Applicability of Preissmann box scheme for calculation of transcritical flow in pipes

The accurate computer simulation of pipe flow is of great importance in the design of urban drainage. The Preissmann box scheme is usually used to model a wide range of subcritical and supercritical flows. However, care must be taken over the modelling of transcritical flows since, unless the correct internal boundary conditions are imposed, the scheme becomes unstable. In this paper, using the scheme in conjunction with the reduced momentum equation and applying boundary condition structure inherent to subcritical flow to all regimes, is an approach that enables efficient numerical simulation of transcritical flows in pipe networks. The approach includes three steps. First, a unified mathematical model which is based on the Preissmann slot model is derived. Second, the Preissmann box scheme is used to solve the set of equations, by analyzing and discussing the origin of the invalidity of applying the scheme, and a numerical model suitable for transcritical flow is proposed by the method of changing the convection acceleration term. Third, the numerical model is assessed by comparison with analytical, experimental and numerical results. The proposed models verified that this method can make the Preissmann box scheme applicable to the computation of transcritical flow in pipes.

Steady analysis of transcritical flows in collapsible tubes with discontinuous mechanical properties: implications for arteries and veins

We study the conditions under which discontinuous mechanical properties of a collapsible tube can induce transcritical flows, i.e. the transition through the critical state where the speed index (analogous to the Mach or the Froude numbers for compressible and free surface flows, respectively) is one. Such a critical transition may strongly modify the flow properties, cause a significant reduction in the cross-sectional area of the tube, and limit the flow. General relationships are obtained for a short segment using a one-dimensional model under steady flow conditions. Marginal curves delimiting the transcritical regions are identified in terms of the speed index and the cross-sectional area ratio. Since there are many examples of such flows in physiology and medicine, we also analyse the specific case of prosthesis (graft or stent) implantation in blood vessels. We then compute transcritical conditions for the case of stiffness and reference area variations, considering a collapsible tube characterized by physiological parameters representative of both arteries and veins. The results suggest that variations in mechanical properties may induce transcritical flow in veins but is unrealistic in arteries.

Simulation of Shallow Flows in Nonuniform Open Channels

This paper presents a new formulation of the 2D shallow water equations, based on which a numerical model (referred to as NewChan) is developed for simulating complex flows in nonuniform open channels. The new shallow water equations mathematically balance the flux and source terms and can be directly applied to predict flows over irregular bed topography without any necessity for a special numerical treatment of source terms. The balanced governing equations are solved on uniform Cartesian grids using a finite-volume Godunov-type scheme, enabling automatic capture of transcritical flows. A high-order numerical scheme is achieved using a second-order Runge–Kutta integration method. A very simple immersed boundary approach is used to deal with an irregular domain geometry. This method can be easily implemented in a Cartesian model and does not have any influence on computational efficiency. The numerical model is validated against several benchmark tests. The computed results are compared with analytical solutions, previously published predictions, and experimental measurements and excellent agreements are achieved.