Modeling Vessel-Generated Currents and Bed Shear Stresses

Adaptive Hydraulics (ADH) is a computational fluid dynamics package that solves the Navier-Stokes equations and shallow water (depth-averaged Navier-Stokes) equations on two- and three-dimensional computational meshes for overland flow, sediment transport, and groundwater problems. The capability to model the hydrodynamic effects of vessels moving through a two-dimensional flow field has been added to ADH. Using empirical relations developed by Maynord (2000), the bed shear stresses induced by a barge bow and towboat propeller may also be calculated, which, in turn, can be used to predict sediment transport. Guidelines have been developed for sufficient mesh refinement near the vessel and appropriate values for the mesh adaption parameters in ADH. To demonstrate the new modeling capability, this report describes in detail a study of the effects of a vessel sailing through a stretch of the Illinois Waterway near Kampsville, IL. The vessel-induced shear stresses are also reported for the Kampsville study.