CAREER: Improving the Understanding of Coastal Erosion during Extreme Events and with Sea Level Rise through Geotechnical Investigation

Virginia Polytechnic Institute And State University, Blacksburg VA

Investigators

Abstract

This Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) grant will support research that will contribute new knowledge to the underlying mechanisms of coastal erosion, particularly with regard to extreme events and sea level rise. Coastal erosion and land loss is threatening many sections of the U.S. coastlines and coastal communities. Extreme events such as hurricanes driving storm waves and surges, as well as sea level rise are accelerating coastal erosion. The prediction and assessment of coastal erosion has advanced significantly over the last decades. However, significant knowledge gaps exist with regard to the characterization and mechanics of impacted coastal soils. This award supports fundamental research to advance the understanding of soil behavior in response to waves, currents, tides, and associated morphodynamics in the coastal zone. This knowledge will contribute to the improvement of the prediction, assessment and mitigation of coastal erosion and stability of coastal infrastructure. The award involves several disciplines including geotechnical engineering, coastal sciences and engineering, geophysics, and oceanography. The multi-disciplinary approach will feature field and laboratory experiments. The education plan includes a field research experience for freshman undergraduates with an emphasis on students from low-income backgrounds. It also includes an adult education program to educate the public about risks to coastal infrastructure associated with sea level rise, coastal inundation and erosion. The education plan will help to train a new generation of coastal and geotechnical engineers, broaden the participation of underrepresented groups in civil engineering, and raise public awareness for risks associated to sea level rise, coastal inundation and erosion, and is aligned with NSF INCLUDES. The role of geotechnical soil behavior for coastal erosion processes is still not fully understood, mostly resulting from a lack of geotechnical data in coastal areas affected by energetic hydrodynamics and morphodynamics. This research is to fill this knowledge gap by: 1) measuring sediment strength and pore pressure of coastal and nearshore sediments under hydrodynamic forcing and morphodynamics, 2) testing a new formulation of the Shields parameter integrating shear strength and pore pressure, and 3) investigating the impact of variations of geotechnical soil parameters in coastal areas on erodibility during inundation and flood events. The research objectives will be achieved through multi-disciplinary field and laboratory testing programs, enabling simultaneous observations of geotechnical parameters, morphodynamics, and hydrodynamics. The knowledge gained will contribute to improving the understanding of the interaction between soil mechanics and subaqueous sediment transport processes, as well as to the improvement of current prediction methods for coastal erosion. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.