Author(s): Stephen Clee, Shunqi Pan

Linked Author(s): Stephen Clee

Keywords: Offshore sandbanks; TELEMAC; Hydrodynamics; North Sea;

Abstract: The coastal zone is an important resource both socially and economically. Globally, coastal zones are under increasing threat from the effects of climate change, erosion and flooding. Understanding the mechanisms of coastal processes is key to the long term management and protection of the coastal zone and its resources. Sandbanks are large sedimentary bodies found on coastal shelves worldwide that protect nearby coastlines from the effects of erosion. This research aims to model the hydrodynamics and morphodynamics of the sandbanks in the southern bight of the North Sea, UK. The main objective is to determine the impact of the vertical velocity component on the recirculation of the flow and on the suspended and bedload sediment transport rates and how this affects the long term behaviour of a sandbank under normal and storm conditions. The study site for this research is the southern bight of the North Sea covering an area of roughly 85600km2. This research uses the TELEMAC suite comprising of TELEMAC2D for 2D hydrodynamics, TELEMAC3D for 3D hydrodynamics and SISYPHE for 2D and 3D morphodynamics. This paper presents the details of model setup, calibration process and both 2D and 3D hydrodynamic results focussed on an area of sandbanks in the domain.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3850/38WC092019-1731

Year: 2019