PERIODICITY OF LONGSHORE SEDIMENT TRANSPORT AND MORPHOLOGICAL CHANGES USING A CIRCULAR WAVE TANK

Abstract

 While the impact of longshore sediment transport on beach erosion is significant, many aspects remain unexplored. The present study introduces an experimental setup using a circular wave tank, which allows for the formation of a continuous beach environment without beach edges, and a numerical model that replicates these experiments. Experiments with spiral waves revealed that topographic changes are periodic along the longshore direction, and that this periodicity varies with wave conditions. In the numerical simulations, the method for generating spiral waves using a moving mesh approach to address the challenges posed by cylindrical meshes. The results highlight the critical role of interactions between shoreward and return flows, which generate longshore component velocities that enhance the development of longshore currents.