A numerical study on the effect of tidal flat's slope on tidal dynamics in the Xiangshan Bay, China

The Xiangshan Bay is a semi-enclosed and narrow bay, which is characterized by large scale tidal flats and has been historically utilized through coastal construction and aquaculture engineering. The hydrodynamic model using the Finite Volume Coastal Ocean Model（FVCOM） was constructed to examine the changes of tidal dynamics due to the variation of tidal flat slopes. According to the model results, a decreased slope of a tidal flat would amplify the M2 tidal amplitude and delay the M2 tidal phase in the inner harbor, due to an increased tidal prism, and vice versa. The amplitude of the main shallow-water tide M4 would be amplified/dampened in the entire bay due to the changed bottom friction, if the tidal flat＇s slope were reduced/increased at the Tie inlet. The phase was advanced. The change of a tidal flat＇s slope at the Tie inlet had greater impacts on tidal amplitude,phase and duration asymmetry, than that at the Xihu inlet. The impact of changes of the tidal flat slope at the Xihu inlet was small and was constrained locally. Changes in the tidal flats＇ slopes at the Tie and Xihu inlets changed the tidal duration asymmetry, residual current and tidal energy via modulating tides. The ebb dominance decreased when the tidal flat＇s slope at the Tie inlet was changed. Decreased/increased ebb dominance occurred when the tidal flat＇s slope was reduced/increased at the Xihu inlet. The residual current and tidal energy density was amplified/dampened and more/less tidal energy was dissipated, with reduced/increased slope at both of the inlets. The findings in this study are instructive to coastal engineering and estuarine management.

Impacts of human interventions on the seasonal and nodal dynamics of the M_(2)and K_(1)tidal constituents in Lingdingyang Bay of the Zhujiang River Delta,China

Natural and human-induced changes may exert considerable impacts on the seasonal and nodal dynamics of M2 and K1 tidal constituents.Therefore,quantifying the influences of these factors on tidal regime changes is essential for sustainable water resources management in coastal environments.In this study,the enhanced harmonic analysis was applied to extract the seasonal variability of the M2 and K1 tidal amplitudes and phases at three gauging stations along Lingdingyang Bay of the Zhujiang River Delta.The seasonal dynamics in terms of tidal wave celerity and amplification/damping rate were used to quantify the impacts of human-induced estuarine morphological alterations on M2 and K1 tidal hydrodynamics in inner and outer Lingdingyang Bay.The results show that both tidal amplification/damping rate and wave celerity were considerably increased from the pre-anthropogenic activity period(Pre-AAP)to the post-anthropogenic activity period(Post-AAP)excepting the tidal amplification/damping rate in outer Lingdingyang Bay,and the variations in outer Lingdingyang Bay was larger than those in inner Lingdingyang Bay.The alterations in these two parameters were more significant in flood season than in dry season in both inner and outer Lingdingyang Bay.The seasonal variability of M2 and K1 tidal amplitudes were further quantified using a regression model accounting for the 18.61-year lunar nodal modulation,where this study observes a considerable alteration in M2 constituent owing to human interventions.During the Post-AAP,the M2 amplitudes at the downstream station were larger than those that would have occurred in the absence of strong human interventions,whereas the opposite was true for the upstream station,leading to a substantial decrease in tidal amplification in outer Lingdingyang Bay.However,it is opposite in inner Lingdingyang Bay.The underlying mechanism can be primarily attributed to channel deepening and narrowing caused by human interventions,that resulted in substantial enlargement of the bay volume and reduced the effective bottom friction,leading to faster wave celerity and stronger amplified waves.

The Marine Dynamics and Changing Trend off the Modern Yellow River Mouth

Topography around the Yellow River mouth has changed greatly in recent years, but studies on the current state of ma- rine dynamics off the Yellow River mouth are relatively scarce. This paper uses a two-dimension numerical model （MIKE 21） to reveal the tidal and wave dynamics in 2012, and conducts comparative analysis of the changes from 1996 to 2012. The results show that M2 amphidromic point moved southeastward by 11 kin. It further reveals that the tides around the Yellow River mouth are relatively stable due to the small variations in the tidal constituents. Over the study period, there is no noticeable change in the distribution of tidal types and tidal range, and the mean tidal range off the river mouth during the period studied is 0.5-1.1 m. However, the tidal currents changed greatly due to large change in topography. It is observed that the area with strong tidal currents shifted from the old river mouth （1976-1996） to the modem river mouth （1996-present）. While the tidal current speeds decreased continually off the old river mouth, they increased off the modem river mouth. The Maximum Tidal Current Speed （MTCS） reached 1.4 m s-1, and the maximum current speed of 50-year return period reached 2.8 m s-1. Waves also changed greatly due to change in topography. The significant wave height （H1/3） of 50-year return period changed proportionately with the water depth, and the ratio of Hi/3 to depth being 0.4-0.6. H1/3 of the 50-year return period in erosion zone increased continually with increasing water depth, and the rate of change varied between 0.06 and 0.07myr-1. Based on the results of this study, we infer that in the future, the modem river mouth will protrude gradually northward, while the erosion zone, comprising the old river mouth and area between the modern river mouth and the old river mouth （Intermediate region） will continue to erode. As the modem river mouth protrudes towards the sea, there will be a gradual increase in the current speed and decrease in wave height. Conversely, the old river mouth will retreat, with gradual decrease in current speed and increase in wave height. As more coastal constructions spring up around the Yellow River mouth in the future, we recommend that variation in hydrodynamics over time should be taken into consideration when designing such coastal constructions.

Modified Saint-Venant equations for flow simulation in tidal rivers

Flow in tidal rivers periodically propagates upstream or downstream under tidal influence. Hydrodynamic models based on the Saint-Venant equations （the SVN model） are extensively used to model tidal rivers. A force-corrected term expressed as the combination of flow velocity and the change rate of the tidal fevel was developed to represent tidal effects in the SVN model. A momentum equation incorporating with the corrected term was derived based on Newton＇s second law. By combing the modified momentum equation with the continuity equation, an improved SVN model for tidal rivers （the ISVN model） was constructed. The simulation of a tidal reach of the Qiantang River shows that the ISVN model performs better than the SVN model. It indicates that the corrected force derived for tidal effects is reasonable; the ISVN model provides an appropriate enhancement of the SVN model for flow simulation of tidal rivers.

Seasonal dynamics of meiofaunal distribution in the Dagu River Estuary, Jiaozhou Bay, China

Sediment samples were collected in the intertidal zone of the Dagu River Estuary, Jiaozhou Bay, China in April,July and October 2010 and February 2011 for examining seasonal dynamics of meiofaunal distribution and their relationship with environmental variables. A total of ten meiofaunal taxa were identified, including free-living marine nematodes, benthic copepods, polychaetes, oligochaetes, bivalves, ostracods, cnidarians, turbellarians,tardigrades and other animals. Free-living marine nematodes were the most dominant group in both abundance and biomass. The abundances of marine nematodes were higher in winter and spring than those in summer and autumn. Most of the meiofauna distributed in the 0–2 cm sediment layer. The abundance of meiofauna in hightidal zone was lower than those in low-tidal and mid-tidal zones. Results of correlation analysis showed that Chlorophyll a was the most important factor to influence the seasonal dynamics of the abundance, biomass of meiofauna and abundances of nematodes and copepods. CLUSTER analysis divided the meiofaunal assemblages into three groups and BIOENV results indicated that salinity, concentration of organic matter, sediment sorting coefficient and sediment median diameter were the main environmental factors influencing the meiofaunal assemblages.