Wind-Blown Sand Streamers and Turbulent Flow Structures

This contribution presents results of field measurements of wind-blown sand streamers and turbulent flow structures in the boundary layer airflow during gale-force winds on a beach. Sand transport and streamers were measured using Large-Scale Particle Image Velocimetry (LSPIV) combined with laser particle sensors (Wenglors), and airflow turbulence was monitored with a co-located sonic anemometer. The data analysis yields insight into the precise spatio-temporal relationships between sand streamers and near-surface airflow turbulence, at a high resolution of 25 Hz and a centimetre scale, including how high-energy sweeps correlate with the passage of fast-moving saltation clusters, and how Turbulent Kinetic Energy (TKE) may be linked to sediment mass flux.