Wave breaking on turbulent energy budget in the ocean surface mixed layer

As an important physical process at the air-sea interface, wave movement and breaking have a significant effect on the ocean surface mixed layer （OSML）. When breaking waves occur at the ocean surface, turbulent kinetic energy （TKE） is input downwards, and a sublayer is formed near the surface and turbulence vertical mixing is intensively enhanced. A one-dimensional ocean model including the Mellor-Yamada level 2.5 turbulence closure equations was employed in our research on variations in turbulent energy budget within OSML. The influence of wave breaking could be introduced into the model by modifying an existing surface boundary condition of the TKE equation and specifying its input. The vertical diffusion and dissipation of TKE were effectively enhanced in the sublayer when wave breaking was considered. Turbulent energy dissipated in the sublayer was about 92.0% of the total depth-integrated dissipated TKE, which is twice higher than that of non-wave breaking. The shear production of TKE decreased by 3.5% because the mean flow fields tended to be uniform due to wave-enhanced turbulent mixing. As a result, a new local equilibrium between diffusion and dissipation of TKE was reached in the wave-enhanced layer. Below the sublayer, the local equilibrium between shear production and dissipation of TKE agreed with the conclusion drawn from the classical law-of-the-wall （Craig and Banner, 1994）.     

Estimates of reynolds stress and TKE production in the seasonally stratified East China Sea

During the two cruises in March and July of 2011, the tidal cycling of turbulent properties and the T/S profiles at the same location in seasonally stratified East China Sea (ECS) were measured synchronously by a bottom-mounted fast sampling ADCP (acoustic Doppler current profiler) and a RBR CTD (RBR-620) profiler. While focusing on the tide-induced and stratification’s impact on mixing, the Reynolds stress and the turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) production rate were calculated using the ‘variance method’. In spring, the features of mixing mainly induced by tides were clear when the water column was well-mixed. Velocity shear and turbulent parameters intensified towards the seabed due to the bottom friction. The components of the velocity shear and the Reynolds stress displayed a dominant semi-diurnal variation related to velocity changes caused by the flood and ebb of M₂ tide. Stratification occurred in summer, and the water column showed a strongly stratified pycnocline with a characteristic squared buoyancy frequency of N² ～ (1–6) × 10^?3 s^?2. The components of the velocity shear and the Reynolds stress penetrated upwards very fast from the bottom boundary layer to the whole water column in spring, while in summer they only penetrated to the bottom of the pycnocline with a relatively slow propagation speed. In summer, the TKE production within the pycnocline was comparable with and sometimes larger than that in the well-mixed bottom layer under the pycnocline. Considering the associated high velocity shear, it is speculated that the mixing in the pycnocline is a result of the local velocity shear.     

RESPONSE OF THE OCEAN UPPER MIXED LAYER TO ATMOSPHERIC FORCING

Using a one-dimension Turbulence Kinetic Energy(TKE)mixed layer model based on a simple eddyKinetic energy parameterization of the ocean upper mixed layer,some numerical examinations are intro- duced in this paper.These examination results show that the TKE ocean mixed layer model can respondwell to the effect of atmospheric forcing on the ocean upper mixed layer.The joint effect of wind stressand heat exchange on the ocean upper layer has nonlinear characteristics.The adjustment time of the re-sponse of the ocean upper mixed layer to the atmospheric forcing is about 12 hours in this model.     

Study on Hydrography and Small-Scale Process over Zhoushan Sea Area

This paper mainly analyzes the tidal characteristics and small-scale mixing process near Zhoushan Islands. First, the spectral analysis and wavelet analysis are adopted for the measured tide level data and tidal current data from the Zhoushan sea area, which indicate that the main tidal cycle near Hulu Island and Taohua Island is semi-diurnal cycle, the diurnal cycle is subordinate. Both their intensities are changed periodically, meanwhile, the diurnal tide becomes stronger when semi-diurnal tide becomes weak. The intensity of baroclinic tidal current weakens at first and then strengthens from top to bottom. Then, in this paper, the Gregg-Henyey(G-H) parameterization method is adopted to calculate the turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate based on the measured temperature and tidal current data. The results of which shown that the turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate around Hulu Island is higher than that around Taohua Island. In most cases, the turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate during spring tide is larger than that during the neap tide; the turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate in the surface layer and the bottom layer are higher than that in the intermediate water; the changes of turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate and tidal current are basically synchronous. The modeled turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate gets smaller with the increase of the stratification, however, gets larger with the increase of shearing.     

