Fluid Wave Tank Measurements Using Tracker

Software And The Solitary Wave

Table of Contents
Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................... 3
1.

Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 3

2.

Theory ................................................................................................................................................... 3

3.

Experiment Setup and Procedure .......................................................................................................... 5

3.1.

Water Wave Tank ............................................................................................................................. 5

3.2.

Solitary Wave.................................................................................................................................... 6

4.

Results and Discussion ......................................................................................................................... 7

4.1.

Water Wave Tank ............................................................................................................................. 7

4.2.

The Internal Solitary Wave ............................................................................................................. 10

5.

Conclusion .......................................................................................................................................... 11

Reference .................................................................................................................................................... 11
Appendix ..................................................................................................................................................... 11

Abstract
The experiments discussed in this paper provided an undergraduate level introduction to the
behavior of fluid waves. The objective of the experiments was to visualize and quantify an
internal solitary wave generated in a wave tank. This experiment follows the research work and
associated undergraduate laboratory developed by Bourgault and Richards (2007). An
engineering design component was included the goal of which was to develop a filling apparatus
for the experiment. Data was collected via video recordings and analyzed using Tracker
Software. As a prelab procedure, water wave analysis was conducted using a tank with a wave
generator apparatus.
1. Introduction
The purpose of this experiment was to analyze the solitary wave. This was performed by the
visualization and quantification of an internal solitary wave generated in a wave tank. An
engineering design component was satisfied by the design and fabrication of a tank filling
apparatus used to fill the tank with a saltwater mixture. To perform the analysis, a video
recording of the internal solitary wave was analyzed using Tracker Software.
Ocean waves are a familiar site in Hawaii. The liquid peaks that surfers ride to the gentler waves
that exist outside the breaks are well-documented. Lesser known is the internal solitary wave. A
tidal wave is an example of a surface solitary wave. In a way, it is a single propagation that can
travel a long distance to the shoreline. It will not merge with other waves, a larger wave will
overtake a smaller one rather than the two combining. An internal wave is a wave that
propagates beneath the surface. This is possible because at certain depths the density of the
water changes and is distinct because the ocean is vertically stratified by temperature and
salinity.
Therefore, at certain depths beneath the surface exists solitary waves traveling long distances.
While hard to observe, especially from the surface, these waves are thought to play an important
role in ocean transport of energy and materials. The prelab exercise serves to provide the
students with practice in measuring the phase speed of the wave, the reasons for which are
discussed in the next section.
2. Theory
The mathematical model presented here and used for the analysis of the soliton is simplification
based on the two-layer vertical structure observed for the internal solitary wave (ISW). This
model is approximate for wave amplitude, a, smaller than the thickness
of the surface
and bottom layer, respectively, i.e., for
, propagating in the two-layer
system and density difference
. This model is explained by the Korteweg-de-Vries
(KdV) theory and predicts the wave shape by
3

where is the interfacial displacement relative to the undisturbed interface and is positive
upwards; x is the spatial coordinate; t is time; a is the wave amplitude; is the wave
characteristic lengthscale, also referred to as the half-width; and c is the wave phase speed. A
schematic diagram of the system is presented in Figure 1.

Figure 1: The Korteweg-de-Vries (KdV) theory function schematic

In theory the wave phase speed, c, is a function of the layer thickness,

amplitude, a, and is given by

, and wave

where

is the phase speed of the small-amplitude linear wave. Note that Eq. (2) is valid when
, which will always be the case for the experiment discussed in this paper. The theory has an
additional requirement that the amplitude a and the half-width be related by

When the surface layer is smaller than the bottom layer, the right-hand side of Eq. (4) is
negative. This means that the amplitude a and the vertical interface displacement are also
negative. The theory presented here only considers the case where
so that the amplitude
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is positive and only waves of elevation are possible. Tracker Software was used to determine the
phase speed of the ISW.
3. Experiment Setup and Procedure

3.1. Water Wave Tank

The procedures described here were adapted from the Water Wave Channel Instruction Manual. The
wave tank used for the experiment is shown in Figure 2. The operation of the wave tank was performed
either using the pulse switch or the steady on switch. The voltage was controlled using the voltage knob
on the variable power supply. The phase of the wave was adjusted manually on the paddles.

Figure 2: Water Wave Channel tank and generator

Generation of a non-periodic wave 4.1

Both exciters were adjusted so as to produce the same phase movement. An absorber frame was
introduced at the end of the I-shaped part of the wave channel. The motor was switched on for about 1 s.
Generation of a periodic wave 4.2
The motor was switched on for a longer time.
Proving that waves transport energy, but not material 4.3
Two plastic balls were attached to the middle part of the I-shaped channel by their threads to different
places on the channel wall. The motors were switched on briefly.
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Determining the phase velocity of a wave 4.4

A wave was generated. The time which a wave peak needed to travel from the entrance of the I-shaped
channel to the absorber with the motor running was measured.
Relationship between frequency and wavelength 4.5
The motor was first operated with low voltage. The wavelength was measured. The frequency of the
motor was increased and the wavelength was measured again.
Reflection of the water wave 4.6
The absorber frame was removed from the end of the I-channel. The motor was switched on for about 1
s.
Phase velocity and group velocity 4.7
The motor was switched on for about 2 s.

