Assessing the Effectiveness of the IJmuiden Salt Screen Design for Nonuniform Selective Withdrawal by Physical and Numerical Modeling

Abstract

Salt water intrusion through the New Sea Lock of IJmuiden, Netherlands requires mitigation to ensure availability of enough fresh water further inland. For this purpose, a salt screen has been proposed for selective withdrawal of salt water from the Noordzeekanaal in the vicinity of the lock complex. Formulas to assess the withdrawal rate of selective withdrawal are based on idealized layouts and conditions. In the case of IJmuiden, the flow surrounding a salt screen has a strong nonuniform character, such that these formulas are not applicable to predict the correct withdrawal rate and the effectiveness of selective withdrawal accurately. In this case physical scale modeling or computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling can be applied. This article discusses the limitations of the formulas for a three-dimensional (3D) flow application near the locks of IJmuiden and presents the use of CFD and physical scale model research to assess the flow patterns around the salt screen and the effectiveness of selective withdrawal. The CFD model was validated against the physical scale model and represented the complex flow fields around the salt screen to within acceptable deviations for both steady and transient states. This gives confidence in applying these more advanced modeling tools for the design and positioning of salt screens in confined complex 3D flow areas.