Effects of Sediment-induced Stratification on Floc Breakup in an Idealized Tidal Estuary： A Numerical Modelling Study

Floc breakup dynamics are studied by a sediment transport numerical model in an idealized tidal estuary that has a constant water depth and rapid flocculation of cohesive sediments. The focus is placed on the effects of boundary layer stratification induced by a bottom nepheloid layer on floc breakup and size distribution in the water column. In a neutrally stratified estuary, the floc size distribution follows a parabolic function with maximum values at the surface and bottom. The sediment-induced stratification in the bottom boundary layer increases the median floc sizes. Furthermore, sediment-voided convection caused by the settling lutocline generates significant turbulent kinetic energy dissipation and reduces floc size at the depth where the convective mixing happens. Below that depth, a weak local maxima in the floc size is predicted due to presence of the lutocline. The effect of sediment-stratified bottom boundary layer on the floc breakup can be consistently approximated by a linear regression between the maximal floc size and flux Richardson number.     

Effects of sediment-induced stratification on floe breakup in an idealized tidal estuary: A numerical modelling study

Floe breakup dynamics are studied by a sediment transport numerical model in an idealized tidal estuary that has a constant water depth and rapid flocculation of cohesive sediments. The focus is placed on the effects of boundary layer stratification induced by a bottom nepheloid layer on floe breakup and size distribution in the water column. In a neutrally stratified estuary, the floe size distribution follows a parabolic function with maximum values at the surface and bottom. The sediment-induced stratification in the bottom boundary layer increases the median floe sizes. Furthermore, sediment-voided convection caused by the settling lutocline generates significant turbulent kinetic energy dissipation and reduces floe size at the depth where the convective mixing happens. Below that depth, a weak local maxima in the floe size is predicted due to presence of the lutocline. The effect of sediment-stratified bottom boundary layer on the floe breakup can be consistently approximated by a linear regression between the maximal floe size and flux Richardson number.     

Energy dissipation through wind-generated breaking waves

Wave breaking is an important process that controls turbulence properties and fluxes of heat and mass in the upper oceanic layer.A model is described for energy dissipation per unit area at the ocean surface attributed to wind-generated breaking waves,in terms of ratio of energy dissipation to energy input,windgenerated wave spectrum,and wave growth rate.Also advanced is a vertical distribution model of turbulent kinetic energy,based on an exponential distribution method.The result shows that energy dissipation rate depends heavily on wind speed and sea state.Our results agree well with predictions of previous works.     

The suspended sediment concentration distribution in the Bohai Sea, Yellow Sea and East China Sea

The distribution of the suspended sediment concentration (SSC) in the Bohai Sea, Yellow Sea and East China Sea (BYECS) is studied based on the observed turbidity data and model simulation results. The observed turbidity results show that (i) the highest SSC is found in the coastal areas while in the outer shelf sea areas turbid water is much more difficult to observe, (ii) the surface layer SSC is much lower than the bottom layer SSC and (iii) the winter SSC is higher than the summer SSC. The Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) is used to simulate the SSC distribution in the BYECS. A comparison between the modeled SSC and the observed SSC in the BYECS shows that the modeled SSC can reproduce the principal features of the SSC distribution in the BYECS. The dynamic mechanisms of the sediment erosion and transport processes are studied based on the modeled results. The horizontal distribution of the SSC in the BYECS is mainly determined by the current-wave induced bottom stress and the fine-grain sediment distribution. The current-induced bottom stress is much higher than the wave-induced bottom stress, which means the tidal currents play a more significant role in the sediment resuspension than the wind waves. The vertical mixing strength is studied based on the mixed layer depth and the turbulent kinetic energy distribution in the BYECS. The strong winter time vertical mixing, which is mainly caused by the strong wind stress and surface cooling, leads to high surface layer SSC in winter. High surface layer SSC in summer is restricted in the coastal areas.     

