Numerical Analysis of the Effects of Anti-Vortex Device Height on Hydraulic Performance of Pump Sump

Pump stations are very important flood control facilities in that they are designed to mitigate inundation in urban lowland areas. In urban areas, however, it is often difficult to acquire the land needed to increase the capacity of a pump station. Thus, the discharge capacity should be maximized despite these restricted conditions. The installation of a new pump with a larger capacity would be one way of increasing the capacity of a pump station. However, the addition of facilities could affect the flow characteristics, such as increasing the flow velocity and vorticity, thus causing severe problems with the operation of the pump. To overcome those problems, an Anti-vortex Device (AVD) can be applied. In Korea, the design of a pump station demands that engineers refer to advanced design criteria derived in other countries, owing to the lack of appropriate domestic design standards. In addition, the Korean design criteria for an AVD are based on experience, as there is insufficient available data. In this study, a numerical simulation was applied to simulate the swirl flow in a sump with various AVD heights to derive information that can be applied to studies aimed at improving the design and efficiency of pump station.