Abstract
A numerical modeling study, using an Eulerian tracer and Lagrangian particle-tracking methods, was carried out to map the age of water and residence-time distribution in the tide-dominated East Scott Creek Estuary, South Carolina. A coupled hydrodynamic, solute-transport, and particle-transport model was developed. The flow and solute-transport models were based on depth-integrated conservation equations and the particle-transport model was quasi-three-dimensional. The equations were discretized using the total variation diminishing finite-volume method. The numerical model predictions were verified against a set of field-measured hydrodynamic data, with the model-predicted water elevations and velocities in good agreement with the field measurements. Different methods of computing the age of water and the residence time that are applicable to tide-dominated estuaries and suitable for high-resolution flow and transport numerical modeling setup were investigated. An Eulerian method, based on the tracer-age theory, and a Lagrangian particle-tracking method were each used to map the age and the residence-time distribution throughout the main channel of East Scott Creek. The performance of the two methods in the given tide-dominated environment was investigated through a series of numerical experiments. The effects of the particle and tracer release time and tidal amplitude in the computation of tidal exchange-time scales were also investigated. The residence time computed by the Eulerian method scaled well with that of the Lagrangian method and produces a relatively smooth monotonic profile of the residence time in space. The Lagrangian method, unlike the Eulerian method, consistently showed a more detailed distribution of significant and varying nonmonotonic profile of residence times; yet, the two methods produce, in the tidally averaged sense, reasonably comparable residence-time distributions. The residence time computed by the Lagrangian method is very sensitive to the phase of the tidal forcing at the beginning of the computation.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
More From: Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal, and Ocean Engineering
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.