Turbulence and Fossil Turbulence in Oceans and Lakes

Turbulence is defined as an eddy-like state of fluid motion where the inertial-vortex forces of the eddies are larger than any of the other forces that tend to damp the eddies out. Energy cascades of irrotational flows from large scales to small are non-turbulent, even if they supply energy to turbulence. Turbulent flows are rotational and cascade from small scales to large, with feedback. Viscous forces limit the smallest turbulent eddy size to the Kolmogorov scale. In stratified fluids, buoyancy forces limit large vertical overturns to the Ozmidov scale and convert the largest turbulent eddies into a unique class of saturated, non-propagating, internal waves, termed fossil-vorticity-turbulence. These waves have the same energy but different properties and spectral forms than the original turbulence patch. The Gibson (1980, 1986) theory of fossil turbulence applies universal similarity theories of turbulence and turbulent mixing to the vertical evolution of an isolated patch of turbulence in a stratified fluid as its growth is constrained and fossilized by buoyancy forces. Quantitative hydrodynamic-phase-diagrams (HPDs) from the theory are used to classify microstructure patches according to their hydrodynamic states. When analyzed in HPD space, previously published oceanic datasets showed their dominant microstructure patches are fossilized at large scales in all layers. Laboratory and field measurements suggested phytoplankton species with different swimming abilities adjust their growth strategies by pattern recognition of tur-bulence-fossil-turbulence dissipation and persistence times that predict survival-relevant surface layer sea changes. New data collected near a Honolulu waste-water outfall showed the small-to-large evolution of oceanic turbulence microstructure from active to fossil states, and revealed the ability of fossil-density-turbulence patches to absorb, and vertically radiate, internal wave energy, information, and enhanced turbulent-mixing-rates toward the sea surface so that the submerged waste-field could be detected from a space satellite (Bondur and Filatov, 2003).     

Can Langmuir Circulations Solve the Problem of Insufficient Upper-Ocean Mixing?

Insufficient vertical mixing in the upper ocean during summer is a common problem of oceanic circulation and climate models. The turbulence associated with non-breaking waves is widely believed to effectively solve this problem. In many studies, non-breaking surface wave processes are attributed to the effects of Langmuir circulations(LCs). In the present work, the influences of LCs on the upper-ocean thermal structure are examined by using one-and three-dimensional ocean circulation, as well as climate, models. The results indicated that the effect of vertical mixing enhanced by LCs is limited to the upper ocean. The models evaluated, including those considering LC effects alone and the combined effects of LCs and wave breaking, failed to produce a reasonable summertime thermocline, resulting in a large cold bias in the subsurface layer. Therefore, while they can slightly reduce the biases of mixed layer depths and sea surface temperatures in models, LCs are insufficient to solve the problem of insufficient vertical mixing. Moreover, restriction of non-breaking surface wave-induced processes in LCs may be questionable.     

Interaction of Waves, Surface Currents, and Turbulence： the Application of Surface-Following Coordinate Systems

Surface waves comprise an important aspect of the interaction between the atmosphere and the ocean, so a dynamically consistent framework for modelling atmosphere-ocean interaction must take account of surface waves, either implicitly or explicitly. In order to calculate the effect of wind forcing on waves and currents, and vice versa, it is necessary to employ a consistent formula- tion of the energy and momentum balance within the airflow, wave field, and water column. It is very advantageous to apply sur- face-following coordinate systems, whereby the steep gradients in mean flow properties near the air-water interface in the cross-interface direction may be resolved over distances which are much smaller than the height of the waves themselves. We may account for the waves explicitly by employing a numerical spectral wave model, and applying a suitable theory of wave–mean flow interaction. If the mean flow is small compared with the wave phase speed, perturbation expansions of the hydrodynamic equations in a Lagrangian or generalized Lagrangian mean framework are useful: for stronger flows, such as for wind blowing over waves, the presence of critical levels where the mean flow velocity is equal to the wave phase speed necessitates the application of more general types of surface-following coordinate system. The interaction of the flow of air and water and associated differences in temperature and the concentration of various substances (such as gas species) gives rise to a complex boundary-layer structure at a wide range of vertical scales, from the sub-millimetre scales of gaseous diffusion, to several tens of metres for the turbulent Ekman layer. The bal- ance of momentum, heat, and mass is also affected significantly by breaking waves, which act to increase the effective area of the surface for mass transfer, and increase turbulent diffusive fluxes via the conversion of wave energy to turbulent kinetic energy.     

