Wave Breaking Induced by Opposing Currents in Submerged Vegetation Canopies

Journal article (2022)

Authors

Z. Hu Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Marine Resources and Coastal Engineering, Ministry of Education Hangzhou
S. Lian State Oceanic Administration China
T.J. Zitman Coastal Engineering - CEG
H. Wang Sun Yat-sen University
Z. He Ministry of Education Hangzhou, Sun Yat-sen University
H. Wei The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Sun Yat-sen University
L. Ren Sun Yat-sen University
W.S.J. Uijttewaal Environmental Fluid Mechanics - CEG
T. Suzuki Environmental Fluid Mechanics - CEG , Flanders Hydraulics Research
Research Group
Coastal Engineering (CEG) (TU Delft)
Copyright: © 2022 Z. Hu, S. Lian, T.J. Zitman, H. Wang, Z. He, H. Wei, L. Ren, W.S.J. Uijttewaal, T. Suzuki
DOI
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https://doi.org/10.1029/2021WR031121
Flume Wave breaking Wave dissipation Mangroves Drag coefficient Wave-current interactions
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Published Date

2022

Language

English

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Faculty

Civil Engineering & Geosciences

Department

Hydraulic Engineering

Research Group

Coastal Engineering

Abstract

Wave height attenuation in vegetation canopies is often all attributed to the drag force exerted by vegetation, whereas other potential dissipation process is often neglected. Previous studies without vegetation have found that opposing currents can induce wave breaking and greatly increase dissipation. It is not clear if similar process may also occur in vegetation canopies. We conducted systematic flume experiments to show that wave breaking in opposing currents can occur in vegetated flows, but only in submerged canopies with shear currents above vegetation top. Subsequently, we developed a new analytical model to understand and assess the contribution of both drag-induced dissipation in the lower vegetation layer and current-induced breaking in the upper free layer. A new generic drag coefficient relation was applied in the model to quantify drag-induced dissipation with various current-wave combinations. It shows that breaking induced by opposing currents constitutes an essential part (up to 87%) of the total dissipation, which leads to considerably higher dissipation than the cases with following currents. Breaking can occur with various submergence ratios and with small opposing currents in the submerged vegetation field. It indicates that similar breaking process is likely to occur in real vegetation fields. The present study reveals and quantifies the current-induced wave breaking process that has not been reported before, which can improve our understanding of vegetation wave dissipation capacity in field conditions.