Dynamics of particle clouds with application to open water sediment disposal

摘要

Open-water sediment disposal occurs with many applications such as land recla-mation, dredging, and contaminated sediment isolation, all of which require knowledge of how particle clouds behave in the presence of currents and waves. Clouds typically form a self-similar thermal plus a trailing stem. In "weak" currents, cloud behavior is similar to that in quiescent con-ditions, with clouds being advected by the ambient current. Depending on particle size, however, transport can produce a sediment loss of —10% or more, corresponding to sediment found in the trailing stem. Waves have a modest affect on cloud descent but result in increased growth.