Low Energy Dissipation Research Articles

Responses of hydrodynamics to changes in shoreline and bathymetry in the Pearl River Estuary, China

Numerous estuaries worldwide have been modified in the past decades by human interventions. The shoreline and bathymetry in the Pearl River Estuary (PRE) have changed greatly over the past 40 years due to the influence of land reclamation and waterway dredging, which have resulted in the corresponding adjustment of its hydrodynamics. Utilizing the ROMS numerical model, this paper studies the hydrodynamic responses to changes in shoreline and bathymetry in the PRE from 1971 to 2012. The results show that, on one hand, during neap tide, the change in the shoreline makes the residual current in the West Channel (WC) increase by 0.10 (0.05) m/s at maximum in the surface (near bottom) layer. Therefore, the exchange flow increases by 9.5% and the longitudinal circulation strengthens. The surface isohalines move southward up to 18 km, but the bottom isohalines move northward ∼2 km in the WC and East Channel (EC), which is different from the previous conclusion that the seaward extension of coastlines inhibits saltwater intrusion. The decrease in salinity in the upper layer reduces the upper seaward salt transport, resulting in a larger net landward salt transport from 25.21 × 103 kg/s to 35.44 × 103 kg/s. During spring tide, the changes are relatively weaker, but the direction of salt transport changes to seaward and the net seaward transport also increases. Moreover, the change in shoreline reduces the water area and volume in the PRE by 21.3% and 15.6% respectively, which causes a reduction of 11.3% (17.1%) in tidal prism during spring (neap) tide. The wave celerity is enhanced (>23%) and the amplification of semidiurnal tide is strengthened (>20%) in the WC and West Shoal (WS). The reduction in tidal prism together with the strengthened reflection of tidal waves with a larger phase lag between elevation and velocity of M2 tidal component cause a significant decrease of 19.0% in tidal energy flux entering the PRE. However, the tidal range increases by ∼0.30 m (mainly due to the increase in M2 tidal amplitude) in the EC, which is induced by lower tidal energy dissipation there. On the other hand, during neap tide, the change in bathymetry greatly enhances the bottom landward residual current whose peak value increases by 80% in the WC, thereby increasing approximately 14 km of the intrusion distance of saline water, enhancing the exchange flow by 27.5% and strengthening the longitudinal circulation. The net landward salt transport increases to 38.39 × 103 kg/s. The results during spring tide are similar to those during neap tide but with smaller changes, and the net seaward salt transport decreases. Moreover, the wave celerity is slightly reduced (<8%) and the amplification of semidiurnal tide is also decreased (<10%) in the WC and WS. Meanwhile, the change in bathymetry only decreases the water volume by 4.7%, leading to a relatively smaller effect on the tidal prism, and it strengthens (weakens) the reflection of tidal waves in the West Shoal and Middle Shoal (WC and EC), resulting in a slight reduction in tidal energy flux entering the bay. In the WC, the tidal range is basically unchanged since the increased tidal energy flux is offset by the increased dissipation. The quantitative results obtained in this study may provide some references for the development and protection of the PRE and other estuaries that are subject to strong human interventions.

Behaviour of fully encased composite columns under cyclic loads

AbstractConcrete and steel have different advantages, concrete has high compression strength and low cost while steel has high tensile strength, rigidity and ductility. Composite members have other beneficial qualities beside all of them. Composite columns are used extensively in modern buildings essentially in industrial buildings. The main purpose of this study is an analysis and a comparison between the responses (load‐displacements) of different types of composite columns under cyclic loads. For this purpose, a three‐dimensional (3D) finite element model is developed for the columns, the finite element analysis of composite columns is carried out by using ANSYS code. The numerical model considers the elasto‐plasticity of materials and the non‐linearity of contact friction. It is interesting to observe a large ductility of these composite elements and the efficiency of some types of the composite columns than others. The aim of the study is to analyze the encased composite columns under cyclic loads focused on the different type of steel section. The parameters studied are the influence of axial load levels, skeleton curve, ductility, energy dissipation and the peak lateral load also carried out. The results indicate that the first columns of the specimens have a low specimen energy dissipation due the durability of the columns is higher than the axial load applied, and for better ductility and energy dissipation the axial load level of fully encased composite columns should be limited to approximately a value of 0.6.

Tribological Properties of Micropored Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) Hydrogels in a Biomimetic Aqueous Environment.

