The 17-meter flume at the Coastal Research Laboratory. Part I, Description and user's manual : technical report

Abstract

The 17-Meter Flume, a recirculating, temperature-controlled, seawater channel, was recently constructed in W.H.O.I.'s Coastal Research Laboratory for studies of boundary-layer flows and sediment transport, and for interdisciplinary research where adequate simulation of the near-bed flow environment is required. The flume channel is 17.3-m long by 0.6-m wide and can be filled to a maximum depth of 0.3 m. The water is circulated by a centrifugal pump and is temperature controlled to ± 0.5°C over a range of about 4-30°C. Made of fiberglass , glass, plastics and high-grade stainless steel, all surfaces of the flume that come into contact with the water are noncorrosive and nontoxic to organisms. The flume is equipped with a computer-controlled, two-axis, laser-Doppler velocimeter (LDV) for detailed, accurate and precise measurements of flow characteristics anywhere along the flume channel. In addition to detailed descriptions and illustrations of all components of the flume, this report provides instructions for use of the flume and associated instrumentation. In Part II, flume flow characteristics measured with the LDV are illustrated and evaluated relative to theoretical and empirical expectations for open-channel flows.