Numerical Simulation of Turbulent Flow Over a Steep Hill

Abstract

A numerical investigation on the turbulent flows over a steep hill is presented. The numerical model developed for the present work is based on the finite volume method and the SIMPLE algorithm with a collocated grid system. Standard κ-ε model and Shih's non-linear κ-ε model are tested for the validation of the prediction accuracy in the 2-D and 3-D separated flows. Comparisons of the mean velocity and turbulence profiles between the numerical predictions and the measurements show good agreement. The Shih's non-linear κ-ε model is found to predict mean flow and turbulence better than the Standard κ-ε. Flow patterns have also been examined to explain the difference in the cavity zone between 2-D and 3-D hills.