The applications of hydrogels in tissue engineering as implants have rapidly grown in the last decade. However, the tribological properties of hydrogels under physiologically relevant conditions, especially those of textured hydrogels, have remained largely unknown due to the complexity of their mechanical and chemical properties. In this study, we experimentally investigated the tribological properties of micopored poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (pHEMA) with the lateral pore dimensions varied compared to untextured pHEMA, the most commonly used hydrogel in ophthalmology, under physiologically relevant conditions. The pHEMA specimens were slid against a smooth glass curve under varying loads (6-60 mN, leading to an average contact pressure of 10-21 kPa) and sliding speeds (1-10 mm/s) in phosphate-buffered saline (pH 7.4) at 33 °C to mimic the physiological conditions in human eyes. At relatively low loads and sliding speeds (e.g., 6 mN and 1 mm/s), the micopored pHEMA did not reduce the dissipated frictional energy significantly. However, at relatively high loads and sliding speeds (e.g., 60 mN and 100 mm/s), the micopored pHEMA resulted in significantly lower frictional energy (reduced by up to 68%) dissipation than the untextured pHEMA. The effect was more pronounced with the micropores with smaller dimensions. These are attributed to the greater amount and retentivity of the interfacial fluid supported by the free water squeezed out of the micropores with the smaller dimensions under the higher load and sliding speed. These results suggest that the use of micropore texturing on hydrogels in practice, such as for ocular applications, can be leveraged to reduce friction and wear under physiological conditions and hence lower the chance of inflammation near eye implants or keratoprosthesis.

Non-linear mechanical properties and dynamic response of silicon nitride bioceramic

Natural spinal tissues have unique dynamic properties and it is crucial to investigate the full dynamic response of spinal implants and related biomedical materials to ensure compatibility with the host tissue. Silicon nitride is a promising bioceramic for spinal implants. In this study, the mechanical properties and dynamic response of silicon nitride were comprehensively evaluated using novel and efficient testing methods, at both the material and structural level. The correlation between mechanical properties and porosity was investigated and the results showed that Young's modulus and compressive strength decreased non-linearly as porosity increased. Both the compressive strength (100.35±3.39MPa) and fracture toughness (1.06±0.06MPa⋅m1/2) of the porous silicon nitride samples (~70% porosity) can be considered sufficient for load bearing purposes as a substitute for trabecular bone. Moreover, the results from a drop tower test showed that the average ultimate strength of the scaffolds under an impact loading was significantly lower than the strength under quasi-static compression. Nevertheless, this value is still comparable to that of trabecular bone. Regarding damping capacity, the results of free damped vibration tests of cantilever beams showed that a silicon nitride beam has a higher damping ratio (0.17%±0.01%) than a zirconia beam (0.13%±0.01%), which indicates that ceramics with similar Young's moduli can have different energy dissipating capacities. However, both dense and porous silicon nitride showed a low energy dissipation, substantially lower than natural spinal tissues. Overall, dense silicon nitride possesses a high stiffness, and altering the porosity of silicon nitride is one option to tailor its mechanical properties towards those of trabecular bone, however, more effort is required to increase its damping capacity, if this is a desired trait.

Turbulence in cavity acoustic black hole

In this paper, we adopt both numerical and experimental approaches to investigate the turbulent flow in a cavity Acoustic Black Hole (ABH), and the low frequency sound energy dissipation mechanism under turbulence. Through the simulation by thermoviscous acoustic module, we deeply study the turbulent development process of the fluid acoustic medium in the cavity ABH, and how the turbulent evolution determines the acoustic performance of the ABH. This dissipation mechanism caused by turbulence in ABH enables cavity acoustic black hole to isolate more than 90% low frequency sound waves in an ultra-low and ultra-broad band, which can provide a good technical solution for the isolation of low frequency sound waves. Our experimental results not only prove our simulation and numerical results, but also prove an important theoretical result of turbulence theory, that is, in fully turbulence state, the relationship between turbulence energy spectral density E and wave number k (k = 1/L, L is the characteristic size L) is E ~ k−3.

