Author(s): Saulo Meirelles; Martijn Henriquez; Ad Reniers; Marcel Stive; Julie Pietrzak; Alejandro J. Souza; Alexander R. Horner-Devine
Linked Author(s): Marcel Stive
Keywords: Sand Engine; ADCP; CTD; Middle shoreface
Abstract: A 13-hour ADCP survey was carried out off a mega coastal nourishment, known as Sand Engine (or Zandmotor) ,within the Mega PEX (Mega Perturbation EXperiment) framework. CTD profiles were also measured concurrently. The goal of the present work is to get detailed insights on the perturbation of the local hydrodynamics over a tidal cycle caused by the Sand Engine. Preliminary results show substantial flow acceleration at tip of the Sand Engine followed by an apparent flow divergence at the northern flank during flood tide. In the presence of the Region of Freshwater Influence (ROFI) associated with the Rhine discharge, the flow direction seems to be changed specially in the cross-shore direction. Further analysis has been conducted together with a complementary dataset of hydrodynamics measurements from a instrumented frame. The milestone of the present investigation is to better understand the middle shoreface disequilibrium caused by the Sand Engine.
Year: 2015