Study on surface wave-induced mixing of transport flux residue under typhoon conditions

The transport flux residue of surface waves plays an important role in a variety of ocean phenomena, for example, the change in sea surface temperature(SST) and upper mixed layer profile that were studied in a series of recent papers. In the previous studies, its effect was discussed rigorously and fragmented based on numerical modeling. Here we propose a relatively comprehensive and simplified exposition of the wave transport flux residue, and focus on its influence under typhoon conditions with strong background current. An analogue Reynolds Number is presented for tentative comparison with wave-generated turbulence mixing, especially in the coastal area. Numerical results indicate that both overwhelming dynamical mixing processes can remarkably change the coastal environment, and should not be ignored consciously for further marine hazards assessment.     

Distribution of vertical turbulent mixing parameter caused by internal tidal waves and solitary waves in the South Yellow Sea

Many observations show that in the Yellow Sea internal tidal waves (ITWs) possess the remarkable characteristics of internal Kelvin wave, and in the South Yellow Sea (SYS) the nonlinear evolution of internal tidal waves is one of the mechanisms producing internal solitary waves (ISWs), which is different from the generation mechanism in the case where the semidiurnal tidal current flows over topographic drops. In this paper, the model of internal Kelvin wave with continuous stratification is given, and an elementary numerical study of nonlinear evolution of ITWs is made for the SYS, using the generalized KdV model (GKdV model for short) for a continuous stratified ocean, in which the different effects of background barotropic ebb and flood currents are considered. Moreover, the parameterization of vertical turbulent mixing caused by ITWs and ISWs in the SYS is studied, using a parameterization scheme which was applied to numerical experiments on the breaking of ISWs by Vlasenko and Hutter in 2002. It is found that the vertical turbulent mixing caused by internal waves is very strong within the upper layer with depth less than about 30m, and the vertical turbulent mixing caused by ISWs is stronger than that by ITWs.     

Laboratory Experiments on an Internal Solitary Wave over a Triangular Barrier

Laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate the evolution of interfacial internal solitary waves(ISWs) incident on a triangular barrier. ISWs with different amplitudes were generated by gravitational collapse. The ISW energy dissipation and turbulence processes were calculated as waves passed over the triangular barrier. Experimental results showed that ISWs were reflecting back off the triangular barrier, and shoaling ISWs led to wave breaking and mixing when waves propagated over the obstacle. Wave instability created the dissipation of energy as it was transmitted from waves to turbulence. The rate of ISW energy dissipation, the maximum turbulent dissipation, and the buoyancy diffusivity linearly increased with the increase in the incident wave energy.     

The Structure and Formation Mechanism of a Sea Fog Event over the Yellow Sea

In this paper, a heavy sea fog event occurring over the Yellow Sea on 11 April 2004 was investigated based upon observational and modeling analyses. From the observational analyses, this sea fog event is a typical advection cooling case. Sea surface temperature(SST) and specific humidity(SH) show strong gradients from south to north, in which warm water is located in the south and consequently, moisture is larger in the south than in the north due to evaporation processes. After fog formation, evaporation process provides more moisture into the air and further contributes to fog evolution. The sea fog event was reproduced by the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System(RAMS) reasonably. The roles of important physical processes such as radiation, turbulence as well as atmospheric stratification in sea fog’s structure and its formation mechanisms were analyzed using the model results. The roles of long wave radiation cooling, turbulence as well as atmospheric stratification were analyzed based on the modeling results. It is found that the long wave radiative cooling at the fog top plays an important role in cooling down the fog layer through turbulence mixing. The fog top cooling can overpower warming from the surface. Sea fog develops upward with the aid of turbulence. The buoyancy term, i.e., the unstable layer, contributes to the generation of TKE in the fog region. However, the temperature inversion layer prevents fog from growing upward.     

