DOI: 10.17603/ds2-vy34-ad78
title: Wave Basin Experiment to Measure Hydrodynamic and Turbulence, in Hydrodynamic Measurements in a Wave Basin in the Swash and Surf Zone under Oblique Wave Forcing

description: This research project investigates hydrodynamic processes in the inner surf and swash zones of beaches under the influence of obliquely incident waves. The system under investigation is a smooth and rough impermeable beach slope subjected to systematic variations in wave height, and wave angle using a 3D directional wave basin at Queen’s University Coastal Engineering Laboratory, Canada. The project aims to advance our understanding of cross-shore and alongshore flow interactions, and turbulence distributions.
The experimental design includes controlled laboratory tests on both smooth and roughened beach surfaces using monochromatic waves with incidence angles between 0° and 20°. A dense array of sensors (ultrasonic distance meters (UDM), wave gauges (WG), acoustic doppler profiling velocimeters (ADPVs), and acoustic doppler velocimeters (ADV)) was deployed to capture synchronized water level and velocity data across multiple cross-shore locations. This unique combination allows high-resolution quantification of both time-averaged and phase-resolved flow properties and turbulence metrics.
The project is motivated by the need for reproducible and high-quality data to support improved modeling and prediction for wave-driven sediment processes in the nearshore zone. By systematically controlling and isolating individual wave and bed properties, the data enable new insights that are difficult to obtain in field settings. Researchers studying nearshore morphodynamics, coastal resilience, or developing numerical or sediment transport models will benefit from this dataset.
Multiple datasets will be published under this project, providing comparative data for different bed roughnesses and wave forcing conditions. The dataset supports reproducibility, model validation, and integration into coastal resilience research frameworks.
description: Two experimental runs were conducted in the Queen’s University Coastal Engineering Laboratory using a 26.0 m × 20.6 m directional wave basin with a maximum depth of 1.0 m. The basin was equipped with a 1:10 impermeable concrete beach constructed from a compacted gravel base topped with a concrete surface. The beach extended 12.0 m in the cross-shore direction and 16.2 m alongshore. Two surface conditions were tested: (i) SMOOTH, representing the original concrete finish, and (ii) ROUGH, generated by sandblasting the same surface following the smooth tests.

Surface roughness was quantified with a terrestrial LiDAR scanner (FARO Focus S150) by calculating the standard deviation of vertical elevation (σz) along 1 m transects using a 0.05 m moving window. The smooth surface yielded σz = 0.19 mm, while the rough surface yielded σz = 0.23 mm, corresponding to an increase in roughness of approximately 20%.

Monochromatic wave conditions were generated with incident angles of 0°, 10°, and 20° relative to shore-normal. Three target wave heights were tested (0.10 m, 0.125 m, and 0.15 m), all with a constant wave period of 2.0 s. Each wave condition was repeated in five independent trials for both smooth and rough surface states, allowing direct comparisons of hydrodynamic responses under otherwise identical forcing.

The facility was outfitted with synchronized arrays of ultrasonic distance meters (UDMs), wire wave gauges (WGs), acoustic Doppler profiling velocimeters (ADPVs), and a side-looking acoustic Doppler velocimeter (ADV). These instruments resolved water surface elevation, vertical velocity profiles, and high-frequency point velocities across the inner surf and swash zones. In addition, three cameras (SwashCam, SurfCam, and ObliqueCam) were deployed to capture basin-scale and swash/surf-zone processes, including particle tracking velocimetry for continuous swash velocity fields.

This carefully controlled setup provided reproducible datasets for examining cross-shore and alongshore flow interactions, turbulence dynamics, and roughness effects in nearshore hydrodynamics.