Channelled erosion through a marine dump site of dredge spoils at the mouth of the Puyallup River, Washington State, USA

Channels are relatively common on river-mouth deltas, but the process by which they arise from river sediment discharge is unclear because they can potentially be explained either by negatively buoyant (hyperpycnal) flows produced directly from the river outflow or by flows generated by repeated failure and mobilisation of sediment rapidly deposited at the delta front. Channels eroded through a dump site of dredge spoils are described here from multibeam and older sonar data collected in Commencement Bay, at the mouth of the Puyallup River. Shallow channels on the seaward upper surface of the dump site, away from any flows that could have been produced by delta front failures, suggest that at least some hyperpycnal flows were produced directly from the positively buoyant river outflow up to 200 m from the edge of the river mouth platform. The form of channel bed erosion is revealed by the longitudinal shape of the main eroded channel compared with the adjacent dump site profile. It suggests that the channel evolved by its steep front retreating, rather than by simple vertical entrenchment or diffusive-like evolution of the profile, a geometry interpreted as evidence that repeated failure of the bed occurred in response to shear stress imposed by bottom-travelling flows. Model calculations based on shear strengths back-calculated from the geometry of channel wall failures suggest that, if the main channel were eroded solely by hyperpycnal flows, their generation was remarkably efficient in order to create flows vigorous enough to cause channel bed failure. Besides the sediment concentration and discharge characteristics that have been considered to dictate the ability of rivers to produce hyperpycnal flows, it is suggested that the timing of floods with respect to the tidal cycle should also be important because extreme low tides may be needed to ensure that coarse sediment is transferred vigorously to the edge of river mouth platforms.     

Examination of empirical formulas for wave shoaling and breaking on steep slopes

Estimation of the wave height transformation of shoaling and breaking is essential for the nearshore hydrodynamics and the design of coastal structures. Many empirical formulas have been well recognized to the wave height transformation, but most of them were only applicable for gentle slopes. This paper reports the experimental results of wave shoaling and breaking over the steep slopes to examine the applicability of the previous empirical formulas. Two steep bottom slopes of 1/3 and 1/5, and one gentle slope of 1/10 were conducted in the present experiments. Experimental results show that the shoaling distance of steep slopes become short and the surface waves may be partially reflected from the steep bottom, thus the estimation of wave shoaling using the well-known previous formula did not conform completely to the experimental results. The previous empirical formulas for the wave breaking criteria were also examined, and the modified equations to the steep beaches were proposed in this work. A numerical model was finally adopted to calculate the wave height transformation in the surf zone by introducing the modified breaking index.     

Parabolic Wave Propagation Modelling in Orthogonal Coordinate Systems

This paper presents a numerical model study of the propagation of water waves using the parabolic approximation of the mild-slope equation in the orthogonal coordinate system. Two types of coordinate systems are studied: (a) a general form of orthogonal coordinate system and (b) the conformal system, a special form of orthogonal coordinate system. Two typical examples, namely, expanded breakwaters and a circular channel, are studied to validate the model. First, the examples are studied by use of the general orthogonal coordinates. Then the same examples are computed by use of the confonnal system. The computational results show that the confonnal coordinate system generally gives better predictions than the general orthogonal system. A numerical technique for generating the conformal grid is combined with the numerical model to improve the practicability of the model. The comparison between the result from the numerical grid system and that from the analytical grid system shows that reliable computational results can be obtained by use of the numerical confonnal grid system.     

Periodic Intrusion of Cold Water from the Pacific Ocean into the Bottom Layer of the Bungo Channel in Japan

A cold-water intrusion, called a “bottom intrusion”, occurs in the lower layer of the Bungo Channel in Japan. It is an intrusion from the shelf slope region of the Pacific Ocean margin in the south of the channel. In order to reveal the fundamental characteristics of the bottom intrusion, we conducted long-term observations of water temperature at the surface and bottom layers of the channel and 15-day current observations at the bottom of the shelf-break region. The long-term water temperature data indicated that the bottom intrusion occurs repeatedly between early summer and late autumn, and its reiteration between early and mid-summer causes a local minimum of water temperature in the lower layer in mid-summer. Moreover, the data revealed that most of the bottom intrusions occurred in neap tidal periods. The current meter recorded a bottom intrusion with a speed of approximately 15 cm⋅s⁻¹. The current meter also revealed that the intruded cold water slowly retreated back to the shelf slope region after the intrusion. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Numerical Simulation of Non-Linear Wave Propagation in Waters of Mildly Varying Topography with Complicated Boundary

In this paper, the characteristics of different forms of mild slope equations for non-linear wave are analyzed, and new non-linear theoretic models for wave propagation are presented, with non-linear terms added to the mild slope equations for non-stationary linear waves and dissipative effects considered. Numerical simulation models are developed of non-linear wave propagation for waters of mildly varying topography with complicated boundary, and the effects are studied of different non-linear corrections on calculation results of extended mild slope equations. Systematical numerical simulation tests show that the present models can effectively reflect non-linear effects.     

