Laboratory modelling of surface buoyant plume interaction with grid obstruction

TY - GEN

T1 - Laboratory modelling of surface buoyant plume interaction with grid obstruction

AU - Grifoll, Manel

AU - Cuthbertson, Alan

N1 - Conference code: 40th

PY - 2023

Y1 - 2023

N2 - Freshwater point sources originating from terrestrial streams and gullies, discharging into quiescent, semienclosed coastal regions, such as estuaries, tidal inlets, or lagoons, typically provide a source of nutrients (e.g. nitrates, phosphates) and contaminants (e.g. pesticides, pathogens) into these sheltered coastal waters. Dynamically, these freshwater flows behave as surface buoyant jets or plumes due to the salinity-induced density gradients within the coastal saline or brackish receiving waters. Many sheltered coastal regions also increasingly support aquaculture operations (e.g. finfish, shellfish, or seaweed farms), the infrastructure for which can provide obstructions to these surface freshwater flows. Similarly, physical understanding of this flowstructure interaction is clearly crucial to assessing the potential contamination risk to the aquaculture products. The aim of the current study is therefore to explore through laboratory experiments the parametric dependence of physical obstruction effects caused by a vertical grid structure on the flow evolution of an incident surface buoyant plume. The results prove that the presence of the obstruction in coastal domains can have a considerable influence of the turbulent mixing process and transfer of substances in the vertical direction, but have relatively minimal impact in the final dispersion of the plume.

AB - Freshwater point sources originating from terrestrial streams and gullies, discharging into quiescent, semienclosed coastal regions, such as estuaries, tidal inlets, or lagoons, typically provide a source of nutrients (e.g. nitrates, phosphates) and contaminants (e.g. pesticides, pathogens) into these sheltered coastal waters. Dynamically, these freshwater flows behave as surface buoyant jets or plumes due to the salinity-induced density gradients within the coastal saline or brackish receiving waters. Many sheltered coastal regions also increasingly support aquaculture operations (e.g. finfish, shellfish, or seaweed farms), the infrastructure for which can provide obstructions to these surface freshwater flows. Similarly, physical understanding of this flowstructure interaction is clearly crucial to assessing the potential contamination risk to the aquaculture products. The aim of the current study is therefore to explore through laboratory experiments the parametric dependence of physical obstruction effects caused by a vertical grid structure on the flow evolution of an incident surface buoyant plume. The results prove that the presence of the obstruction in coastal domains can have a considerable influence of the turbulent mixing process and transfer of substances in the vertical direction, but have relatively minimal impact in the final dispersion of the plume.

KW - Grid obstructions

KW - buoyancy-driven flows

KW - surface plumes

KW - interfacial instabilities

KW - aquaculture

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85187641445

U2 - 10.3850/978-90-833476-1-5_iahr40wc-p1182-cd

DO - 10.3850/978-90-833476-1-5_iahr40wc-p1182-cd

M3 - Conference contribution

AN - SCOPUS:85187641445

SN - 9789083347615

T3 - Proceedings of the IAHR World Congress

SP - 325

EP - 330

BT - Proceedings of the 40th IAHR World Congress (Vienna, 2023)

A2 - Habersack, Helmut

A2 - Tritthart, Michael

A2 - Waldenberger, Lisa

PB - International Association for Hydro-Environment Engineering and Research (IAHR)

T2 - 40th IAHR World Congress, 2023

Y2 - 21 August 2023 through 25 August 2023

ER -