤ R/B < 0.4 are better than those with other relative arcs to width ratios. Moreover, when compared to octagonal tanks with the same space utilization rate, square arc angle tanks have a relative advantage. The results demonstrated that the square tanks' advantages and the circular tanks in terms of space utilization rate and flow pattern are effectively combined in the square arc angle tanks with 0.2 ≤ R/B < 0.4. It also can potentially promote the application in the recirculating aquaculture industry aggressively.