Assessment of existing steel frames: Numerical study, pseudo-dynamic testing and influence of masonry infills

Most of existing steel multi-storey frames in Europe have been designed before the introduction of modern seismic design provisions, hence they often exhibit low performance under earthquake loads due to their low lateral resistance and energy dissipation capacity. In addition, such structures often include rigid and brittle masonry infill walls that highly influence their lateral response and distribution of damage pattern. However, current procedures for the assessment of existing steel buildings in Europe, included in the Eurocode 8 – Part 3 (EC8–3), do not provide adequate guidance for the assessment of ‘weak’ steel frame with masonry infill walls. Moreover, most of available modelling approaches of masonry infills formerly developed for reinforced concrete (RC) structures do not properly represent the behaviour of infill walls in steel frames. An improved numerical has to be provided to satisfactorily mimic infill walls' behaviour in steel moment frames. To this end, an experimental and theoretical study was carried out within the framework of HITFRAMES (i.e., HybrId Testing of an Existing Steel Frame with Infills under Multiple EarthquakeS) SERA project. This paper firstly presents the limitations of current EC8–3 by conducting a code-based assessment on a case study steel moment frame using pushover analysis. Three different single strut models, widely used for simulating the presence of masonry infills in RC structures, are considered for the numerical analyses. The paper also presents the results of pseudo-dynamic (PsD) tests performed on a large-scale 3D steel frame with masonry infills. The capability of the different masonry infill models is successively evaluated by comparisons between numerical and experimental results. On the basis of the obtained results, recommendations on how to potentially improve the single strut model for masonry infills surrounded by steel frames are also provided.

Optical modulator based on a silicon-ITO grating embedded rib structure with a tunable group delay.

An optical modulator based on an engineered silicon-indium tin oxide (Si-ITO) structure is proposed with a tunable group delay. A large group delay is reported by slowing down the light in a Si-ITO grating embedded rib structure. Optical modulation and a tunable group delay are realized by utilizing the electrically tunable permittivity of ITO in the engineered waveguide. The extinction ratio over 8 dB for a 10 µm long device and the modulation efficiency around 12 V-µm are reported for a wide wavelength from 1530 to 1570 nm. The resulting modulation efficiency and the extinction ratio show a significant improvement as compared to conventional modulators based on rib waveguides. We also report around 82 psec electrical tuning in the group delay for a wide wavelength range. This concept is promising in view of realizing tunable delay lines, along with slow light modulators with a reduced device footprint and low energy dissipation.

Rigid-Plastic Analysis of Seismic Resistant T-Frame considering Moment-Shear Interaction

To select a seismic resistant system, in addition to strength and stiffness, ductility and energy dissipation are important to be considered. Structures have nonlinear behavior under the influence of moderate and strong earthquakes. One of the primary aims in designing seismic resistant structures is to prevent the formation of undesirable collapse mechanisms such as the collapse in only a few storeys of the structure that leads to low energy dissipation. In order to achieve a global collapse mechanism, modern seismic codes provide simple rules for design, which is called the hierarchy criteria. Although these simple criteria could prevent the formation of a soft storey mechanism, they could not lead to an optimal global collapse mechanism. In these mechanisms, the energy dissipation zones include all the yielding zones such as beams, while all other parts of the structure have remained in the elastic range. TRF (T-resisting frame) is an innovative lateral resistant system introduced for architectural reasons and to provide more energy dissipating capability. This system has several collapse mechanisms due to the moment, shear, or moment-shear behavior of its members. In this paper, within the framework of the theory of plastic mechanism control, the rigid-plastic analysis of the TRF system to achieve the desired collapse mechanism is used by considering the moment-shear interaction. According to these analyses, which are performed on a single storey frame, simple hierarchy criteria are developed to create the desired collapse mechanism. Also, these criteria prevent undesired collapse mechanisms in order to have more energy dissipation and more ductility. Finally, the validity of the proposed criteria has been verified by the pushover analysis.

Experimental Investigation of the Hydraulic Performance of a Hydraulic-Jump-Stepped Spillway

For a traditional stepped spillway, low energy dissipation and cavitation damage may occur when the unit discharge is larger than a limit due to reduced air entrainment in the flow. In the present work, a new type of stepped spillway called hydraulic-jump-stepped spillway (HJSS) was developed, and the air was efficiently entrained into the flow by means of a hydraulic jump in the aeration basin, which was an aeration element of this stepped spillway. Compared with the traditional stepped spillway, various aspects of the hydraulic performance of the HJSS were experimentally investigated, including the flow pattern, energy dissipation, air entrainment characteristics and time-averaged pressure. Physical model results demonstrated that the HJSS achieved a higher energy dissipation, a more favorable air entrainment performance, and a more reasonable pressure distribution. The HJSS successfully increased the unit discharge from 50–60m2/s for a traditional stepped spillway to 101.47 m2/s.

