Barotropically induced interfacial waves in two-layer exchange flows over a sill

Abstract

Two-layer exchange flows are observed in the channels/straits connecting two water bodies of different densities. This study examines the nature of the barotropic forcing and its effect on the interfacial waves in two-layer exchange flows over a smooth/break underwater sill. Experiments were conducted with different initial conditions, distinguishing the case of hydrostatic disequilibrium and the case of a global pressure-balanced state. The experiments demonstrate that the baroclinic exchange flow is dominated by the barotropic-forcing-induced oscillations. A simplified barotropic model is developed to predict the period of the barotropic oscillation with an excellent agreement with experimental measurements. Detailed velocity and flow-rate measurements also indicate the importance of the barotropic forcing in exchange flows. The effect of the superimposed barotropic forcing on the interfacial wave characteristics is also investigated. Large two-dimensional surge-like structures are observed during the experiments, whose generation is shown to be related to the flow-rate oscillations. The length scales of these structures is comparable with the total water depth and is shown to increase with increasing Reynolds numbers.