A Computational Fluid Dynamics Model for the Small-Scale Dynamics of Wave, Ice Floe and Interstitial Grease Ice Interaction
The marginal ice zone is a highly dynamical region where sea ice and ocean waves interact. Large-scale sea ice models only compute domain-averaged responses. As the majority of the marginal ice zone consists of mobile ice floes surrounded by grease ice, finer-scale modelling is needed to resolve var...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment
2021
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/35224 https://open.uct.ac.za/bitstream/11427/35224/1/fluids-06-00176-v2.pdf |
| Summary: | The marginal ice zone is a highly dynamical region where sea ice and ocean waves interact. Large-scale sea ice models only compute domain-averaged responses. As the majority of the marginal ice zone consists of mobile ice floes surrounded by grease ice, finer-scale modelling is needed to resolve variations of its mechanical properties, wave-induced pressure gradients and drag forces acting on the ice floes. A novel computational fluid dynamics approach is presented that considers the heterogeneous sea ice material composition and accounts for the wave-ice interaction dynamics. Results show, after comparing three realistic sea ice layouts with similar concentration and floe diameter, that the discrepancy between the domain-averaged temporal stress and strain rate evolutions increases for decreasing wave period. Furthermore, strain rate and viscosity are mostly affected by the variability of ice floe shape and diameter. |
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