TY - JOUR
T1 - Combined Effects of Unsteady River Discharges and Wave Conditions on River Mouth Bar Morphodynamics
AU - Gao, Weilun
AU - Shao, Dongdong
AU - Wang, Zhengbing
AU - Nardin, William
AU - Yang, Wei
AU - Sun, Tao
AU - Cui, Baoshan
PY - 2018
Y1 - 2018
N2 - River mouth bar formation, a key process in fluvial-deltaic morphodynamics, is subject to both river discharge and waves. Given the increasing variability of both forcings under continuous climate change and human interventions, assessing their combined effects on mouth bar formatio n is an imperative issue. In this study, an extensive set of combined high and low river flows coupled with varying wave conditions and sediment grain sizes was assumed for numerical experiments conducted in Delft3D-SWAN. The results suggested that three regimes existed for mouth bar formation, namely, stable, ephemeral, and absent. These regimes corresponded to consistently weak, initially-weak-then-strong, and initially strong relative wave strengths, respectively, during the onset and reworking stages. Suppression of mouth bar formation further led to the inhibition of deltaic distributary networks. These findings have important implications for water and sediment management strategies, such as water diversion and dam regulation, in estuaries and deltas to prevent coastal erosion.
AB - River mouth bar formation, a key process in fluvial-deltaic morphodynamics, is subject to both river discharge and waves. Given the increasing variability of both forcings under continuous climate change and human interventions, assessing their combined effects on mouth bar formatio n is an imperative issue. In this study, an extensive set of combined high and low river flows coupled with varying wave conditions and sediment grain sizes was assumed for numerical experiments conducted in Delft3D-SWAN. The results suggested that three regimes existed for mouth bar formation, namely, stable, ephemeral, and absent. These regimes corresponded to consistently weak, initially-weak-then-strong, and initially strong relative wave strengths, respectively, during the onset and reworking stages. Suppression of mouth bar formation further led to the inhibition of deltaic distributary networks. These findings have important implications for water and sediment management strategies, such as water diversion and dam regulation, in estuaries and deltas to prevent coastal erosion.
U2 - 10.1029/2018GL080447
DO - 10.1029/2018GL080447
M3 - Article
SN - 0094-8276
VL - 45
SP - 12,903-12,911
JO - Geophysical Research Letters
JF - Geophysical Research Letters
IS - 23
ER -