Demersal Continental Shelf and Upper Slope Cephalopod Assemblages from the Balearic Sea (North-Western Mediterranean). Biological Aspects of Some Deep-Sea Species

The analysis of 79 hauls performed by commercial bottom trawlers from 50 to 800 m depth in the Balearic Sea (north-western Mediterranean) from June 1995 to September 1996 yielded a total of 30 cephalopod species belonging to 12 families. Cluster analysis of these data gave as a result two main groups 50–200 m and 200–800 m each subdivided into two other groups (50–100 vs. 100–200 m and 200–600 vs. 600–800 m). These results suggested the existence of two assemblages that could be associated to the continental shelf (50–100 m) and the upper slope (600–800 m) separated by a wide transitional zone (100–600 m) representing a region of overlapping shelf and slope faunas (ecotone). The faunistic bathymetric gradient showed a continuous substitution of species with depth rather than discrete assemblages separated by distinct boundaries. The more coastal species such as Eledone moschata, Loligo vulgarisSepia officinalis and Octopus vulgaris were found on the continental shelf; on the transitional zone, apart from species characteristic of this zone (Illex coindetii, Sepietta oweniana, Rossia macrosoma, Scaeurgus unicirrhus and Pteroctopus tetracirrhus), we also observed species from both the continental shelf and slope. The upper slope was characterized by typical species of deeper waters, such asBathypolypus sponsalis , Histioteuthis reversa, H. bonnellii, Ancistroteuthis lichtensteinii andOnychoteuthis banksii . The octopod O. vulgaris was the dominant species on the continental shelf and upper transitional zone, being substituted by T. sagittatus on the lower transitional zone and upper slope. Mean biomass decreased abruptly from the continental shelf to the transitional zone and from there to the upper slope. Mean species richness and species diversity were higher in the transitional zone than in the continental shelf and upper slope. Finally, some biological aspects of the more abundant deep-sea cephalopod species are studied: Bathypolypus sponsalis, Octopus salutii,Pteroctopus tetracirrhus , Histioteuthis reversa and H. bonnellii.     

东海陆架前缘斜坡(冲绳海槽西坡)北部的断块隆脊地貌

东海陆架前缘斜坡(冲绳海槽西坡)北部的断块隆脊,是呈长条形的脊状台式隆起,位于29°30′N-31°10′N;128°00′E-128°20′E之间。其由NNE向链状排列的断块山地组成,且与NNE向的断裂构造相一致,其顶部水深约300m～400m左右。从实测单道地震剖面看,隆脊的东西两侧均有断层出现。隆脊西坡倾向陆架一侧,坡度大,有的地方坡度超过10°;而东侧坡度较缓,仅1°左右,缓倾至海槽西坡坡底,并以沟坎式与冲绳海槽槽底相连。冲绳海槽地区的构造运动,使隆脊地区受到断裂构造的作用。NNE向的大断裂使该隆脊位置的东西两侧断裂下降而中间抬起,加之下部岩浆上侵,显现出链式排列的断块山地,表现为一条长形的断块隆脊构造地貌体。推测该地貌体形成的时期较晚,它是与断层的发生同时期形成的。     

边坡整体稳定的可靠性分析方法

边坡整体滑动稳定性的可靠性分析是建立在土体具有的抗力大于荷载效应的概率基础上进行设计和校验的。在条分法的基础上推导出了进行边坡稳定可靠性分析的统一极限状态方程 ,将土的容重γ、内摩擦角φ、粘聚力 c作为随机变量 ,当其为非正态分布时 ,进行当量正态化 ,考虑变量相关的情况 ,用简化相关法对随机变量进行统计分析 ,并以 Bishop圆弧滑动法为例 ,用 JC法求解边坡的可靠性指标及失效概率 ,给出计算安全系数和可靠性指标的算法程序。并就影响可靠性指标的因素如抗剪强度指标、变量分布形式、土性参数的变异性等进行了讨论。     

Overtopping Discharge of Wind-Waves on Simple Slope Dikes

An empirical formula for estimating the overtopping discharge of wind-waves on a smooth-impermeable-simple slope dyke is derived through model tests in this paper, it can be adopted by related design departments in the determination of the crest elevation of the dyke.