On two-dimensional inviscid flow in a waterfall

Abstract

This paper is concerned with the two-dimensional flow in a free waterfall, falling under the influence of gravity, the fluid being considered to be incompressible and inviscid. A parameter ε, such that 2/ε is the Froude number based on conditions far upstream, is defined and considered to be small. A flowline co-ordinate system is used to overcome the difficulty that the boundary geometry is not known in advance. An asymptotic expansion based on ε is constructed as an approximation valid upstream and near the edge, but singular far downstream. Another asymptotic expansion, based upon the thinness of the fall, is constructed as an approximation valid far downstream, but failing to satisfy the conditions upstream. The two expansions are then matched to give a solution covering the whole flow field. The shapes of the free streamlines are shown for a number of values of ε for which the solutions are seemingly valid.