On the inclined static loading of honeycomb re-entrant auxetics

The present study unravels the deformation mechanisms observed during the static inclined compression of re-entrant honeycomb (RH) auxetic structure. A pushover Riks analysis is conducted by facing a rigid plate towards the structure at various angles. A new ‘plastic hinge tracing method’ is introduced to systematically extract the micro deformation mechanisms under inclined loading. The identified modes are related to the macro deformation regime and the overall mechanical response of the RH structure. Moreover, their relation to various measures of efficiency is elaborated. It is shown that a transition stage emerges under inclined loading, which delays achieving the peak energy efficiency. The overall energy dissipation decreases in the inclined cases but interestingly, the performance of the RH structure does not deteriorate. Namely by maintaining a low crushing force under inclined loads, the trade-off of low energy dissipation is balanced and a lower impact is anticipated. Finally, the similarities between the transition stage and the macro modes are highlighted and further directions for investigation are proposed.

Magnetic levitation photothermal actuator with sunlight traction

Solar energy has been paid more and more attention because of its huge amount and wide sources. A graphene/carbon nanotube aerogel (GNTA) system with three-dimensional porous structure was constructed and impregnated with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) to obtain GNTA/PDMS composite, reaching the absorption of 98% in the wavelength range of the solar spectrum. Pyrolytic graphite (PG) sheet and biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) film were combined with the GNTA/PDMS composite to construct GNTA/PDMS-PG@BOPP photothermal actuator. With the light intensity gradually increased within 1–3 sun, the maximum bending curvature of the actuator reach 0.50 cm−1 in a magnetic field, which was 0.11 cm−1 higher than that in non-magnetic environment, showing low energy dissipation and high energy utilization efficiency. A ‘wingsuit pilot’ actuator and a bionic fish actuator were designed with the GNTA/PDMS-PG@BOPP composites. The actuators could move following the signal of sunlight in a magnetic field, and show deformation because of different thermal expansion properties of layers at the same time. The pre-programmed optical path and actuation could be integrated in this composite which shows great potential in the application of space exploration when exposed to harsh environment.

The Cost of Energy-Efficiency in Digital Hardware: The Trade-Off between Energy Dissipation, Energy–Delay Product and Reliability in Electronic, Magnetic and Optical Binary Switches

Binary switches, which are the primitive units of all digital computing and information processing hardware, are usually benchmarked on the basis of their ‘energy–delay product’, which is the product of the energy dissipated in completing the switching action and the time it takes to complete that action. The lower the energy–delay product, the better the switch (supposedly). This approach ignores the fact that lower energy dissipation and faster switching usually come at the cost of poorer reliability (i.e., a higher switching error rate) and hence the energy–delay product alone cannot be a good metric for benchmarking switches. Here, we show the trade-off between energy dissipation, energy–delay product and error–probability for an electronic switch (a metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor), a magnetic switch (a magnetic tunnel junction switched with spin transfer torque) and an optical switch (bistable non-linear mirror). As expected, reducing energy dissipation and/or energy–delay product generally results in increased switching error probability and reduced reliability.

Numerical Study on Wave Attenuation of Tsunami-Like Wave by Emergent Rigid Vegetation

The extreme surges and waves generated in tsunamis can cause devastating damages to coastal infrastructures and threaten the intactness of coastal communities. After the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, extensive physical experiments and numerical simulations have been conducted to understand the wave attenuation of tsunami waves due to coastal forests. Nearly all prior works used solitary waves as the tsunami wave model, but the spatial-temporal scales of realistic tsunamis differ drastically from that of solitary waves in both wave period and wavelength. More recent work has questioned the applicability of solitary waves and been looking towards more realistic tsunami wave models. Therefore, aiming to achieve more realistic and accurate results, this study will use a parameterized tsunami-like wave based on wave observations during the 2011 Japan tsunami to study the wave attenuation of a tsunami wave by emergent rigid vegetation. This study uses a high-resolution numerical wave tank based on the non-hydrostatic wave model (NHWAVE). This work examines effects of prominent factors, such as wave height, water depth, vegetation density and width, on the wave attenuation efficiency of emergent rigid vegetation. Results indicate that the vegetation patch can dissipate a considerable amount of the total wave energy of the tsunami-like wave. However, the tsunami-like wave has a higher total wave energy, but also a lower wave energy dissipation rate. Results show that using a solitary instead of a tsunami-like wave profile can overestimate the wave attenuation efficiency of the coastal forest.

