Longshore sediment transport rate—measurement and estimation, central west coast of India

Abstract

Measurements of the longshore sediment transport rate (LSTR) along the surf zone at a 4-km-long beach on the central west coast of India were made over a 4-month period. During the study, both the lateral and vertical distributions of the sediment transport rate were measured with traps deployed on a line spanning the surf zone. Sediment transport in the swash zone was not considered in the present study. The longshore current was measured at each trap location. The breaking wave parameters were calculated from a directional wave buoy at 16-m water depth. The measured values were compared with those calculated from three selected empirical formulas. The standard coefficient values in the empirical formulas were used without calibration to the data sets. The measured average gross transport was 726 m 3 /day and that calculated were 1108, 1017, and 781 m 3 /day based on CERC, Walton and Bruno, and Van Rijn formula. During the data collection 69% of the time, the transport was direct towards north, and in the remaining period, it was direct towards south. The correlation coefficient between the longshore sediment transport rates measured and those calculated by CERC, Walton and Bruno, and Van Rijn formula were 0.38, 0.71, and 0.74, respectively. The average RMS error between the measured and the calculated longshore sediment transport rate based on CERC, Walton and Bruno, and Van Rijn formula were 0.91, 0.57, and 0.47.