Dr. Ira Leifer
Associate ResearcherDept. of Chemical Engineering
ira.leifer@bubbleology.com
Microbreaking probably occurs under a wide range of conditions at the air-sea interface, at short fetch, and with wind speeds of only a few meters per second, while the more commonly observed curling and spilling breakers that occur at longer wavelengths cover only a small fraction of the ocean surface. Hence transport processes during microbreaking are not only of intrinsic interest but also of practical importance due to their widespread occurrence.We study the onset and evolution of microbreaking in a 10-m wind-wave channel using a combination of flow visualization and digital particle imaging velocimetry to characterize the microbreaking qualitatively and quantitatively. Specifically, the amplitude, velocity, frequency, and dissipation rates of the microbreaking waves as a function of flow conditions, as well as the associated bursts and upwellings. We are also investigating gas absorption to understand the effect of microbreaking on scalar transfer with regards to clarify the relationship between microbreaking and surface renewal rates.Also ongoing is a program of field experiments in the Santa Barbara channel. The main objective of these field experiments, is to determine the effect of fetch, i.e whether these these effects are significant at the high wave number (capillary and capillary-gravity) end of the spectrum. Furthermore, they will clarify whether energy transfer from long wavelengths, which cannot be obtained easily in the laboratory, modify the microbreaking phenomena. These field experiments address the scalability of laboratory experiments to the field.
Prof. S. Banerjee
- 1995 PhD Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology
- 1989 MS Aeronomy, University of Michigan
- 1984 B.Sc. Physics, Astronomy, SUNY at Stony Brook
- Leifer I., and R. Patro, "The bubble mechanism for transport of methane from the shallow sea bed to the surface". 2002 Cont. Shelf Res. 22, 2409-2428
- 10 of 32 publications