Morphological Effect of Suction Dynamics on Stability of Intertidal Multiple Bars: Field Survey and Numerical Study

The morphology and suction dynamics of intertidal multiple sand bars is examined to provide insight into the factors controlling the bar characteristics. Field experiments over the intertidal sand waves show that the vane shear strength near sediment surface increases with suction behavior. Richards equation which expressed suction and ground water dynamics were used in a numerical model. The laboratory experiment which simulates the ebb and flow upon sandy flats was used for validation of the proposed model. In the numerical experiment of tide-dominated conditions which mean quite small bedload effects, morphological changes show close relationships with suction dynamics due to suction-induced void state changes.