Mud-wave interaction: a viscoelastic model

Abstract

This study is devoted to the interaction between water surface waves and a thin layer of viscoelastic mud on the bottom. On the assumption that the mud layer is comparable in thickness with the wave boundary layer and is much smaller than the wavelength, a two-layer Stokes boundary layer model is adopted to determine the mud motions under the waves. Analytical expressions are derived for the near-bottom water and mud velocity fields, surface wave-damping rate, and interface wave amplitude and phase lag. Examined in particular is how these kinematic quantities may depend on the viscous and elastic properties of the mud.