Numerical study of the secondary circulations in rip current systems

Abstract

To investigate the mechanism of secondary circulations in rip current systems, and to explore the relationship between wave conditions and secondary circulation intensity, a series of numerical experiments is performed using coupled nearshore wave model and circulation model. In these experiments, the rip currents and secondary circulations generated above barred beaches with rip channels are simulated. A comparison experiment is conducted to investigate the formation and hydrodynamics of the secondary circulations. Model results indicate that the secondary circulations consist of alongshore flows driven by wave set-up near the shoreline, part of the feeder currents driven by the wave set-up over the bars, and onshore flows at the end of the rip channel driven by wave breaking and convection. The existence of the secondary circulation barely affects the rip current, but narrows and intensifies the feeder currents. Three groups of experiments of varying incident wave conditions are performed to investigate the relationship between wave conditions and secondary circulation intensity. The velocity of the alongshore flow of the secondary circulation is sensitive to the variation of the incident wave height and water depth. It is also found that the alongshore flow intensity is in direct proportion to the alongshore variation of the wave height gradient between the bars and the shoreline.