Eighth International Conference on Case Histories in Geotechnical Engineering
Uppermost Subaqueous Soil Variability in Front of the Situk River Inlet, Alaska, from Portable Free Fall Penetrometer
Publication: Geo-Congress 2019: Engineering Geology, Site Characterization, and Geophysics (GSP 311)
ABSTRACT
Nearshore areas in front of river inlets feature significant spatial and temporal variations in sediment distribution, transport, and deposition processes. This makes subaqueous sediment characterization of such locations essential for engineering applications and for the fundamental understanding of regional geomorphodynamics. Site investigation was conducted in the nearshore area off the Situk River Inlet, Yakutat, Alaska. This region is characterized by highly variable sediments and energetic wave conditions. In situ tests were conducted along ten cross shore transects with 64 locations in total using a portable free fall penetrometer. The results showed the presence of a loose sediment top layer of 3.8–6.9 cm in thickness overlying a stiffer stratum with a maximum quasi-static bearing capacity ranging from 30–106 kPa at sediment depths of less than 15 cm. More variability in sediment strength was observed with decreasing water depths (approaching the shore), and sediment strength generally somewhat decreased seaward. For transects closer to the inlet, a more distinct trend of decreasing sediment strength with distance to the shore was observed. As expected, the impact of waves on the sediments appeared significant in shallow water depths. The results suggested an influence of hydrodynamics and the presence of the inlet on the topmost sediment layers, and consequently on the geotechnical characteristics.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this chapter.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors acknowledge funding from the National Sciences Foundation through grant OCE-1434938. The authors would also like to thank the Yakutat Coastal Field Research Experience team 2017, as well as the City and Borough of Yakutat (particularly, Rhonda Coston and Erving Grass) for local support.
REFERENCES
Albatal, Ali. (2018). “Advancement of Using Portable Free Fall Penetrometers for Geotechnical Site Characterization of Energetic Sandy Nearshore Areas.” PHD Dissertation, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech.
Albatal, Ali, and Nina Stark. (2016). “In Situ Geotechnical Early Site Assessment of a Proposed Wave Energy Converter Site in Yakutat, Alaska, Using a Portable Free-Fall Penetrometer.” Geo Chicago.
Albatal, A., and N. Stark. 2017. (2017). “Rapid Sediment Mapping and in Situ Geotechnical Characterization in Challenging Aquatic Areas.” Limnology and Oceanography Methods
Albatal, Ali, Heidi Wadman, Nina Stark, Cagdas Bilici, and Jesse E. McNinch. (2018). “Investigation of Spatial and Short-Term Temporal Nearshore Sandy Sediment Strength Using a Portable Free Fall Penetrometer.” Coastal Engineering Journal.
Bain, Cheryl, Steven T Elliott, Robert E Johnson, and Gordon Woods. (2003). “Situk River Steelhead : A Review of Historical Data through 1996,” Fishery. Manuscript. No. 03-01.
Birkemeier, W.A., 1985. Field data on seaward limit of profile change. Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal, and Ocean Engineering.
Bilici, Cagdas. (2018). “Development of a Sediment Sampling Free Fall Penetrometer Add-on Unit for Geotechnical Characterization of Seabed Surface Layers.” PhD Dissertation, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech.
Bilici, C., Stark, N., Albatal, A., Wadman, H., and McNinch, J.E. (2018). “Quantifying the Effect of Wave Action on the Seabed Surface Sediment Strength Using a Portable Free Fall Penetrometer.” 4th International Symposium on Cone Penetration Testing, CPT’18.
Castelli, Francesco, and Valentina Lentini. (2012). “Evaluation of the Bearing Capacity of Footings on Slopes” International Journal of Physical Modelling in Geotechnics:
Coutinho, T.N., L.C. Jesus, and J.T.A. Chacaltana. (2016). “Wave-Current Interaction, Sediment Transport and Seabed Evolution in the Piraquê-Açu/Piraquê Mirim Estuary (Brazil).” Coastal Engineering Proceedings, 1–11.
Dayal, U., Allen, J. H., and Jones, J. M. (1975). “Use of an Impact Penetrometer for the Evaluation of the In-Situ Strength of Marine Sediments.” Marine Geotechnology.
