Ocean model with adjustable arrangements of discrete variables: application to strong tidal flows and low-salinity water dynamics

Abstract

The assessment of marine environmental risk necessitates the simulation of a series of phenomena related to the risk as well as a measurement of creatures exposed to the risk. As a practical tool, the simulation is based on the establishment of a numerical ocean model. Although several decades have passed since the numerical model for ocean dynamics has been presented, there remains room for fundamental approaches to refine the method for computing solutions. This paper is a report of the development of a novel algorithm of the model. In this algorithm, discrete variables are positioned in a grid to maximally elicit the advantages of a numerical scheme adopted to each term in the governing equations and simplify the program structure. The implemented program is applied to a tidal flow and riverine buoyant plume in the Hinchinbrook Channel in the eastern coast of the Australian Continent. The computation reproduces the observed strong oscillatory flows and low-salinity water dynamics well. The proposed method is applicable to the movements of pollutants in regions of freshwater influence.