Three-dimensional simulation of meandering river based on 3-D RNG κ-ɛ turbulence model

A 3-D numerical model for calculating flow in non-curvilinear coordinates was established in this article. The flow was simulated by solving the full Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations with the RNG κ–ɛ turbulence model. In the horizontal x–y-plane, a boundary-fitted curvilinear co-ordinate system was adopted, while in the vertical direction, a σco-ordinate transformation was used to represent the free surface and bed topography. The water level was determined by solving the 2-D Poisson equation derived from 2-D depth averaged momentum equations. The finite-volume method was used to discretize the equations and the SIMPLEC algorithm was applied to acquire the coupling of velocity and pressure. This model was applied to simulate the meandering channels and natural rivers, and the water levels and the velocities for all sections were given. By contrasting and analyzing, the agreement with measurements is generally good. The feasibility studies of simulating flow of the natural river have been conducted to demonstrate its applicability to hydraulic engineering research.