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Effects of Tide and Wave on the Transport of Water and Sediments off the Yellow River Mouth in Winter
  • Xinyue Cheng,
  • Jianrong Zhu,
  • Shenliang Chen
Xinyue Cheng
Shanghai National Engineering Research Center of Urban Water Resources Co., Ltd.
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Jianrong Zhu
East China Normal University

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Shenliang Chen
East China Normal University
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Abstract

The fresh water and sediments transport from the Yellow River mouth downstream along the coast into the Laizhou Bay under the northeasterly wind in winter. The sediment transport is convergence in the river mouth, divergence in the downstream area, and convergence in the north of Laizhou Bay. Tide and wave are the two main forcings affecting the transport of water and sediments off river mouths. For the high-turbidity Yellow River mouth and the adjacent sea, tidal forcing enhances the subtidal downstream transport of water and sediments off the river mouth into the Laizhou Bay, whereas wave forcing has little effect on the advection of water and sediments. The sediment resuspension is controlled by the bottom shear stress induced by tide and wave. The tide-induced bottom shear stress is higher in the north of Laizhou Bay and south of Bohai Bay due to the stronger bottom tidal current. The wave-induced bottom shear stress plays a more important role in sediment resuspension, which is higher in the nearshore region along the Yellow River Delta away from the coast to some extent on account of the maximum near-bottom wave orbital velocity. Tidal mixing strengthens the upward diffusion of bottom suspended sediments. Without tidal forcing, the decreased bottom shear stress suspends less sediment above bed. On the other hand, the enhanced stratification hinders the upward diffusion of the bottom sediment due to the lack of tidal mixing, resulting in higher suspended sediment concentration (SSC) in the bottom layer in the offshore region.
13 Jan 2023Submitted to ESS Open Archive
17 Jan 2023Published in ESS Open Archive