Adaptation of stilling basins to higher discharges than those considered for their design implies deep knowledge of the flow developed in these structures. To this end, the hydraulic jump occurring in a typified United States Bureau of Reclamation Type II (USBR II) stilling basin was analyzed using a numerical and experimental modeling approach. A reduced-scale physical model to conduct an experimental campaign was built and a numerical computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was prepared to carry out the corresponding simulations. Both models were able to successfully reproduce the case study in terms of hydraulic jump shape, velocity profiles, and pressure distributions. The analysis revealed not only similarities to the flow in classical hydraulic jumps but also the influence of the energy dissipation devices existing in the stilling basin, all in good agreement with bibliographical information, despite some slight differences. Furthermore, the void fraction distribution was analyzed, showing satisfactory performance of the physical model, although the numerical approach presented some limitations to adequately represent the flow aeration mechanisms, which are discussed herein. Overall, the presented modeling approach can be considered as a useful tool to address the analysis of free surface flows occurring in stilling basins.

A classical hydraulic jump with Froude number (${\mathrm{Fr}}_1=6$ ) and Reynolds number (${\mathrm{Re}}_1=\mathrm{210,000}$ ) was characterized using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) codes OpenFOAM and FLOW-3D, whose performance was assessed. The results were compared with experimental data from a physical model designed for this purpose. The most relevant hydraulic jump characteristics were investigated, including hydraulic jump efficiency, roller length, free surface profile, distributions of velocity and pressure, and fluctuating variables. The model outcome was also compared with previous results from the literature. Both CFD codes were found to represent with high accuracy the hydraulic jump surface profile, roller length, efficiency, and sequent depths ratio, consistently with previous research. Some significant differences were found between both CFD codes regarding velocity distributions and pressure fluctuations, although in general the results agree well with experimental and bibliographical observations. This finding makes models with these characteristics suitable for engineering applications involving the design and optimization of energy dissipation devices.

The study of the hydraulic jump developed in stilling basins is complex to a high degree due to the intense velocity and pressure fluctuations and the significant air entrainment. It is this complexity, bound to the practical interest in stilling basins for energy dissipation purposes, which brings the importance of physical modeling into the spotlight. However, despite the importance of stilling basins in engineering, bibliographic studies have traditionally focused on the classical hydraulic jump. Therefore, the objective of this research was to study the characteristics of the hydraulic jump in a typified USBR II stilling basin, through a physical model. The free surface profile and the velocity distribution of the hydraulic jump developed within this structure were analyzed in the model. To this end, an experimental campaign was carried out, assessing the performance of both, innovative techniques such as the time-of-flight camera and traditional instrumentation like the Pitot tube. The results showed a satisfactory representation of the free surface profile and the velocity distribution, despite some discussed limitations. Furthermore, the instrumentation employed revealed the important influence of the energy dissipation devices on the flow properties. In particular, relevant differences were found for the hydraulic jump shape and the maximum velocity positions within the measured vertical profiles, when compared to classical hydraulic jumps.

The performance of stilling basins including a negative step was analyzed addressing its effect on the energy dissipation efficiency, dimensions and structural properties of the hydraulic jump, streambed pressures and pressure fluctuations. Six different cases were simulated, considering two possible relative heights for the step and three possible Froude numbers. The results show that the step yields to lower subcritical depths, allowing smaller basin dimensions. Nevertheless, it tends to slightly increase the roller length of the jump. Concerning the relative energy dissipation, results confirm the improvement derived from the step presence. The internal flow occurring in the jump was also analyzed, and more specifically the subzones generated upstream and downstream the impingement point. The results prove the contribution of the negative step in the stabilization of hydraulic jumps in the stilling basin. In particular, a general decrease of the streambed pressure is observed. In addition, pressure fluctuations are significantly reduced due to the negative step size influence on the hydraulic jump. Furthermore, the effectiveness of the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques to simulate stilling basin flows and to adequately characterize the hydraulic jump performance was confirmed.

The adaptation of existing dams is of paramount importance to face the challenge posed by climate change and new legal frameworks. Thus, it is crucial to optimize the design of stilling basins to reduce the hydraulic jump dimensions without jeopardizing the energy dissipation in the structure. A numerical model was developed to simulate a US Bureau of Reclamation Type II basin. The model was validated with a specifically designed physical model and then was used to simulate and test the performance of the basin after adding a second row of chute blocks. The results showed a reduction in the hydraulic jump dimensions in terms of the sequent depth ratio and the roller length, which were respectively 2.5% and 1.4% lower in the modified design. These results would allow an estimated increase of the discharge in the basin close to 10%. Furthermore, this new design had 1.2% higher efficiency. Consequently, the modifications proposed for the basin design suggest improved performance of the structure. The issue of the hydraulic jump length estimation also was discussed, and different approaches were introduced and compared. These methods follow a structured and systematic procedure and gave consistent results for the developed models.

El presente estudio busca contribuir a la caracterización del perfil longitudinal de la lámina libre en resaltos hidráulicos que tienen lugar en un cuenco amortiguador. Para ello, se desarrolla un modelo físico de cuenco amortiguador tipificado del United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR II), sobre el cual se mide la superficie libre de un resalto con números de Froude y Reynolds Fr1=9 y Re1=14.7·104, empleando técnicas LIDAR (LIght Detection And Ranging). Junto con el perfil de la lámina libre se obtienen una serie de parámetros relacionados con el mismo y de relevancia para el funcionamiento del cuenco amortiguador. Los resultados obtenidos y su comparación con datos y expresiones procedentes de la bibliografía muestran que las técnicas empleadas son capaces de caracterizar de forma adecuada la superficie libre del resalto, lo cual resulta indicativo del potencial de esta novedosa instrumentación. Los resultados también apuntan a la capacidad del cuenco analizado para reducir las dimensiones del resalto manteniendo su capacidad disipadora de energía.