Dynamic compressive and flexural behaviors of ultra-rapid-hardening mortar containing polyethylene fibers

In this study, the dynamic, compressive, and flexural behaviors of ultra-rapid-hardening mortar (URHM) containing 2% polyethylene fiber are investigated. The results confirm the robust strain-hardening behavior of URHM at an early age of 4 h. Its tensile strength, strain capacity, and g value at 4 h were found to be 7.3 MPa, 5.1%, and 297.5 kJ/m3, respectively. The compressive and flexural strength and toughness of URHM increased with the strain rate. A higher loading rate led to a greater increase in the strength; the rate sensitivity was higher during flexure compared to that during compression. The highest dynamic increase factor (DIF) of the compressive strength was 1.75 up to a strain rate of 115/s; the highest DIF of the flexural strength was 3.34 up to a strain rate of 96/s. Its deflection-hardening behavior was converted to deflection-softening behavior under impact loads having a potential energy of 392 J or greater. Furthermore, the greater potential energy led to a lower energy dissipation rate, and more energy remained in the system. The rate sensitivity of the URHM under compression was similar to that of other fiber-reinforced concretes; however, its flexural strength was less sensitive to the strain rate than that of the others.

An efficient cable-type energy dissipation device for prevention of unseating of bridge spans

During earthquakes, large relative displacements can be generated between different structural parts of a bridge. This can lead to collisions between the girder ends and the abutments and can even result in the girder unseating. A widely used prevention method adopts unseating prevention systems. The commonly cable-type unseating prevention device (C-CUPD) has low energy dissipation capacity and its cable fractures easily during strong earthquakes. In order to address these shortcomings, an energy dissipation cable-type unseating prevention device (E-CUPD) with an energy absorption tube is proposed in this study. The paper describes the basic structure and working mechanism of the device, and then investigates its energy absorption characteristics and limit performance, drawing upon theoretical analysis, numerical simulations, and testing of a scaled model. The influence of structural parameters and loading velocity on the energy absorption characteristics of the device are discussed, and the seismic responses of the bridge equipped with the device under different seismic input intensities are studied. The results show that the longer the device, the thicker the tube, and the larger the diameter, the better the energy absorption performance, while the larger the outer diameter, the lower the energy absorption performance. The axial expansion load of the energy absorption tube increases with an increase in the impact velocity. Before and after the characteristic velocity of 1 m/s, the sensitivity of load to velocity is weakened and the variation range decreases gradually. The integrity of the bridge structure equipped with the E-CUPD is improved and the seismic force is evenly distributed among piers with an acceptable value of spring displacement. The device can effectively reduce the relative displacement of the piers and beam subjected to different earthquakes and can absorb a large amount of seismic energy. With the increase in the seismic input intensity, the limiting effect of the E-CUPD becomes more prominent. At the higher seismic input intensities, the relative displacement of the pier and the beam can be reduced by nearly 30% compared to bridge without device. Compared to the C-CUPD, the E-CUPD can improve the limiting performance by about 15%.

Effects of Density Fluctuations on Alfvén Wave Turbulence in a Coronal Hole

Abstract We present a study of density fluctuations in coronal holes. We used a reduced magnetohydrodynamic (RMHD) model that incorporated observationally constrained density fluctuations to determine whether density fluctuations in coronal holes can enhance Alfvén wave reflection and dissipation, thereby heating coronal holes and driving the fast solar wind. We show results for two models of the background atmosphere. Each model is a solution of the momentum equation and includes the effects of wave pressure on the solar wind outflow. In the first model, the plasma density and Alfvén speed vary smoothly with height. Wave reflection is relatively weak in the smooth model, resulting in a low energy dissipation rate. In the second model, we include additional density fluctuations along the flux tube based on the observations. We find that density ρ fluctuations on the order of δρ/ρ ∼ 0.24 increase the Alfvén wave turbulence to levels sufficient to heat the open field regions in coronal holes.

Numerical Simulation of Stepped Spillways with Front Step Deformation

In order to solve the flood discharge problem of both small- and medium-sized warping dams in the Loess Plateau, a stepped spillway scheme, based on an ecological bag, to achieve full-section water flow and energy dissipation has been proposed in this paper. The hydraulic and energy dissipation characteristics of a stepped spillway layout scheme were studied using 3D numerical simulation. As the height of the dams is low and the spillways are short, the research has shown that the traditional single-step layout scheme leads to a low overall energy dissipation rate due to the small amount of energy dissipated in the initial steps. As a result of this, this paper has put forward two kinds of step layout schemes such as the shunt type and the staggered type for the initial steps. Through analysis of the flow state, the pressure distribution, and the total energy dissipation rate, the results have shown that shunt type and staggered type with front step deformation produced an obvious mixing of the water flow, fewer negative pressure areas, and a higher energy dissipation rate. The optimal energy dissipation rate of the staggered type reached 87.75%, and the maximum energy dissipation rate was increased by 27.97%.