The upper mixed layer during coastal upwelling events on the northern portugal shelf

The upper mixed layer (UML) depth obtained from temperature is very close to that from density:the maximum is about 15m. This indicates that temperature is a good indicator of mixed layer during measurements. When the surface heat flux is balanced by a cross-shore heat flux, the surface mixed layer depth obtained from the WM model (Weatherly and Martin, 1978),hPRT, is roughly the same as observed. The mixed layer depth calculated from the PWP model (Price, Weller and Pinkel, 1986) is close to the depth obtained from thermistor chain temperature data. The results show that both the WM model and PWP model can provide a good estimate of stratification in the study area during the cruise. The value of log( h/u3) is about 9.5 in the study area, which shows that the study area is strongly stratified in summer. Observations on the northern Portugal shelf reveal high variability in stability, giving rise to semi-diurnal, semi-monthly and diurnal oscillations, and long term variations. The fortnightly oscillatio     

北京一次强对流天气过程的数值模拟

为了对发生于2008年07月04日北京的一次强对流天气有更多的认识,利用三维对流云模式对其进行数值模拟研究。结果表明：模式可以较好地模拟出强对流天气各主要宏观发展阶段的特征,以及云中水成物粒子转化的微观特征;模式能够很好地模拟出此次强对流天气过程的风场特征,对流系统中存在有利的环境条件,风暴是由气流的辐合上升引起的。在发展初期,对流云低层为辐合上升气流,在对流云发展的成熟阶段,近地面层以辐散气流为主,中上层以辐合气流为主,且辐合达到最大,之后随着云体的消散,低层辐散下沉气流加强。气流在顶端转变方向,形成辐散出流。     

Large eddy simulation of the rotation effect on the ocean turbulence kinetic energy budget in the surface mixed layer

A non-hydrostatic, Boussinesq, and three-dimensional large eddy simulation(LES) model was used to study the impact of the Earth's rotation on turbulence and the redistribution of energy in turbulence kinetic energy(TKE) budget. A set of numerical simulations was conducted,(1) with and without rotation,(2) at different latitudes(10°N, 30°N, 45°N, 60°N, and 80°N),(3) with wave breaking and with Langmuir circulation, and(4) under different wind speeds(5, 10, 20, and 30 m/s). The results show that eddy viscosity decreases when rotation is included, indicating that rotation weakens the turbulence strength. The TKE budget become tight with rotation and the effects of rotation grow with latitude. However, rotation become less important under Langmuir circulation since the transport term is strong in the vertical direction. Finally, simulations were conducted based on field data from the Boundary Layer and Air-Sea Transfer Low Wind(CBLAST-Low) experiment. The results, although more complex, are consistent with the results obtained from earlier simulations using ideal numerical conditions.     

Large-eddy simulation of the influence of a wavy lower boundary on the turbulence kinetic energy budget redistribution

Oceanic turbulence plays an important role in coastal flow. However, as the effect of an uneven lower boundary on the adjacent turbulence is still not well understood, we explore the mechanics of nearshore turbulence with a turbulence-resolving numerical model known as a large-eddy-simulation model for an idealized scenario in a coastal region for which the lower boundary is a solid sinusoidal wave. The numerical simulation demonstrates how the mechanical energy of the current is transferred into local turbulence mixing, and shows the changes in turbulent intensity over the continuous phase change of the lower topography. The strongest turbulent kinetic energy is concentrated above the trough of the wavy surface. The turbulence mixing is mainly generated by the shear forces; the magnitude of shear production has a local maximum over the crest of the seabed topography, and there is an asymmetry in the shear production between the leeward and windward slopes. The numerical results are consistent with results from laboratory experiments. Our analysis provides an important insight into the mechanism of turbulent kinetic energy production and development.     

Preliminary results of assessing the mixing of wave transport flux residualin the upper ocean with ROMS

The effects of the mixing of wave transport flux residual(Bvl) on the upper ocean is studied through carrying out the control run(CR) and a series of sensitive runs(SR) with ROMS model.In this study,the important role of Bvl is revealed by comparing the ocean temperature,statistical analysis of errors and evaluating the mixed layer depth.It is shown that the overestimated SST is improved effectively when the wave-induced mixing is incorporated to the vertical mixing scheme.As can be seen from the vertical structure of temperature 28℃ isotherm changes from 20 min CR to 35 m in SR3,which is more close to the observation.Statistic analysis shows that the root-mean-square errors of the temperature in 10 m are reduced and the correlation between model results and observation data are increased after considering the effect of Bvl.The numerical results of the ocean temperature show improvement in summer and in tropical zones in winter,especially in the strong current regions in summer.In August the mixed layer depth(MLD) which is defined as the depth that the temperature has changed 0.5℃ from the reference depth of 10 m is further analyzed.The simulation results have a close relationship with undetermined coefficient of Bvl,sensitivity studies show that a coefficient about 0.1 is reasonable value in the model.