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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Mar. Sci.
Sec. Coastal Ocean Processes
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmars.2025.1447316

Turbulence and mixing variability in a microtidal estuary subject to mixed semidiurnal tidal cycles

Provisionally accepted
Jan Tiede Jan Tiede 1*Remo Cossu Remo Cossu 2Jan Visscher Jan Visscher 1Alistair Grinham Alistair Grinham 2Torsten Schlurmann Torsten Schlurmann 1
  • 1 Leibniz University Hannover, Hanover, Germany
  • 2 The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Reynolds stresses and Turbulent Kinetic Energy (TKE) are instrumental in quantifying the turbulent dynamics that govern mixing and momentum transport in estuaries, factors crucial for understanding and managing estuarine circulation, water quality, and sediment transport. Employing Acoustic Doppler Current profilers, this study investigated hydrodynamics and turbulence in the Brisbane River, Australia. Measurements were conducted at two locations, covering the mouth and middle reach of the estuary. Of particular interest were flow reversals during flood flows, adding complexity to the turbulent dynamics. Reynolds stresses at site I were primarily generated by bed shear, while site II showed more complex stresses due to density differences and lateral circulations. At the river mouth, the mixed semidiurnal tidal regime led to a highly variable turbulent regime, with subsequent flood and ebb events exhibiting markedly different characteristics.

    Keywords: Turbulence1, Reynolds stresses2, TKE3, estuary4, ADCP5

    Received: 11 Jun 2024; Accepted: 27 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Tiede, Cossu, Visscher, Grinham and Schlurmann. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Jan Tiede, Leibniz University Hannover, Hanover, Germany

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