Numerical Study on the Effect of Port Orientation on Multiple Inclined Dense Jets

Wastewaters are commonly discharged into the seas and oceans through multiport diffusers. Accurate prediction of the complex interactions of multiport diffusers with the receiving water bodies is significant for the optimal design of outfall systems and has yet to be fully illuminated. In the current study, the mixing and dilution characteristics of multiple inclined dense jets are studied using a three-dimensional numerical simulation. The Launder, Reece, and Rodi (LRR) turbulence model is employed to perform the simulations, and the predictions are compared against available experimental data. The results indicate that the LRR turbulence model is a promising tool for the study of inclined dense jets discharged from multiport diffusers, and it can provide more accurate predictions of the mixing behavior than standard and re-normalization group (RNG) k-epsilon turbulence models. The model is further employed to evaluate and compare the dispersion capabilities of multiport diffusers with uniform and non-uniform jet orientation to the horizontal, as a novel idea. The comparisons demonstrate the middle discharge may have a longer trajectory (7% and 5% increase in terminal rise height and impact point distance, respectively) and therefore a higher dilution rate (14% increase in impact dilution) when its adjacent jets are disposed with a different angle, compared to that of uniform discharges. The outcomes may be favorable for outfall systems applications involving dilution.