Folk, R.L. (1968). Petrology of Sedimentary Rocks. Austin, TX. 182, http://www.library.utexas.edu/geo/folkready/entirefolkpdf.pdf
Foti, E., and Blondeaux, P. (1995). "Sea ripple formation: the heterogeneous sediment case." Coastal Eng.
Gillon, Rose. (2008). “The ROV in Nearshore Site Investigation,” https://www.hydro-international.com/content/article/the-rov-in-nearshore-site-investigation.
Gubernick, Robert, and Steven Paustian. (2007). “Hubbard Glacier, Russell Fiord and Situk River – A Landscape in Motion,” USDA Forest Service, Tongass National Forest
Hallermeier, R.J. 1978. Uses for a calculated limit depth to beach erosion. In Coastal Engineering Proceedings; No 16 (1978): Proceedings of 16th Conference on Coastal Engineering. Hamburg, Germany.
Holmes, By Walter F, and Joseph M Dorava. 1995. “Overview of Environmental and Hydrogeologic Conditions at Yakutat, Alaska.” USGS.
Hossain, Sumaya. (2016). “Application of Mathematical Model to Assess Sediment Movement Pattern along Nearshore Coastal Water”. Journal of Earth Science and Engineering.
Lunne, T. (2012). “The Fourth James K. Mitchell Lecture: The CPT in offshore soil investigations- a historic perspective.” Geomechanics and Geoengineering.
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). (1993). “Potential Effects of Flooding from Russell Fjord on Salmonids and Habitat in the Situk River, Alaska.” US Depart. of Commerce.
Rijn, Leo C. van. (2007). “A unified view of sediment transport by currents and waves, part 1: initiation of motion, bed roughness and bed load transport.” J. Hydraul. Eng. 133:649–67.
Ruby, Christopher H. (1977). “Coastal Morphology, Sedimentation and Oil Spill Vulnerability, Northern Gulf of Alaska,” https://www.gi.alaska.edu/coastal-morphology-sedimentation-and-oil-spill-vulnerability-northern-gulf-alaska.
Splinter, Kristen. (2009). “Development of 2D Models to Estimate Nearshore Bathymetry and Sediment Transport.” PHD Dissertation, Oregon State University.
Stark, Nina, and Achim Kopf. (2011). “Detection and Quantification of Sediment Remobilization Processes Using a Dynamic Penetrometer.” IEEE/MTS Oceans 2011.
Stark, Nina, Giovanni Coco, & Karin R Bryan. (2012).“In-situ geotechnical characterization of mixed-grain-size bedforms using a dynamic penetrometer.” J. of Sedimentary Research
Stark, N, Staelens, P, Hay, AE, Hatcher, B, Kopf, A (2014). Geotechnical investigation of coastal areas with difficult access using portable free-fall penetrometers. CPT’ 14
Stark, Nina, Boris Radosavljevic, Brandon Quinn, and Hugues Lantuit. (2017). “Application of Portable Free-Fall Penetrometer for Geotechnical Investigation of Arctic Nearshore Zone.” Canadian Geotechnical Journal
Staubel, Donald K. (1992). “Long Term Profile and Sediment Morphodynamics: Field Reseacrh Facility Case History.”
Stoll, R.D., and T. Akal. (1999). “XBP-Tool for Rapid Assessment of Seabed Sediment Properties.” Sea Technology.
Yehle, Lynn. (1979). “Reconnaissance Engineering Geology of the Yakutat Area, Alaska, With Emphasis on Evaluation of Earthquake and Other Geologic Hazards.” USGS 1074.43
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Geo-Congress 2019: Engineering Geology, Site Characterization, and Geophysics (GSP 311)
Pages: 71 - 80
Editors: Christopher L. Meehan, Ph.D., University of Delaware, Sanjeev Kumar, Ph.D., Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Miguel A. Pando, Ph.D., University of North Carolina Charlotte, and Joseph T. Coe, Ph.D., Temple University
ISBN (Online): 978-0-7844-8213-1
Copyright
© 2019 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Published online: Mar 21, 2019
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Coastal engineering
- Coasts, oceans, ports, and waterways engineering
- Engineering fundamentals
- Equipment and machinery
- Geotechnical engineering
- Geotechnical investigation
- Hydraulic engineering
- Hydraulic structures
- Inlets (waterway)
- Measuring instruments
- Nearshore
- River engineering
- Rivers and streams
- Sediment
- Sediment transport
- Shores
- Site investigation
- Water and water resources
- Waterways
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.