Accuracy of numerical simulations of contaminant transport in heterogeneous aquifers: A comparative study

This work deals with a comparison of different numerical schemes for the simulation of contaminant transport in heterogeneous porous media. The numerical methods under consideration are Galerkin finite element (GFE), finite volume (FV), and mixed hybrid finite element (MHFE). Concerning the GFE we use linear and quadratic finite elements with and without upwind stabilization. Besides the classical MHFE a new and an upwind scheme are tested. We consider higher order finite volume schemes as well as two time discretization methods: backward Euler (BE) and the second order backward differentiation formula BDF (2). It is well known that numerical (or artificial) diffusion may cause large errors. Moreover, when the Péclet number is large, a numerical code without some stabilising techniques produces oscillating solutions. Upwind schemes increase the stability but show more numerical diffusion. In this paper we quantify the numerical diffusion for the different discretization schemes and its dependency on the Péclet number. We consider an academic example and a realistic simulation of solute transport in heterogeneous aquifer. In the latter case, the stochastic estimates used as reference were obtained with global random walk (GRW) simulations, free of numerical diffusion. The results presented can be used by researchers to test their numerical schemes and stabilization techniques for simulation of contaminant transport in groundwater.     

The concept of travelling bedload and its consequences for bedload computation in mountain streams

In bedload transport modelling, it is usually presumed that transported material is fed by the bed itself. This may not be true in some mountain streams where the bed can be very coarse and immobile for the majority of common floods, whereas a finer material, supplied by bed‐external sources, is efficiently transported during floods, with marginal morphological activities. This transport mode was introduced in an earlier paper as ‘travelling bedload’. It could be considered an extension of the washload concept of suspension, applied to bedload transport in high‐energy, heavily armoured streams. Since this fine material is poorly represented in the bed surface, standard surface‐based approaches are likely to strongly underestimate the true transport in such streams. This paper proposes a simple method to account for travelling bedload in bedload transport estimations. The method is tested on published datasets and on a typical Alpine stream, the Roize (Voreppe, France). The results, particularly on active streams that experience greater transport than expected from the grain sizes of their bed material, reinforce the necessity of accounting for the ‘travelling bedload concept’ in bedload computation. The method relevance is discussed regarding varying flood magnitudes, geomorphic responses and eventual anthropic origin of the ‘travelling bedload’ phenomena. To conclude, this paper considers how to compute bedload transport for a wide range of situations, ranging from sediment‐starved cases to the general mobile bed alluvial case, including the intermediate situation of external source supply on armoured bed. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Geomorphic process from topographic form: automating the interpretation of repeat survey data in river valleys

The ability to quantify the processes driving geomorphic change in river valley margins is vital to geomorphologists seeking to understand the relative role of transport mechanisms (e.g. fluvial, aeolian, and hillslope processes) in landscape dynamics. High‐resolution, repeat topographic data are becoming readily available to geomorphologists. By contrasting digital elevation models derived from repeat surveys, the transport processes driving topographic changes can be inferred, a method termed ‘mechanistic segregation.’ Unfortunately, mechanistic segregation largely relies on subjective and time consuming manual classification, which has implications both for its reproducibility and the practical scale of its application. Here we present a novel computational workflow for the mechanistic segregation of geomorphic transport processes in geospatial datasets. We apply the workflow to seven sites along the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon, where geomorphic transport is driven by a diverse suite of mechanisms. The workflow performs well when compared to field observations, with an overall predictive accuracy of 84% across 113 validation points. The approach most accurately predicts changes due to fluvial processes (100% accuracy) and aeolian processes (96%), with reduced accuracy in predictions of alluvial and colluvial processes (64% and 73%, respectively). Our workflow is designed to be applicable to a diversity of river systems and will likely provide a rapid and objective understanding of the processes driving geomorphic change at the reach and network scales. We anticipate that such an understanding will allow insight into the response of geomorphic transport processes to external forcings, such as shifts in climate, land use, or river regulation, with implications for process‐based river management and restoration. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Channel response to an extreme flood and sediment pulse in a mixed bedrock and gravel‐bed river

