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10 - Time Scales in Semienclosed Basins

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 February 2022

Arnoldo Valle-Levinson
Arnoldo Valle-Levinson
Affiliation:
University of Florida
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Summary

Studies of any semienclosed basin frequently ask the question, How long does it take for water renewal in this basin? The question is rather simple, but the answer is far from it. The response is difficult because one single value (e.g., NT number of hours or days or years) falls short in representing the possible variability of the agents that cause such water renewal. This chapter presents different ways to represent the renewal and the potential variability in those representations. The chapter is anchored in previous syntheses that attempt to address persistent inconsistencies in the use of the various terms that refer to such water renewal. The chapter proposes distinctions among flushing time, residence time, age, transit time, and exposure time.

Keywords

flushing timeflushing rateresidence timeagetransit timeexposure timeexchange ratio
Type
Chapter
Information
Introduction to Estuarine Hydrodynamics , pp. 170 - 180
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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References

Additional Sources

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