FORMOST

Models

The FORMOST project makes use of both area models (POLCOMS and TELEMAC) which represent local sediment transport in a schematised way and the 1DV UWB Sediment Transport Model which represents local transport much more fully.

UWB 1DV SAND TRANSPORT MODEL

The UWB 1DV Sand Transport Model is an intra-wave numerical model which has been developed at Bangor University for sand transport by waves and currents (see Malarkey and Davies, 2005). It can represent both the advectively dominated processes that are typical over a rippled bed as a result of vortex shedding (see Malarkey and Davies, 2004 and Davies and Thorne, 2005) and the more diffusively dominated processes over flat mobile beds.

In the project the model will be extended to represent mixed sediments before its results are parameterised for use in the larger area models.

POLCOMS

The Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory Coastal-Ocean Modelling System (POLCOMS) has been developed to incorporate features suitable for the modelling of baroclinic processes on the shelf, at the shelf-slope and in ocean regions to allow long term coupled ocean-shelf simulations (James, 1986; 1986). It includes a sophisticated advection scheme, the 'Piecewise Parabolic Method' (PPM) which gives it excellent feature-preserving properties. It is ideal for simulating on-shelf baroclinic features such as river plumes (James 1997) and fronts (Proctor and James 1996), and the transport of tracers (Holt and James 1999b). Moreover, the model is formulated on an Arakawa B-grid, in contrast to the C-grid used in many shelf sea models, which makes it well suited to modelling horizontal density variations.

TELEMAC

The TELEMAC system, which was developed at EDF/LNH, is a powerful integrated modelling tool for use in the field of free-surface flows. Having been used in the context of very many studies throughout the world (several hundred to date), it has become one of the major standards in its field. The various simulation modules use high-capacity algorithms based on the finite-element method. Space is discretised in the form of an unstructured grid of triangular elements, which means that it can be refined particularly in areas of special interest. This avoids the need for systematic use of embedded models, as is the case with the finite-difference method.