[1] Results are presented from an experimental investigation of rough turbulent oscillatory boundary layers using a prototype wideband bistatic coherent Doppler profiler. The profiler operates in the 1.2 MHz to 2.3 MHz frequency band and uses software-defined radio technologies for digital control of the frequency content and shape of the transmit pulse and for digital complex demodulation of the received signals. Velocity profiles are obtained at sub-millimeter range resolution and 100 Hz profiling rates (each profile being an ensemble average of 10 pulse pairs). The measurements were carried out above beds of fixed sand or gravel particles, with median grain diameters of 0.37 mm and 3.9 mm, respectively, oscillating sinusoidally at a 10 s period through excursions of 0.75 m to 1.5 m. The resulting vertical profiles of horizontal velocity magnitude and phase, with the vertical axis scaled by ' = ku * m =w, are comparable to similarly scaled profiles obtained using laser Doppler anemometry by Sleath (1987) and Jensen (1988). A key objective of the comparisons between the previous experiments and those reported here was to establish how close to the bed reliable velocity measurements can be made with the sonar. This minimum distance above the bed is estimated to be 5 AE 1 mm, a value approaching the 3 to 4 mm limit set by the path of least time.Citation: Hay, A. E., L. Zedel, R. Cheel, and J. Dillon (2012), Observations of the vertical structure of turbulent oscillatory boundary layers above fixed roughness beds using a prototype wideband coherent Doppler profiler: 1. The oscillatory component of the flow,

No abstract

[1] Measurements of turbulence and shear stress in oscillatory boundary layers are reported from experiments carried out with a prototype wideband coherent Doppler profiler above fixed roughness beds of 0.37 mm diameter sand and 3.9 mm diameter gravel. The 10 s oscillation period and 0.75 m to 1.5 m oscillation excursions correspond to roughness Reynolds numbers for the gravel bed in the 290 to 490 range, assuring fully rough turbulent conditions. Bottom stress was estimated via the law-of-the-wall, the vertical integral of the defect acceleration, and the Reynolds stress. The Reynolds stress was obtained from the second moment of the beam-coordinate velocities. Bed friction factors, f w , from the defect stresses are in reasonable agreement with predictions based on Swart's empirical relation as modified by Nielsen (1992) and with values determined using Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA) by Sleath (1987) via the defect method and by Jensen (1988) via the law-of-the-wall. The f w values determined here from the law-of-the-wall are higher than predicted (ca. 50% higher for the gravel bed), likely due to background vertical shear associated with residual motions in the tank. The Reynolds stresses are lower than the predictions by a factor of 3 to 4, compared to the factor of 5 to 10 obtained by Sleath (1987). Beam coordinate turbulent kinetic energy spectra indicate that the vertical momentum flux is mostly associated with fluctuations between the forcing frequency and the inertial subrange, the latter contributing typically less than 10% of the total observed Reynolds stress.Citation: Hay, A. E., L. Zedel, R. Cheel, and J. Dillon (2012), Observations of the vertical structure of turbulent oscillatory boundary layers above fixed roughness using a prototype wideband coherent Doppler profiler: 2. Turbulence and stress,

The project group reflects on the responses to the Power Threat Meaning Framework (PTMF) one year after publication. The group welcomes the interest shown in the document, and takes this opportunity to clarify some points, reflect on and learn from others, and suggest areas for future development.

A new formula is derived for the asymptotic form of the magnitude of an autocorrelation coefficient for coherent Doppler sonar. The autocorrelation magnitude is shown to be a biased estimator in the limit of infinite ensemble length. Numerical simulation of a Gaussian random process is used to verify the asymptotic formula and to show that a bias persists for finite pulse-pair averages. Validity of the asymptotic formula is also confirmed using a high-fidelity coherent Doppler sonar simulation, and from sonar measurements in a towing tank. It is shown that the distribution of observed autocorrelation coefficients is well predicted by a Gaussian random process once the autocorrelation bias has been removed.