Investigations the effect of slot on scour depth reductions around bridge piers

The scouring of sediments around bridge foundations leading to collapses remains a significant problem, causing both economic losses and risking human lives. The scouring of sediments around bridge foundations leading to collapses is the Morandi Bridge in Genoa, Italy. In August 2018, the bridge suffered a catastrophic failure due to severe scouring of its foundations caused by heavy rainfall. Researchers have been actively studying these phenomena and seeking effective measures to mitigate the impacts of scour around bridge elements. This study focuses on investigating the impact of incorporating slot through the bridge pier as a countermeasure to reduce scour depth using the Flow 3D software. Scour reduction solutions for bridge piers can be broadly categorized into flow-altering countermeasures and bed-armoring countermeasures. Flow-altering countermeasures aim to weaken the down-flow and horseshoe vortex, which are the main contributors to pier scour. This study specifically examines the effectiveness of different slot shapes introduced through the bridge pier as countermeasure methods. By employing various models and a reference model, the study evaluates the reduction in local scour depth achieved by the different slot configurations. The results obtained from comparing the various models will determine the optimal percentage of local scour reduction achievable using the proposed countermeasure methods.