Effect of a Lateral Jet on the Turbulent Flow Characteristics of an Open Channel Flow with Rigid Vegetation

Aquatic vegetation can purify polluted bodies of water and beautify the environment, as well as alter the structure of water flow and affect the migration and diffusion of pollutants in bodies of water. Vegetation can significantly change the original water flow, especially in cases in which aquatic vegetation interacts with a jet. Characteristics of jet flow open channels without vegetation have been studied, but research on the characteristics of open-channel flows under the action of lateral jets and in the presence of vegetation are rare. High-frequency particle image velocimetry (PIV) was used to measure a lateral jet in water with rigid vegetation and our results were compared to the lateral jet flow field in water without vegetation. The results show that the vegetation arrangement and vegetation resistance cause significant changes. The presence of vegetation increased the surface velocity of the water, and the flow velocity decreased in the interior area of the vegetation and near the bottom of the water tank. The changes in flow velocity with changes in water depth displayed “S” type and anti-“S” type distributions, and the flow velocity of free layer was approximately logarithmic. Due to vegetation resistance and jet pressure differences, the lateral jet trajectory in water with vegetation was more likely to bend than in water without vegetation. The turbulence intensity and Reynolds stress had different distributions for water with and without vegetation. At the top of the vegetation and near the water surface, turbulent mixing of the water flow was strong, the flow velocity gradient was large and the turbulence intensity and the Reynolds stress reached their maxima. The effects of a lateral jet on an open-channel flow were compared for different vegetation conditions, revealing that a rhombic vegetation arrangement has a stronger deceleration effect than other arrangements. The theoretical results can be applied to wastewater discharge into vegetation channels.