We exploit a natural experiment caused by an extreme flood (~500 year recurrence interval) and sediment pulse derived from more than 2500 concurrent landslides to explore the influence of valley‐scale geomorphic controls on sediment slug evolution and the impact of sediment pulse passage and slug deposition and dispersion on channel stability and channel form. Sediment slug movement is a crucial process that shapes gravel‐bed rivers and alluvial valleys and is an important mechanism of downstream bed material transport. Further, increased bed material transport rates during slug deposition can trigger channel responses including increases in lateral mobility, channel width, and alluvial bar dominance. Pre‐ and post‐flood LiDAR and aerial photographs bracketing the 2007 flood on the Chehalis River in south‐western Washington State, USA, document the channel response with high spatial and temporal definition. The sediment slug behaved as a Gilbert Wave, with both channel aggradation and sequestration of large volumes of material in floodplains of headwaters' reaches and reaches where confined valleys enter into broad alluvial valleys. Differences between the valley form of two separate sub‐basins impacted by the pulse highlight the important role channel and channel‐floodplain connectivity play in governing downstream movement of sediment slug material. Finally, channel response to the extreme flood and sediment pulse illustrate the connection between bed material transport and channel form. Specifically, the channel widened, lateral channel mobility increased, and the proportion of the active channel covered by bars increased in all reaches in the study area. The response scaled tightly with the relative amount of bed material sediment transport through individual reaches, indicating that the amount of morphological change caused by the flood was conditioned by the simultaneous introduction of a sediment pulse to the channel network. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

北部湾防城港东湾白骨壤潮滩近底层动力响应台风作用的耗散过程

揭示极端天气影响的红树林潮滩潮流能量耗散过程是理解生物海岸演变及滨海湿地生态修复工程的核心内容。以北部湾防城港东湾白骨壤红树林潮滩为例,基于声学多普勒流速仪（ADV）获取区域2020年8月连续6天的水动力和白骨壤红树林下垫面植被实测数据,分析白骨壤潮滩近底层动力响应台风“森拉克”的耗散过程。结果表明：1）正常天气涨、落潮期间,自光滩到白骨壤红树林林内近底层湍流动能变化具有潮汐不对称性特征。涨潮期间光滩—白骨壤红树林边缘、白骨壤红树林边缘—林内潮流挟沙能量分别通过泥沙沉降以及搬运泥沙两种方式沿程消耗,落潮期间潮流挟沙能量主要以泥沙净沉降的方式消耗。2）白骨壤通过其潮滩表层向上发育长约10 cm的呼吸根以降低湍流垂向紊动;红树林边缘的枝、叶通过影响水平方向上的水流动力,致使潮流挟沙能耗降低。3）与正常天气比较,台风“森拉克”期间东湾自光滩到白骨壤红树林林内近底层水体流速无明显变化,但流向偏转幅度明显变大。同时湍流动能的耗散率和用以搬运泥沙为主的潮流挟沙能耗亦均增大。     

The importance of extratropical and tropical cyclones on the short-term evolution of barrier islands along the northern Gulf of Mexico, USA

Data are presented indicating the complexity and highly variable response of beaches to cold front passages along the northern Gulf of Mexico, in addition to the impacts of tropical cyclones and winter storms. Within the past decade, an increase in the frequency of tropical storms and hurricanes impacting the northern Gulf has dramatically altered the long-term equilibrium of a large portion of this coast. A time series of net sediment flux for subaerial and nearshore environments has been established for a section of this coast in Florida, and to a lesser extent, Mississippi. The data incorporate the morphological signature of six tropical storms/hurricanes and more than 200 frontal passages.

Data indicate that (1) barrier islands can conserve mass during catastrophic hurricanes (e.g., Hurricane Opal, a strong category 4 hurricane near landfall); (2) less severe hurricanes and tropical storms can promote rapid dune aggradation and can contribute sediment to the entire barrier system; (3) cold fronts play a critical role in the poststorm adjustment of the barrier by deflating the subaerial portion of the overwash terrace and eroding its marginal lobe along the bayside beach through locally generated, high frequency, steep waves; and (4) barrier systems along the northern Gulf do not necessarily enter an immediate poststorm recovery phase, although nested in sediment-rich nearshore environments. While high wave energy conditions associated with cold fronts play an integral role in the evolution and maintenance of barriers along the northern Gulf, these events are more effective in reworking sediment after the occurrence of extreme events such as hurricanes. This relationship is even more apparent during the clustering of tropical cyclones.

It is anticipated that these findings will have important implications for the longer term evolution of barrier systems in midlatitude, microtidal settings where the clustering of storms is apparent, and winter storms are significant in intensity and frequency along the coast.     

