Coastal defence through wave farms

The possibility of using wave farms for coastal defence warrants investigation because wave energy is poised to become a major renewable in many countries over the next decades. The fundamental question in this regard is whether a wave farm can be used to reduce beach erosion under storm conditions. If the answer to this question is positive, then a wave farm can have coastal defence as a subsidiary function, in addition to its primary role of producing carbon-free energy. The objective of this work is to address this question by comparing the response of a beach in the face of a storm in two scenarios: with and without the wave farm. For this comparison a set of ad hoc impact indicators is developed: the bed level impact (BLI), beach face eroded area (FEA), non-dimensional erosion reduction (NER), and mean cumulative eroded area (CEA); and their values are determined by means of two coupled models: a high-resolution wave propagation model (SWAN) and a coastal processes model (XBeach). The study is conducted through a case study: Perranporth Beach (UK). Backed by a well-developed dune system, Perranporth has a bar between − 5 m and − 10 m. The results show that the wave farm reduces the eroded volume by as much as 50% and thus contributes effectively to coastal protection. This synergy between marine renewable energy and coastal defence may well contribute to improving the viability of wave farms through savings in conventional coastal protection.     

钦州湾人工海滩剖面变化过程

波浪和潮汐作用下的海滩剖面动态变化过程是海岸演变及沿海防护工程设计与旅游资源规划的核心内容。本文以广西钦州湾沙井半岛人工海滩为研究区, 基于GPS-RTK采集的2018年1月—2019年12月的逐月剖面高程实测数据, 通过分析剖面冲淤和单宽体积变化, 利用EOF(Empirical Orthogonal Function)函数揭示剖面的高程变化模式, 进而探讨海滩剖面的动态演变过程。研究的主要结果表明: 1) 在观测期间, 人工海滩剖面的冲淤情况整体展现出冬春季淤积、夏秋季侵蚀的变化特征; 2) 人工海滩剖面因泥沙横向输移而导致不同横向分带的单宽体积变化趋势呈差异性, 不同横向分带具有侵蚀与淤积交替出现的情况; 3) 人工海滩剖面的变化模式可划分为由强降雨及台风导致剖面高程明显降低的主要模式、波潮影响下的剖面高程经历强降雨及台风后逐渐淤积和恢复的次要模式、波浪破碎形成卷流引起滩面冲淤变化的其他模式。     

Textural characteristics and morphosedimentary environment of foreshore zone along Ganpatipule,Maharashtra, India

The cross-shore profile and the textural distribution of foreshore sediments of Ganpatipule beach along Maharashtra coast covering two annual cycles are examined. Ganpatipule beach depicts erosion and accretion of the berm, reduction and widening of foreshore widths during the monsoon (June–September) and post-monsoon (October–May), respectively with net sediment accretion during the study period due to the changes in the wave characteristics. A direct correlation is observed between the median sediment grain size and beach-face slopes signifying high wave energy ensuing to a gentle to very gentle slope. The sediments are mainly medium grain size, moderately well sorted, bimodal, very fine skewed to very coarse skewed and very platykurtic to very leptokurtic in nature. The binary plots of the textural parameters (mean, skewness, kurtosis, and standard deviation) depicted a characteristic beach environment of deposition. The study shows that the sediment is concentrated in the environment of rolling and bottom suspension. The study on grain size distribution of sediments could be used to assess the wave energy condition prevailing along the coastal area.     

Statistical simulation of wave climate and extreme beach erosion

Recent developments in extreme values modelling have been used to develop a framework for determining the coastal erosion hazard on sandy coastlines. This framework quantitatively reproduced the extreme beach erosion volumes obtained from field measurements at Narrabeen Beach, Australia. This encouraging finding was achieved using Kriebel and Dean's [Kriebel, D.L. and Dean, R.G., 1993. Convolution method for time-dependent beach profile response. Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal and Ocean Engineering, 119(2): 204–226.] simple beach erosion and accretion model. The method includes allowances for joint probability between all basic erosion variates including; wave height, period and direction, event duration, tidal anomalies and event spacing. A new formulation for the dependency between wave height and period has been developed. It includes the physical wave steepness limitation. Event grouping, where significantly more erosion can occur from two closely spaced storms is handled by temporally simulating the synthetic wave climate and the resulting beach erosion and accretion.     

