Mixing in the wake of an aircraft carrier

A computational model, originally developed to study ship microbubble wakes, is to study the dispersal of shipboard discharge and possible resuspension of bottom sediment, in the near field of the wake of an aircraft carrier. The near field solution is then used to specify the initial condition for a second model which computes the far field particle dispersion and dilution due to ambient mixing effects. Near and far field wake mixing is considered in both stratified and unstratified environments, for both a dye and paper-like discharge effluent. Initial results for the near field wake mixing computations are compared with laboratory model tests, and semi-empirical formulas for mixing behind barges and tankers. The near field model is also used to estimate possible sediment resuspension occurring in the wake of an aircraft carrier in shallow waters. Preliminary field and computational results are compared for an aircraft carrier passing through San Diego Harbor.