Deborah Idier

Analytical and numerical modeling of sandbanks dynamics

Linear and nonlinear behavior of large-scale underwater bedform patterns like sandbanks are studied using linear stability analysis and numerical modeling. The model is based on depth-integrated hydrodynamics equations with a quadratic bottom friction law and a bed load sediment transport model including a bottom slope effect. First, the linear stability analysis of a flat erodible bottom subject to a steady current is performed. The direction of the most amplified bedform is controlled by the current, whereas its wavelength is selected by the gravity driven sediment flow. The instability proved to be due to the velocity component parallel to the mean flow, whereas the transverse velocity and the bottom slope effect are damping processes. The growth rate is then related to the spatial phase-lag between flow velocity and bathymetry. In order to validate the numerical model in this linear regime, the growth rate and the phase celerity of an infinitesimal bottom perturbation are computed as a function of its wavevector. A good agreement with linear stability results is found. Second, using the property that the growth rates for block-function and steady current are the same, the nonlinear behavior of the instability is investigated for a simple tidal current. The saturation height of the theoretically most amplified mode is estimated using the numerical model. The analysis of the sediment fluxes gradients shows that the saturation is mostly due to the hydrodynamic processes, although the saturation height slightly depends on the value of the bottom slope effect coefficient. Third, a Landau equation, whose coefficients are computed from the previous results, is used to predict the temporal evolution of the bedform amplitude from the initial infinitesimal perturbation to the saturation. A comparison with the characteristics of continental shelf sandbanks shows that the model gives a reasonable estimation of the temporal dynamics of these large-scale bedforms. However, the saturation height seems to be slightly overestimated. The limitations of the method are also discussed.

Influence of bed roughness on dune and megaripple generation

Richards [1980] conjectured that megaripples of the continental shelf are due to a seabed instability in the presence of seabed ripples. Towards a better understanding of this megaripple formation process, we use a morphodynamical numerical model to investigate the bed roughness influence on the bed load?induced linear stability of a sandy bed. We find that the linearly most amplified mode shifts from a dune mode (grain roughness) towards a megaripple mode (large bed roughness). Then, we discuss how megaripples could be generated over a flat bed and over dunes.

Grain size dependency in sandbank modeling for the case of uniform sediment

[1] A 2-D depth-integrated stability analysis designed for marine tidal sandbanks is developed to investigate the relative influence of the grain size–dependent parameters on the simulated dynamics of the sandbanks for the case of uniform sediment. The model is applied to a real case in the North Sea. Assuming that the model is valid mainly in an area where bed load is the dominant sediment transport mode, the model taking into account the grain size dependencies gives a better prediction of sandbank occurrence than models neglecting these dependencies. All the grain size–dependent parameters are investigated separately. Focusing on the morphological time and wavelength of the sandbanks, this paper demonstrates that neglecting the grain size dependencies, especially the transport threshold, has a drastic influence on the dynamics of modeled sandbanks, especially on the sandbanks growth rate. The influence on the geometrical properties (wavelength and orientation) is less pronounced.