Tidal Inlets

This book describes the latest developments in the hydrodynamics and morphodynamics of tidal inlets, with an emphasis on natural inlets. A review of morphological features and sand transport pathways is presented, followed by an overview of empirical relationships between inlet cross-sectional area, ebb delta volume, flood delta volume and tidal prism. Results of field observations and laboratory experiments are discussed and simple mathematical models are presented that calculate the inlet current and basin tide. The method to evaluate the cross-sectional stability of inlets, proposed by Escoffier, is reviewed, and is expanded, for the first time, to include double inlet systems. This volume is an ideal reference for coastal scientists, engineers and researchers, in the fields of coastal engineering, geomorphology, marine geology and oceanography.

J. van de Kreeke is Emeritus Professor at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, where his research focused on coastal engineering and estuarine and nearshore hydrodynamics. He has published extensively on tidal inlets and is the editor of Physics of Shallow Estuaries and Bays (1986). In 2004, Professor van de Kreeke received the Bob Dean Coastal Research Award from the Florida Shore and Beach Preservation Association for world-renowned research on tidal inlets.

R. L. Brouwer, while at Technische Universiteit Delft, The Netherlands, wrote both his MSc and PhD theses on the subject of cross-sectional stability of double inlet systems. He continued working on this subject as a postdoctoral fellow and at the same time did pioneering work in deploying drones for coastal and inlet research. He has published several papers on double inlet systems in refereed journals and conference proceedings. Presently, he is employed as a senior researcher at Flanders Hydraulic Research in Antwerp, Belgium.