Multilayer models for shallow two-phase debris flows with dilatancy effects

Abstract

We present here a multilayer model for shallow grain-fluid mixtures with dilatancy effects. It can be seen as a generalization of the depth-averaged model presented in Bouchut et al. (2016) [6], that includes dilatancy effects by considering a two-layer model, a mixture grain-fluid layer and an upper fluid layer, to allow the exchange of fluid between them. In the present work the approximation of the mixture layer is improved including normal variations of the velocities and concentrations of the two phases thanks to the multilayer approach. In the model presented here dilatancy effects induce in particular a non-hydrostatic pressure for both phases related to the excess pore fluid pressure. Contrary to the single-layer model, the computation of this excess pore pressure entrains a serious difficulty due to the multilayer approach. We identified here one of the main numerical difficulty of solving two-phase shallow debris flows models: the strongly non-linear behaviour and abrupt changes of the excess pore fluid pressure when starting from non-equilibrium conditions. We propose a simplified approach to approximate the excess pore fluid pressure in the simple case of uniform flows in the downslope direction and quantify the error made. Our method makes it possible to introduce two or three layers in the normal directions with a reasonable approximation. Analytical solutions for uniform grain-fluid flows over inclined planes, with and without side wall friction, are calculated and compared to the proposed model. The presented model preserves the total solid granular mass as in [6]. In the numerical results, we observe that the proposed model with a two layer description of the mixture accurately represents the velocity measured at the surface of the mixture in the laboratory experiments. This is obviously poorly represented by the depth-averaged velocity in single-layer models while the other quantities (solid volume fraction, basal excess pore fluid pressure) are similar to those obtained with single-layer models. Our numerical results show a significant impact of the parameters involved in dilatancy law, in particular on the calculation of the time evolution of the excess pore fluid pressure.