Development and validation of a finite element morphological model for shallow water basins

Recognising the importance of understanding sediment dynamics to evaluate the status of a coastal lagoon environment, this work has been focused on the investigation of the hydrodynamic and sediment transport processes occurring in such basins. In order to describe the lagoon system, a modelling approach combining hydrodynamics, waves and sediment dynamics has been developed. The framework of the numerical model consists of a finite element hydrodynamic model, a third generation finite element spectral wave model and a sediment transport and morphodynamic model for both cohesive and non-cohesive sediments. The model adopts the finite element technique for spatial integration, which has the advantage to describe more accurately complicated bathymetry and irregular boundaries for shallow water areas. The developed model has been applied to test cases and to a very shallow tidal lagoon, the Venice Lagoon, Italy. Numerical results show good agreement with water level, waves and turbidity measurements collected in several monitoring stations inside the Lagoon of Venice. Such a model represents an indispensable tool in analysing coastal problems and assessing morphological impacts of human interference.     

Wave boundary layers in rough turbulent flow

A one-layer time-invariant eddy viscosity model is specified to develop a mathematical model for describing the essential features of the turbulent wave boundary layer over a rough bed. The functional form of the eddy viscosity is evaluated based on a modified one-equation turbulence model in which the eddy viscosity varies in time and space. The present eddy viscosity model simplifies much of the mathematical complexity in many existing models. Predictions from the present model have been compared favorably with a wide range of experimental data. It is found that the eddy viscosity model adopted in the present study is physically reasonable.     

Physical impact on the reclamation area resulting from offshore dredging at the Changhwa coast, Taiwan

The physical impact of offshore dredging on the reclamation area at the Changhwa coast, Taiwan, is investigated using a three-dimensional movable-bed model test. A distorted modeling law consisting of maintaining similarity of the equilibrium beach profile between the model and prototype is proposed. The geometric distortion was verified through a series of preliminary experiments conducted in a wave flume. Experimental results show that the distorted modeling is able to reproduce the beach-face slope in nature. An appropriate long-term morphological time-scale was determined based on a comparison of model longshore littoral transport rates and equivalent prototype values. Seabed topographical changes before and after offshore dredging are evaluated in model tests. A suitable countermeasure to prevent beach erosion from wave attack along the reclamation area is suggested from the experimental results.     

Reply to “Discussion of wave setup and setdown generated by obliquely incident waves” by F. Shi and J.T. Kirby

The authors are grateful to the derivation and correction addressed by Shi and Kirby (2008) for the calculation of the wave setup and setdown induced by obliquely incident waves. The mathematical equations for the expression of setup and setdown are rederived in which the velocity potential is expanded to the second-order on the still water lever. The correct form of setdown presented by Shi and Kirby is confirmed in the present paper.     

Wave refraction–diffraction effect in the wind wave model WWM

Based on the extended mild-slope equation, the wind wave model (WWM; Hsu et al., 2005) is modified to account for wave refraction, diffraction and reflection for wind waves propagating over a rapidly varying seabed in the presence of current. The combined effect of the higher-order bottom effect terms is incorporated into the wave action balance equation through the correction of the wavenumber and propagation velocities using a refraction–diffraction correction parameter. The relative importance of additional terms including higher-order bottom components, the wave–bottom interaction source term and wave–current interaction that influence the refraction–diffraction correction parameter is discussed. The applicability of the proposed model to calculate a wave transformation over an elliptic shoal, a series of parallel submerged breakwater induced Bragg scattering and wave–current interaction is evaluated. Numerical results show that the present model provides better predictions of the wave amplitude as compared with the phase-decoupled model of Holthuijsen et al. (2003).     

RANS Modeling of Solitary Wave Propagation over A Submerged Rectangular Breakwater

In this paper a series of numerical simulations are performed to investigate the vortex shedding mechanism for a solitary wave propagating over a submerged breakwater by use of Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) model combined with a k-ε model. Flows of different Reynolds numbers up to Re=1.4×105 corresponding to varying incident wave heights are considered in which the characteristic fluid velocity is represented by the maximum horizontal velocity above the submerged breakwater. For the verification of...     

A parabolic equation for wave propagation over porous structures

A parabolic wave model was developed to simulate wave transformation over porous structures in the surf zone including wave-breaking and energy dissipation. This model is verified through experimental data for waves passing over a submerged permeable structure with porosities. The numerical results have shown good agreement with the results of laboratory experiments. The model is also applied to the real case of waves propagating over a porous submerged breakwater on a complicated bathymetry.     

Equilibrium scour depths around piles in noncohesive sediments under currents and waves

A universal formula for the estimation of equilibrium scour depth around a single cylindrical pile under the action of steady currents, tidal and short waves is presented.     

A Simple Eddy Viscosity Model of Rough Turbulent Wave Boundary Layer

- A one-layer time-invariant eddy viscosity model is specified to develop a mathematical model for describing the essential features of the turbulent wave boundary layer over a rough bed. The functional form of the eddy viscosity is evaluated based on computational results from a two-equation turbulence model in which the eddy viscosity varies with time and space. The present eddy viscosity model simplifies much of the mathematical complexity in many existing models. Predictions from the present model have been compared with a wide range of experimental data. It is found that the eddy viscosity model adopted in the present study is physically reasonable.     

Sequential assimilation in the wind wave model for simulations of typhoon events around Taiwan Island

We investigate the effect of data assimilation in the Wind Wave Model (WWM, Hsu et al., 2005) for wind wave simulations of typhoon events using an Optimal Interpolation (OI) method in the coastal waters of Taiwan. The main point of the present study is that the assimilation is conducted for typhoon events with short-time periods around an island. Five real typhoon events were used for numerical assimilation experiments with different combinations of the key parameters: the correlation length, the ratio of the errors between the observation and the prediction, and the number of measuring stations. The retrieved wind velocity is obtained using the wave energy growth curve computed from the WWM. The wave energy dissipation function suggested by Makin and Kudryavtsev (1999) was adopted in the data assimilation. This study shows that assimilation can improve the initial performance of the wave model, but it becomes insignificant after about 12 h. In summary, the OI approach is shown to be a reliable assimilation scheme for the WWM applied to typhoon events in the coastal waters of Taiwan Island.