Appraisal of storm beach buffer width for cyclonic waves

The loss of beach sand from berm and dune due to high waves and surge is a universal phenomenon associated with sporadic storm activities. To protect the development in a coastal hazard zone, hard structures or coastal setback have been established in many countries around the world. In this paper, the requirement of a storm beach buffer, being a lesser extent landward comparing with the coastal setback to ensure the safety of infrastructures, is numerically assessed using the SBEACH model for three categories of wave conditions in terms of storm return period, median sand grain size, berm width, and design water level. Two of the key outputs from the numerical calculations, berm retreat and bar formation offshore, are then analysed, as well as beach profile change. After having performed a series of numerical studies on selected large wave tank (LWT) test results with monochromatic waves using SBEACH, we may conclude that: (1) Berm erosion increases and submerged bar develops further offshore as the storm return period increases for beach with a specific sand grain size, or as the sand grain reduces on a beach under the action of identical wave condition; (2) Higher storm waves yield a large bar to form quicker and subsequently cause wave breaking on the bar crest, which can reduce the wave energy and limit the extent of the eroding berm; (3) A larger buffer width is required for a beach comprising small sand grain, in order to effectively absorb storm wave energy; and (4) Empirical relationships can be tentatively proposed to estimate the storm beach buffer width, from the input of wave conditions and sediment grain size. These results would benefit a beach nourishment project for shore protection or design of a recreational beach.     

楮岛沙滩不同时间尺度变化特征与波能流密度相关性探讨

在波浪和水流的作用下,泥沙在不同时间尺度下的运动会引起沙滩的冲淤演变,对海岸资源有重要的影响。因此,了解沙滩季节性演变规律,并采取针对性的防护措施,是近岸沙滩亟须解决的问题。目前,现场观测是研究沙滩剖面冲淤演变的重要方法,通过沉积物组成、岸滩坡度及波浪动力的时空变化,了解沙滩剖面的变化特性,对于沙滩管理和海岸保护具有十分重要的意义。基于2017年9月—2019年11月在荣成楮岛南岸沙滩每个月采集一次的剖面数据,以及波浪动力数据,分别探究了沙滩在不同时间尺度下的变化特征,并对沙滩变化特征与波浪动力因素的相关性进行了探讨。研究发现：楮岛南岸沙滩形态变化具有较强的季节性特征,春季沙滩比较稳定;夏季沙滩受台风影响侵蚀严重,但在风暴过后的短时间内,沙滩泥沙恢复较快;冬季沙滩恢复速度逐渐减缓并趋于稳定。在夏季和冬季期间,波能流密度的向岸分量对楮岛南沙滩的演变产生重要作用,而且波能流密度向岸分量的均值（选取数据采集前15 d的波浪条件参与计算）与沙滩体积的相关性最好,并给出了两者的线性拟合公式。     

Beach response to wave energy converter farms acting as coastal defence

One of the greatest challenges of coastal engineering today is the need for coastal protection in the changing climate scenario. Places which are nowadays protected will demand upgraded defences and more sites will require security; in all cases a large amount of resources will be needed to ensure beach maintenance and coastal safety. This may be an opportunity for the multi-purpose use of Wave Energy Converters (WECs) if the foreseen increase of energy demand in coastal areas is also considered. In this paper a group of WECs based on different operating concepts is numerically tested in front of two beaches, i.e. the Bay of Santander in Spain and Las Glorias beach in Mexico, representing two different case studies where the long-shore sediment transport is dominant. The hydrodynamics induced by these devices is represented by means of a 2D elliptic modified mild-slope model that is calibrated against new experimental results. The wave field is then used as input for the analytical calculation of the long-shore sediment transport and the coastline trend is estimated by applying the continuity of sediment equation. The characteristics of the selected numerical models give this work a first approach level. All the devices were found to produce a positive trend (accretion) at least in small areas. Recommendations are given to facilitate the selection of the device and the design of the farm layout for shore protection purpose.     

