Laboratory experiments of fine-scale mixing and mass transport within a coral canopy

Abstract

Laboratory experiments obtained fine scale measurements of turbulent shear stresses and rates of mixing and mass transfer over a nonliving bed of the coral, Porites compressa, the dominant species found in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. A reef canopy was placed in a recirculating wave-current flume and flow was generated that simulated the flow characteristics of the reef flat of Kaneohe Bay. Turbulence and velocity structure under both unidirectional and wave-dominated currents were measured using a two-dimensional laser Doppler anemometer. Mass transport measurements were made using a planar laser-induced fluorescence technique in which the scalar transport of Rhodamine 6G dye, fluxed from the surfaces of the coral, was quantified. Results show that the action of surface waves, interacting with the structure of the reef, can increase instantaneous shear and mixing up to six times compared to that of unidirectional currents. Maximum shear and mass transport events coincided with flow separation within the wave-current boundary layer and the ejection of vortices into the flow. Wave action also acted to increase the vertical flux of water from within the coral structure. The combined effects of increased turbulent stress and fluid exchange from the interior of the canopy increased mass flux due to wave action 2.3±0.5 times that measured for comparable unidirectional currents.