Spin-Seebeck effect and thermal colossal magnetoresistance in the narrowest zigzag graphene nanoribbons

Device miniaturization and low-energy dissipation are two urgent requirements in future spintronics devices. The narrowest zigzag graphene nanoribbons (ZGNRs), which are composed of just two coupled carbon-atom chains connected with carbon tetragons, are promising candidates that meet both of the above requirements well. Using the first-principles calculations combined with non-equilibrium Green’s function approach, thermal spin-dependent transport through this kind of narrow ZGNR is investigated, and several exotic thermal spin-resolved transport properties are uncovered: (i) when an external magnetic field is applied, the ZGNRs are transited from the intrinsic semiconducting to the metallic state, and the thermal colossal magnetoresistance effect occurs with order of magnitudes up to 104 at room temperature; (ii) the thermal spin-dependent currents display a thermal negative differential resistance effect, and a well-defined spin-Seebeck effect (SSE) together with a pure thermal spin current occurs; and (iii) under suitable device temperature settings, a nearly perfect spin-filtering effect occurs in these narrowest ZGNRs. The theoretical results not only uncover the narrowest nanoribbon structures to realize the SSE and other inspiring thermal spin transport features, but also push carbon-based material candidates towards thermoelectric conversion device applications.

Optimisation of cold-formed steel beams for best seismic performance in bolted moment connections

Typical thin-walled cold-formed steel (CFS) elements and connections used in portal frames are not generally suitable for moment-resisting frames in high seismic regions due to their low ductility and energy dissipation capacity and inherited susceptibility to local/global instabilities. This study aims to improve the seismic performance of CFS moment-resisting frames by developing a methodology to obtain more efficient bolted moment connections using optimised CFS beams with enhanced non-linear post-buckling behaviour. By taking into account material non-linearity and geometrical imperfection effects, the detailed Finite Element (FE) models of a typical CFS bolted moment connection is developed using ABAQUS software, and then validated based on experimental cyclic test results. Particle Swarm Optimisation (PSO) algorithm is linked to GMNIA ABAQUS FE analysis to optimise CFS bolted moment connections based on either energy dissipation capacity or ductility. To demonstrate the efficiency of the method, connections with five different beam cross-sectional shapes are optimised, and the results are compared with a standard CFS channel section used as a benchmark. The relative dimensions of the cross-sections, the inclination of the lip stiffeners, and the location of triangular intermediate stiffeners are selected as main design variables. To provide practical beam cross-sections, the plate slenderness limit values defined by Eurocode 3 (EC3) along with a range of manufacturing limitations are imposed as design constraints in the optimisation process. It is shown that, for a given plate width and thickness, the proposed optimisation framework results in a considerable (up to 195%) improvement in the energy dissipation capacity and ductility of the CFS bolted moment connections.

Numerical investigation of the mechanism of granular flow impact on rigid control structures

Baffles and check-dam systems are often used as granular flow (rock avalanches, debris flows, etc.) control structures in regions prone to dangerous geological hazards leading to massive landslides. This paper explores the use of numerical modelling to simulate large volume granular flow and the effect of the presence of baffles and check dam systems on granular flow. In particular, the paper offers a solution based on the smoothed particle hydrodynamics numerical method, combined with a modified Bingham model with Mohr–Coulomb yield stress for granular flows. This method is parallelised at a large scale to perform high-resolution simulations of sand flowing down an inclined flume, obstructed by rigid control structures. We found that to maximise the flow deceleration ability of baffle arrays, the design of baffle height ought to reach a minimum critical value, which can be quantified from the flow depth without baffles (e.g. 2.7 times for frictional flows with friction angle of 27.5°). Also, the check-dam system was found to minimise run-out distances more effectively but experiences substantially higher forces compared to baffles. Finally, flow-control structures that resulted in lower run-out distances were associated with lower total energy dissipation, but faster kinetic energy dissipation in the granular flows; as well as lower downstream peak flow rates.