ICZM and coastal defence perception by beach users: Lessons from the Mediterranean coastal area

Member States of the European Union and the Mediterranean Regional Sea need to elaborate national strategies for coastal management according to ICZM principles and to undertake national stock-taking, which must consider major actors, laws and institutions influencing the management of their national coastal zone. However, different approaches to coastal management and defence and various degrees of development and implementation of national ICZM strategies can be found. The research presented in this article aims to analyze the different situations and to contribute to the further development of a common approach in terms of methodology to establish stakeholder and users participation in ICZM. An extensive survey was conducted in five pilot sites along the European Mediterranean coastal zone (Greece, Italy and France) show beach visitors’ perception of ICZM, coastal erosion and coastal defence systems, and beach visitors’ Willingness To Pay (WTP) for beach defence. The survey yielded important information for coastal and beach managers. Surprisingly, the level of awareness about generic Coastal Zone Management was found to be rather low in all regions except Riccione Southern beach, Emilia-Romagna Region. In the Languedoc-Roussillon Region, this is justified by the fact that most of the respondents were not local people or beach visitors (other than recreational day-visitors). As regards coastal erosion it appears significant that, despite the lack of awareness demonstrated overall by stakeholders in the Region of East Macedonia and Thrace, visitors respond very positively to definitions and show awareness of the erosion process in their coastal system. In conclusion, in order to raise public awareness about ICZM, erosion and coastal defence systems, it is suggested that education, training and public awareness should be promoted as well as identification of local needs for the implementation of specific demand-driven studies.     

Discussion on Coastal Erosion Near Xizhuang, Penglai, China

-In this work, on the basis of the characteristics of coastal erosion near Xizhuang (Penglai, Shandong, China) and the in-situ measured data and theoretical calculation, the causes of coastal erosion there are obtained: (1) natural erosion, (2) beach sand borrowing, and (3) sand borrowing at the Dengzhou shoal near Xizhuang, which results in the loss of the function of the wave force resistance of the shoal. Since the wave energy is increased, the longshore sediment transport rate is increased. Coastal erosions are more and more serious. A scientific basis to reduced the calamity of coastal erosion in local area is presented. Some experiences are accumulated for studying coastal erosion.     

冬季波浪与人工岛联合作用下日月湾海滩冲淤演变特征

人工岛作为一种新兴的海岸工程, 它的建设所引起的岸滩冲淤和防护问题日益受到人们的关注。本文以海南万宁市日月湾人工岛为例, 通过4期实测海滩剖面数据和多时相遥感影像, 分析了冬季波浪与人工岛联合作用对日月湾海滩冲淤变化的影响, 并结合海区波况, 探究了海滩冲淤变化机理。研究表明, 日月湾海区冬半年的平均有效波高与波浪周期明显强于夏半年, 且波浪强度整体上呈现逐年上升的趋势, 但在人工岛建设前后变化幅度较小; 人工岛建设对海滩地貌变化有强烈影响, 海滩呈现出岛后淤积而两侧侵蚀的显著特征, 岛影区海滩不断淤积, 岸线向海淤进达200m, 甚至可能与人工岛相连形成连岛沙坝, 人工岛后两侧海滩侵蚀, 岸线向陆一侧蚀退最大距离达50m; 海滩在冬季波浪和人工岛共同影响下, 岸滩自北向南依次表现为稳定、侵蚀、淤积、相对稳定、略有侵蚀或淤积、侵蚀、淤积的冲淤变化特征。     

An experimental study on geometric characteristics of beach erosion profiles

The beach profile and sediment transport are very important factors in the design of coastal structures, and the beach profile is mainly affected by a number of parameters, such as wave height and period, beach slope, and the material properties of the bed. In this study, considering wave height (H₀=6.5, 11.5, 16, 20, 23, 26 and 30 cm), wave period (T=1.46 and 2.03 s), beach slope (m=1/10 and 1/15) and mean sediment diameter (d₅₀=0.18, 0.26, 0.33 and 0.40 mm), an experimental investigation of coastal erosion profile (storm profile) was carried out in a wave flume using regular waves, and geometric characteristics of erosion profile were determined by the resultant erosion profile. Dimensional and non-dimensional equations were obtained by using linear and non-linear regression methods through the experimental data and were compared with previously developed equations in the literature. The results have shown that the experimental data fitted well to the proposed equations with respect to the previously developed equations.     

