Numerical and experimental research on current generation in deepwater offshore basin*

During the design and construction of the deepwater offshore basin, its current generation system is considered to be one of the key technologies. In this article, the state-of-the-art deepwater offshore basin at Shanghai Jiaotong University was examined as a case study. Different 3-D numerical models of the current generation system were developed and calculated. The uniformity of flow field in the basin, such as horizontal and vertical current velocity profiles, were calculated in detail. Besides, a 1:10 scaled model test was also carried out. The current velocities at different locations in the basin were measured and compared with the calculated results. It is concluded that satisfactory agreement can be resulted between the numerical simulation and model test. In addition, it is suggested that transition sections and turning vanes need to be set in inflow and outflow culverts to improve the uniformity of flow field in the basin. And the hydraulic performance of the deepwater current generation system can meet the requirements of model tests in deep water.