ComFLOW - dambreak experiment





At the Maritime Research Institute Netherlands (MARIN) experiments have been performed for breaking dam flows. These experiments can be seen as a simple model of green water flow on the deck of a ship. The dambreak is a very popular validation case, because the set-up is easy: no special in- or outflow conditions are needed. A large tank of 3.22 by 1 by 1 meter is used with an open roof. The right part of the tank is first closed by a door (located at x=2m). Behind the door 1.22 by 0.55 meter of water is waiting to flow into the tank when the door is opened. This is done by releasing a weight, which almost instantaneously pulls the door up. In the tank a box has been placed that represents a scale model of a container on the deck of a ship. The global geometry is shown in the figure below:


Measurement positions for water heights and pressures in the dambreak experiment

During the experiment measurements have been performed of water heights, pressures and forces. In the above figure the positions of the measured quantities are shown. Four vertical height probes have been used: one in the reservoir and the other three in the tank. The box was covered by eight pressure sensors, four on the front of the box and four on the top. The forces on the box were also measured. Measured time series are available for the height sensors H2 and H4 , and for the pressure sensors P1 and P7 .


Vertical water heights in the reservoir H4 (left) and the tank H2 (right) (Fig. 19 from our JCP 2005 paper).


Pressure time histories at P1 (left) and P7 (right) (Fig. 20a&d in our JCP paper).

More information on the MARIN experiments and the ComFLOW simulations can be found in
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