Characteristics of coastal erosion geometry under regular and irregular waves

An experimental investigation of coastal erosion generated by the action of regular and irregular waves was carried out in laboratory channels. Natural beach sand, with medium diameter of 0.35 mm and specific gravity of 2.63, was used in this study. A 1:5 initial beach slope was selected for the model tests. Different wave groups were generated over the initially flat beach, and the characteristics of coastal erosion geometry such as erosion lengths, erosion depths, location of maximum erosion point, and total erosion areas were measured. The most important parameters governing coastal erosion were evaluated by using earlier investigations and experimental results. These parameters were expressed as a dimensionless group by using π theory. The empirical relationships between the geometric characteristics of coastal erosion and the dimensionless group are proposed through regression analysis for pure regular waves, pure irregular waves, and regular-irregular waves. The parameters, which were used to define geometric characteristics of coastal erosion, were evaluated and some ratios of these parameters gave a constant value.     

岬间海滩泥沙输运趋势与剖面分形研究

根据1999年7月实测的粤东岬间海滩沉积与地形变化资料,采用沉积物输运概率模式(McLaren模型)对海滩沿岸泥沙运移趋势进行探讨。结果表明,在常波况条件下海滩沿岸泥沙向偏南方向运移,在高能条件下可能出现与常波况条件下相反运动的趋势。进一步利用分形分布模型研究了海滩剖面的分形性质,提出了岬间海滩剖面地形变化的短期分形预测模型。     

Nonlinear transfer function modelling of beach morphology at Duck,North Carolina

This paper presents a simple nonlinear data-based modelling approach for predicting the beach profile volume at Duck, North Carolina, USA. The state-dependent parameter form of the general transfer function (SDP TF) model is used to describe nonlinearity influencing these morphological data in two case examples. Case 1 investigates the nonlinearity associated with the dependency of wave forcing on the preceding beach volume. Case 2 investigates the ability to model the variables within the well-known diffusion equation for beach volume using this data-based approach. The results of this study show that the SDP TF approach can be used successfully to develop statistically robust models for describing nonlinearity in beach morphological systems. Furthermore, these models are shown to predict the beach volumes over both short (1 month ahead) and long (2 years ahead) time periods, and thus show great potential for practical applications in coastal zone management and engineering.     

热带气旋前进方向两侧海滩风暴效应差异研究--以海滩对0307号台风"伊布都"的响应为例

在0307号台风“伊布都”(Imbudo)袭击华南沿海前后,对相距约300km的高栏岛飞沙湾(位于气旋前进方向右侧)和水东港下大海(位于气旋前进方向左侧)的固定海滩剖面地形及滩面沉积物进行了对比调查。调查结果表明,右侧海滩地形受台风暴浪冲击发生剧烈变化：后滨陆侧堆积,后滨向海侧及前滨滩面侵蚀(单宽侵蚀量达55m^3／m,平均海面(MSL)位置蚀退13m,岸线位置蚀退5m),以致剖面类型由滩肩式断面向沙坝式断面转变,表现出了海滩对台风做出快速响应;而左侧海滩剖面地形基本保持原状,虽也略呈侵蚀,但冲淤变化不大,表现为对台风做出迟缓响应。同时,从动力、滨海输沙、滩面沉积物变化和海岸地貌等方面对两侧海滩明显差异的风暴效应的机制进行了探讨。     

The impact of various methods of wave transfers from deep water to nearshore when determining extreme beach erosion

Several levels of increasing complexity of transferring wave information from offshore to nearshore have been studied to quantify their influence on extreme beach erosion estimates. Beach profiles which have been monitored since 1976 were used to estimate extreme beach erosion and compared to predictions. Examination of the wave propagation assumptions revolves around two types of offshore to nearshore transfer: excluding or including wave breaking and bottom friction. A second complication is whether still water level variations (ocean tide plus storm surge) are included.The inclusion of various combinations of wave propagation processes other than shoaling and refraction in the wave transfer function changes on the extreme erosion distribution tail through lowering estimates above one year return period. This brings the predicted tails closer to the observations, but does not capture the upper limit of storm demand implied by the extensive beach profile data set. Including wave breaking has a marked effect on probabilistic estimates of beach erosion. The inclusion of bottom friction is less significant. The inclusion of still water level variability in the wave transfer calculation had minimal impact on results for the case study site, where waves were transferred from offshore to water at 20 m depth. These changes were put into perspective by comparing them to changes resulting from limiting beach erosion by adjusting the statistical distributions of peak wave height and storm duration to have maximum limits. We conclude that the proposed improvements on wave transformation methods are as significant as limiting wave erosion potential and worth including.     

