Flow Downstream of an Aerator: Aerator Spacing

Cavitation erosion damage to spillway surfaces may be prevented with the use of aeration devices (aerators), introducing air in the layers close to the channel bottom. A study of the flow downstream of a spillway aerator was performed on the Clyde dam spillway model. The results are presented and a comparison between the free-surface aeration and the flow downstream of an aerator is developed. Such a method enables to compute the flow parameters at any point downstream of an aerator, in particular the air concentration near the spillway bottom. The computed results are compared with experimental data. This analysis contributes to a method for the determination of aerator spacing and aerator location