Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine the physical processes of wave energy decay in breaking, and to determine how this process varies for changes in initial wave and beach conditions. Visualization methods are the primary source of data acquisition. Wave energy decay is discussed in terms of the intermittent formation of large scale vortex like motions (eddies). These surface generated eddies are observed to possess an organized structure in their formation and decay. Detail observations of the eddy generation and decay mechanisms are presented and discussed. The length and time scales of the large scale eddies are measured for a range of initial wave conditions and for two bed slopes. It is shown that the large scale vortex like motions generated in the surface region of a breaking wave play a very important role in wave energy dissipation. Furthermore, characteristics of the eddy are shown to depend on the initial wave properties, beach slope, and surf zone location.
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© 1990 Kluwer Academic Publisher
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Tallent, J.R., Yamashita, T., Tsuchiya, Y. (1990). Transformation Characteristics of Breaking Water Waves. In: Tørum, A., Gudmestad, O.T. (eds) Water Wave Kinematics. NATO ASI Series, vol 178. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-0531-3_32
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-0531-3_32
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-010-6725-6
Online ISBN: 978-94-009-0531-3
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