Modeling beach profile evolution at centennial to millennial scales

The proposed model allows the satisfactory reproduction of the changes in the profile geometry in each time step depending on the sediment budgets in a given morphodynamic system. The applied modification to the general Bruun rule governing the conservation of mass must account for the effect of the sediment transport, which is described in terms of the erosion and accretion rates (Er and and Ac, respectively). The scale of the erosion is a function of the total annual wave energy flux reaching the beach. The accretion is governed by the Er, on the one hand, and by the sediment budget in the morphodynamic system, on the other hand. The equilibrium profile obtained for the case of a balanced sediment budget (Er = Ac) shows good agreement with the observed profiles. A deficit or surplus in the sediment budget results in the shoreline??s retreat or advance accompanied by either a decrease or increase in the slope of the bottom profile. The model accounts for different types of shoreline responses to changes in the sea level (the Bruun rule, the development of a coastal barrier, and abrasion). Sediment budget imbalances can be a factor in the profile??s evolution due to changes in the sea level, while the combination of both factors will produce a variety of behaviors of the shoreline, as was shown by our calculations. The model was verified using historical data on the behavior of the Central Holland coast and the Abkhazian coast during the Late Holocene. It was shown that the model satisfactory reproduces the progradation of coastal barriers. An example of a relatively short-term forecast (over a 100-year period) is given.     

Formation of Equilibrium Beach Profile of the Abandoned Yellow River Delta Coast in North Jiangsu

The abandoned Yellow River Delta coast is a typical erodible silty and muddy coast in China. The paper analyses the marine dynamic characteristics and the mechanism of beach erosion of this area. Analysis and calculation show that in this sea area wave and tidal current action should be considered. Based on the above analysis, an equilibrium beach profile calculation model is developed, in which the wave-current interaction is considered while sediment supply and sediment re-deposition are neglected. The model consists of four parts: (1) calculation of wave parameters, (2) calculation of velocity due to wave-current interaction at different water depth, (3) calculation of friction velocity and shear stress at different water depths, and (4) calculation of the amount of sediment erosion, erosion intensity and variation of beach profile. Calculated results are in good agreement with observed data. Finally, the evolution tendency is discussed and the equilibrium beach profile of this coast is calculated. B     

Quantifying the storm erosion hazard for coastal planning

The quantity of coastline retreat resulting from storm erosion is one of the most important phenomena that needs to be accurately quantified to facilitate effective coastal management strategies. Historically, the volume of storm erosion (and coastline retreat) accommodated for coastal planning decisions has been directly linked to the storm (usually defined by considering wave height and duration only) with a certain pre-defined return period, known as a Synthetic Design Storm (SDS) (e.g. 1 in 100 year storm). The SDS method of estimating storm erosion volumes for coastal planning thus assumes that, for example, the 1 in 100 year storm event also results in a 1 in 100 year erosion event. This communication discusses the physical reality of this assumption and demonstrates the improved performance of a new method, based on Joint Probability Distributions (JPD) for estimating storm erosion volumes proposed by Callaghan et al. [Callaghan, D.P., Nielsen, P., Short, A.D. and Ranasinghe, R., 2008. Statistical simulation of wave climate and extreme beach erosion. Coastal Engineering, 55(5): 375–390] using one of the world's longest beach profile surveys from Sydney, Australia.     

Experimental investigation of floating wave energy converters for coastal protection purpose

Coastal areas are vital economic hubs already affected by erosion, flood risk and long-term habitat deterioration. The growth of economy coupled with the acceleration of climate change draws the attention to sustainable coastal defence plans. Near-shore floating wave energy converters may be an innovative way to defend the coast with low environmental and aesthetic impact together with the secondary benefit of energy production. This contribution specifically addresses the use of devices of the Wave Activated Body type for coastal protection, based on 3D laboratory results. New experiments were carried out on a single device in 1:30 scale and on three devices of the same type in 1:60 scale in the deep-water wave tank at Aalborg University. Wave transmission, wave reflection, mutual interaction among the devices and device efficiency are assessed under a variety of conditions by changing wave steepness and water depth. Experiments allow a first outline of design guidelines for these kinds of combined installation for wave energy production and coastal defence.