ORCID Profile
0000-0002-1879-7682
Current Organisations
Hong Kong Polytechnic University
,
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Does something not look right? The information on this page has been harvested from data sources that may not be up to date. We continue to work with information providers to improve coverage and quality. To report an issue, use the Feedback Form.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2021
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 06-2022
DOI: 10.1029/2021JF006587
Abstract: Flexible, slit, and rigid barriers are common countermeasures to mitigate natural geophysical mass flows, but presently, quantitative comparisons of their performance are lacking, due to the challenges involved in accurately representing the multi‐body and multi‐phase interactions. This study presents a numerical appraisal on this issue using a physics‐based coupled computational fluid dynamics and discrete element method (CFD‐DEM). A geophysical flow is considered as a mixture of discrete gap‐graded particles (DEM) and a continuous viscous slurry (CFD), whereas a permeable and deformable barrier structure can be modeled by DEM. The in‐flow multiphase interactions and flow‐barrier interactions can be rigorously modeled by a coupling scheme between DEM and CFD. Our numerical simulations reasonably capture both field and experimental observations on key features of flow‐barrier interactions and barrier responses. The different intercepting mechanisms of three barriers via pile‐up and runup modes are revealed by qualitative and quantitative characterizations. Flexible barriers perform the best under runup mode regarding much larger peak load reduction ratios (up to 89%) due to their high permeability and Fr ‐dependent load‐deflection behavior. We further compile a barrier‐specific design diagram that suggests existing analytical models calibrated by limited experiments may underestimate the peak impact for slit and rigid barriers due to their neglect of large solid particles in the impinging flows while leading to overestimations for flexible barriers owing to inappropriate representations of barrier permeability and structural deformability. Our findings may offer a basis for model improvements and developments in practical barrier selection and design.
Publisher: Thomas Telford Ltd.
Date: 09-01-2023
Abstract: Quantitative understanding of the load–deflection mechanisms of a flexible barrier in intercepting debris flows is critical for barrier design, but remains practically challenging due to the difficulties involved in capturing multi-phase, multi-way interactions. This study employs a physics-based coupled computational fluid dynamics and discrete-element method (CFD–DEM) to simulate a flexible ring-net barrier as a permeable, deformable multi-component system by DEM and model a debris flow as a mixture of discrete particles and a continuous slurry by DEM and CFD, respectively. The CFD–DEM coupling framework offers a unified treatment of in-flow solid–fluid interaction, flow–barrier interaction and interactions among barrier components. Numerical predictions of key flow–barrier interactions and cable forces show reasonable consistency with large-scale experiments. Systematic simulations with varying flow–barrier height ratios ε and flow dynamics are performed to examine the evolving mechanisms of load sharing and transmission and quantify the ε-dependent load–deflection modes. The ratio ε is found to bear a strong, positive correlation with the key barrier response in three typical modes. The post-peak barrier deformations experience shrinkages with ε ≤ 0·6 and expansions when ε 0·6. This study helps to improve understanding of the load–deflection mechanisms for practical design of flexible barriers in mitigating debris flows.
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 11-2022
DOI: 10.1029/2022JF006870
Abstract: Geophysical mass flows impacting flexible barriers can create complex flow patterns and multiway solid‐fluid‐structure interactions, wherein estimates of impact loads rely predominantly on analytical or simplified solutions. However, an examination of the fundamental relations, applicability, and underlying mechanisms of these solutions has been so far elusive. Here, using a coupled continuum‐discrete method, we systematically examine the physical laws of multiphase, multiway interactions between geophysical flows of variable natures, and a permeable flexible ring net barrier system. This model well captures the essential physics observed in experiments and field investigations. Our results reveal for the first time that unified bi‐linear laws underpin widely used analytical and simplified solutions, with inflection points caused by the transitions from trapezoid‐shaped to triangle‐shaped dead zones. Specifically, the peak impact load increases bi‐linearly with increasing Froude number, peak cable force, or maximum barrier deformation. Flow materials (wet vs. dry) and impact dynamics (slow vs. fast) jointly drive the patterns of identified bi‐linear correlations. These findings offer a physics‐based, significant improvement over existing solutions to impact problems for geophysical flows.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2021
Location: Hong Kong
Location: Hong Kong
No related grants have been discovered for Yong Kong.