An Experimental Investigation of the Richardson Number Profile in a Stratified Shear Flow.

Stratified shear flows and the associated internal waves are often found in nature, both in the ocean and the atmosphere. The shear flow investigated in this thesis is one in which the density and velocity change rapidly across an interface between two miscible fluids. The Richardson number profile in the region of the interface is measured and the erosion of the interface is monitored periodically during the experiment. The interfacial erosion is then explained in terms of the gradient Richardson number profile. A wave tank eighty feet long, four feet high, and two feet wide is used in this experiment. The fluid is stratified by varying the amount of salt dissolved in the water and the shear flow is created by pumping the upper layer in a closed circuit. The results are presented as Richardson number profiles for various time durations and overall shear velocities. A plot of the interfacial position as a function of time is also included.