Stability of Sand Beds Around Mattress-Curtain Sets

We propose a new countermeasure to protect sand beds from erosion, called mattress-curtain sets. Physical model tests in a rectangular flume with suspended sediments were carried out to investigate stability of the sandbed around a mattress-curtain set, and the working mechanism of a mattress-curtain set is discussed. Moreover, based on the experimental results and simulations with software FLUENT, the interactions between sand beds and near bed flow were investigated when a mattress-curtain set was installed on the sand beds. The results show that the stability of sand beds is closely controlled by the seepage under the fabricated mattress, and is affected by liquefaction, excess pore pressure buildups in the sand beds when subjected to changing flow or wave current.