A detailed hydraulic assessment of a Minimum Energy Loss (MEL) culvert using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), calibrated against physical model tests. The openFOAM CFD software was used to test the structure, identifying the degree of change able to be made to the culvert without causing a flood risk impact to adjacent properties. Testing was important in terms of its role as a flood mitigation device and its heritage value. It is the first full size structure, worldwide that applies two scientific principles within FRM (i) To minimise energy losses so that the flood level upstream is not increased, and (ii) to conve flow through a culvert at ‘critical’ conditions.
