Numerical simulation of immersion of a tunnel element - downscaling by CFD technology

During the immersion process of tunnel elements in the sea, the surrounding currents would inevitably be changed. A large scale ocean circulation model, which can simulate the sea currents, usually do not solve underwater structures. Thus, in this chapter, we use a downscaling Computational Fluid Dynamics model to simulate the flow characteristics around an immersed tunnel element for Shenzhong Link in China, under different velocity inlets and at different depths. Since E1 element is shielded from diversion dike and the flow velocity around is small, this paper focus on simulation of the flow field during the immersion process of E2 element after the completion of E1.