3.2. Solitary Wave

To generate the solitary wave a saltwater mixture was prepared by mixing salt with freshwater
and adding a blue dye. The tank was first filled with freshwater. At one end of the tank a barrier
was place to separate the saltwater that would generate the solitary wave. To generate the
solitary wave, the barrier was removed which allowed the saltwater to flow to the other end of
the tank. The wave was produced when the saltwater flow bounced off the end of the tank and
reflected, causing a small wave to form.
To prevent significant mixing of the saltwater and freshwater a special apparatus was built to
inject the saltwater beneath the freshwater. This simple apparatus, shown in Figure 3, consisted
of a funnel connected to a tube leading down to the bottom of the tank beneath the freshwater. A
valve connected in between the tube and funnel was used to control the flow of saltwater.
Saltwater was poured from a container into the funnel. Using the valve, the separated portion of
the tank was filled until it was filled with about half freshwater and half saltwater.
Since the saltwater was denser than the freshwater it would eventually settle to the bottom of the
tank. Filling the tank with saltwater first and then adding the freshwater would have resulted in
significant mixing. Even with careful pouring of the freshwater the acceleration of the
freshwater being poured would have caused it to penetrate the saltwater layer. The concept of
the filling apparatus was to simply displace the freshwater with the denser saltwater.

Figure 3: Saltwater injection apparatus. It consisted of a funnel, tubing, and valve to control the flow.

4. Results and Discussion

4.1. Water Wave Tank

The results of the water wave tank experiment are shown as screenshots from the recorded video.
A non-periodic wave is shown in Figure 5. No repeating pattern appeared during the generation
of the wave which resulted in a non-uniform wave pattern.

Figure 4: Generation of a non-periodic wave

A periodic wave is shown in Figure 5. Although multiple waves are not present in the photo, the
waveform was relatively consistent throughout the wave generation.

Figure 5: Generation of a periodic wave

To demonstrate that wave transport energy, but not material, Figure 6 is a screenshot of the video
recording the two red balls oscillating back and forth. The balls represent water particles in the
wave moving back and forth as the wave propagates, but they never move all the way down the
I-channel of the wave tank.

Figure 6: Waves transport energy, not material

The phase velocity of a wave was determined by measuring the time which a wave peak needed
to travel from the entrance of the I-shaped channel to the absorber at the end of the channel, all
while the motor was running. The speed was calculated of the quotient of the distance and time.
Figure 7 shows a water wave traveling the length of the tank. Using Tracker Software, the phase
velocity was determined to be 2.3913 ft/s or 0.72887 m/s.

Figure 7: Determination of the phase velocity of wave

The relationship between frequency and wavelength were demonstrated in this procedure. As
the frequency of the motor increased, the wavelength became shorter. The long wavelength in
Figure 8 is the first of several shots taken of increasing the motor frequency.

Figure 8: Relationship between frequency and wavelength

A water wave was reflected from the end of the wave tank while the absorber frame was
removed. This is shown in Figure 9 where the wave is bouncing off the end of the tank and back
towards the paddle generators.

Figure 9: Reflection of the water wave. The arrow denotes the end of the tank.

Once the waves reflected off the end of the tank they moved back toward the paddle generators
with greater speed. Although not quite clearly shown in Figure 10, that is totally what happened.
No lie.

Figure 10: Phase velocity and group velocity

A standing wave was produced as shown in Figure 11. Wave overlap is clearly visible. The
standing wave was maintained for a short while until resonance caused the wave height to reach
the top of the tank. Lower motor speeds produced a more controllable standing wave, but it was
far less visible in practice.

Figure 11: Standing Wave. The arrow points to an area of wave overlap.

4.2. The Internal Solitary Wave

The ISW generated in this experiment is shown in Figure 12. As can be observed from Figure 12,
the experiment met the criteria where the surface layer thickness is greater than the bottom layer
thickness.

Figure 12: The internal solitary wave propagating from right to left, denoted by the arrow. The waves following
the ISW exhibited the behavior of a more typical non-ISW type.

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Using the Tracker Software the phase speed was measured to be 0.046191 m/s. The surface
layer thickness was measured to be 0.04763 m and the bottom layer thickness was measured to
be 0.01813 m. The amplitude was measured to be 0.01421 m. The density of the saltwater layer
was estimated to be about 20 kg/m3. From Eq. (2), the theoretical phase speed is 0.062518 m/s
making the experimental error 26.1161%. Due to time constraints, multiple trials could not be
conducted. The larger theoretical value for the phase speed could be due to the inexact nature in
which the measurements were taken (Tracker Software, while incredibly useful, has its limits).
The lengthscale was measured to be 0.03753 m so that a2 was 0.000533 m compared with the
theoretical value of 0.017509 m for an error of 96.9541%. This huge error could be attributed to
the resolution of the video making it difficult to accurately measure the lengthscale.
5. Conclusion
The objective of this experiment was to generate an internal solitary wave using a tank filling
apparatus designed and built by the lab group members and compare the measured phase speed
with the theoretical phase speed from Eq. (2). Overall, the experiment was a success in that the
tank filling apparatus performed well and an internal solitary wave was generated.
Analysis determined the phase speed to be 0.046191 m/s compared with the theoretical 0.062518
m/s for a 26.1161%. The value of a2 was 0.000533 m and 0.03753 m for the experimental and
theoretical values, respectively, giving an error of 96.9541%. Qualitative analysis of the video
supports the conclusion that an actual internal solitary wave was generated as its speed and
amplitude were unaffected by the other waves produced. Furthermore, the layer thickness for the
surface and bottom met the criteria outlined in the theory section. While some surface waves
were observed, these were considered to not be significant enough to contaminate the results.
Increasing the length and width of the tank, as well as improving the tank filling apparatus, could
improve the quality of the results. However, the size of such a proposed tank would make it
impractical given the constraints in the available facilities. A better positioned, higher resolution
camera would significantly improve the Tracker Software analysis as the viewing angle affected
the scale in which the measurements were taken.
Reference

Appendix

11