Grain size composition and transport of sedimentary organic carbon in the Changjiang River (Yangtze River) Estuary and Hangzhou Bay and their adjacent waters

Surface sediments from the Changjiang River(Yangtze River) Estuary,Hangzhou Bay,and their adjacent waters were analyzed for their grain size distribution,organic carbon(OC) concentration,and stable carbon isotope composition(δ13C).Based on this analysis,about 36 surface sediment samples were selected from various environments and separated into sand(0.250 mm,0.125–0.250 mm,0.063–0.125 mm) and silt(0.025–0.063 mm)fractions by wet-sieving fractionation methods,and further into silt-(0.004–0.025 mm) and clay-sized(0.004mm) fractions by centrifugal fractionation.Sediments of six grain size categories were analyzed for their OC andδ13C contents to explore the grain size composition and transport paths of sedimentary OC in the study area.From fine to coarse fractions,the OC content was 1.18%,0.51%,0.46%,0.42%,0.99%,and 0.48%,respectively,while theδ13C was –21.64‰,–22.03‰,–22.52‰,–22.46‰,–22.36‰,and –22.28‰,respectively.In each size category,the OC contribution was 42.96%,26.06%,9.82%,5.75%,7.09%,and 8.33%,respectively.The OC content in clay and fine silt fractions(0.025 mm) was about 69.02%.High OC concentrations were mainly found in offshore modern sediments in the northeast of the Changjiang River Estuary,in modern sediments in the lower estuary of the Changjiang River and Hangzhou Bay,and in Cyclonic Eddy modern sediments to the southwest of the Cheju Island.Integrating the distribution of terrestrial OC content of each grain size category with the δ13C of the bulk sediment indicated that the terrestrial organic material in the Changjiang River Estuary was transported seaward and dispersed to the Cyclonic Eddy modern sediments to the southwest of the Cheju Island via two pathways:one was a result of the Changjiang River Diluted Water(CDW) northeastward extending branch driven by the North Jiangsu Coastal Current and the Yellow Sea Coastal Current,while the other one was the result of the CDW southward extending branch driven by the Taiwan Warm Current.     

河口往复流中潮流不对称与推移质输沙的关系

潮流不对称现象是近岸潮波运动的基本特征之一,为了研究潮流不对称对推移质泥沙长期净输运的作用机制,首先在往复流情况下对Bagnold推移质输沙率公式(1966)由于不包含起动流速所可能导致的误差进行理论分析,进而由统计学中的"偏度"的概念出发,推导了河口潮流不对称与推移质输沙之间的定量关系。研究认为,虽然Bagnold推移质输沙率公式不包含泥沙起动流速,但是只要泥沙起动流速和最大流速的比值在一定范围内,则在理论上公式的计算误差是可以接受的。由偏度结合Bagnold公式导出了潮流不对称与推移质输沙之间的关系,表明推移质泥沙的长期净输运不仅与余流有关,而且与不同分潮组合之间、余流与分潮之间的相互作用紧密相关。该关系还给出了一个由潮流调和常数估算河口推移质输沙的简便方法。经对比,从潮流不对称出发估算推移质输沙与直接采用推移质输沙率公式结果一致。     

Relative dispersion in the Liguro-Provençal basin: From sub-mesoscale to mesoscale

Relative dispersion in the Liguro-Provençal basin (a subregion of the Mediterranean Sea) is investigated using clusters of surface drifters deployed during two Marine Rapid Environment Assessment (MREA) experiments covering different months in 2007 and 2008, respectively. The clusters have initial radii of less than 1 km, or an order of magnitude below a typical deformation radius (approximately 10-20 km). The data set consists of 45 original pairs and more than 50 total pairs (including chance ones) in the spatial range between 1 and 200 km. Relative dispersion is estimated using the mean square separation of particle pairs and the Finite Scale Lyapunov Exponents (FSLEs). The two metrics show broadly consistent results, indicating in particular a clear exponential behaviour with an e-folding time scale between 0.5 and 1 days, or Lyapunov exponent ?? in the range of 0.7-1 days⁻¹. The exponential phase extends for 4-7 days in time and between 1 and 10-20 km in separation space. To our knowledge, this is only the third time that an exponential regime is observed in the world ocean from drifter data. This result suggests that relative dispersion in the Liguro-Provençal basin is nonlocal, namely controlled mainly by mesoscale dynamics, and that the effects of the sub-mesoscale motions are negligible in comparison. NCOM model results are used to complement the data and to quantify errors arising from the sparse sampling in the observations.     

三维多组分泥沙数值模型在胶州湾的应用

基于环境流体动力学模型(Environmental Fluid Dynamics Computer Code EFDC)水动力和泥沙模块,把底床泥沙分为1个黏性组分和4个非黏性组分,建立起一个多组分泥沙三维胶州湾数学模型。模型很好地反演了胶州湾三维水动力场和悬沙浓度场。结果表明,在潮流作用下,胶州湾水体中悬沙浓度较小,以黏性组分(<0.063 mm)为主。悬浮起来的黏性组分泥沙随着潮流的涨落,在湾内外作长距离往复运动。可悬浮的非黏性泥沙(0.063~0.25 mm)基本上集中在湾外水体底层,表现为局部悬移,就近落淤。胶州湾总体上冲淤变化幅度较小。内湾以冲刷为主,局部淤积;外湾基本上呈淤积状态;湾外冲淤形式较为复杂。