Modelling Air Bubble Entrainment by Plunging Breakers

摘要

The aeration characteristics of plunging breakers in the deep sea are described using a similarity with plunging jets. A large two-dimensional jet facility provides new experimental data on the number and sizes of the entrained bubbles and the resulting air-water interface area. The results enable new calculations of the air-water gas transfer contribution of the plunging breakers. The results are consistent with experimental field observations and emphasise the role of plunging breakers in the aeration process of the oceans.