Jon Williams

Teaching interests

· Coastal Processes

· Fluvial Processes

· Aeolian Processes

· Hydrodynamics and Boundary Layers

· Sediment Dynamics

· Marine and Fluvial Bedforms

 

  

Research interests

Fieldwork/laboratory studies leading to understanding of sedimentological and hydrodynamic processes through numerical and statistical analyses and modelling: wave/current/non-cohesive sediment interactions; marine and fluvial bedload and suspended transport of non-cohesive sediments; generation and maintenance of marine and fluvial bedforms; nearshore sediment dynamics and hydrodynamics; wave groups; sediment dynamics and hydrodynamics of offshore sandbanks; aeolian sediment dynamics and bedforms; tidal inlets.

Modelling sediment processes: suspended sediment profiles; suspended sediment flux; bedload transport; resuspension; turbulence; bursts.

Instrument development & testing: field instrumentation used to measure sedimentary processes (STABLE; ABS; Coherent Doppler; Sand transport probe; ADV; acoustic bedform profilers; ECM’s; OBS; transmissometers).

Design and management of large field programmes: studies of tidal/surge currents, waves & bathymetry using: ADCP; S4DW; Aanderra RCM7/8; waverider; Triaxys; PMP; remote sensing (CASI etc.); OSCR; COSRAD; & x-band radar. Use of jack-up barge and PIP to measure inlet processes. Use of the Deltaflume to test field equipment.

 

 

Other research

Major Fieldwork Activities

Location	Project	Dates
Isle of Lundy, Bristol Channel, UK	Sandwave dynamics and sediment transport	1988
Camarthen Bay, South Wales	Wave attenuation and bottom sediments	1990
Squaw Creek, Montana, USA	Episodic fluvial gravel transport	1991 & 1992
Broad Fourteens, North Sea	Linear sandbanks	1992
Middelkerke Bank, Belgium	CSTAB - Circulation and Sediment Transport Around Banks	1993
River Rhine, Coblenz, Germany	Bedload transport and bedforms	1994 - 1995
Holderness, UK	LOIS (NERC)	1996
Delta flume I, Netherlands	Wave-sediment-benthic frame interactions study	1997
Algarve, Portugal	Inlet Dynamics Initiative	1999 - 2000
Algarve, Portugal	Beach and inlet morphology study	2001
Delta flume II, Netherlands	Wave-sediment interactions study	2001
Algarve, Portugal	Beach morphology and washover processes	2002
Dee estuary, UK	Hydrodynamics, sediments and morphology.	2003 - 2004
Rio Grande do Sul coastline, RS, Brazil	Beach and sediment studies	2003 - 2004
Dee estuary, UK	Hydrodynamics, sediments and morphology.	2005
Longshore sediment transport and associated shoreline changes program, Brazil.	Measurements of longshore sediment transport and hydrodynamics.	2004 - 2005
MUDEX, Cassino Beach, RS, Brazil	Wave attenuation over muddy sediments	2005
Hills Flats, Severn Estuary, UK	a) Flow and sediment transport over gravel dunes; b) mud runnel study	2001, 2002 & 2005
Algarve, Portugal	Tidal inlet evolution study	2006

 

Research degrees awarded to supervised students

Name	Institution	Degree	Title	Year of award
Adrian Hannay	University of Birmingham/POL	PhD	Wave-current interactions over mobile rippled sand at two sites in the North Sea	1994
Paul Turney	University of Liverpool/POL	MSc	Piezoelectric suspended sediment probe	1996
Chris Rose	University of Birmingham/POL	PhD	Suspended sediment transport in storm conditions	1997
Nicole Metje	University of Birmingham/POL	PhD	Sediment suspension under water waves	2001

Present PhD student

Name	Institution	Degree	Title	Start Year
Amaia Ruiz de Alegria Arzaburu	UoP	PhD	Gravel dynamics, Slapton Sands	2006
André Pacheco	University of Algarve/UoP	PhD	Hydrodynamics of multiple inlet systems	2006
Alison Nock	UoP	PhD	Coastal Flooding by Extreme Events (CoFEE)	2007
Ana Rita Carrasco	University of Algarve/UoP	PhD	Barrier beach dynamics	2007
Saul Reynolds	UoP	PhD	Wave Hub Impacts on Shoreline ans Sea Bed Processes (WHISSP)	2008

 

Grants & contracts
 

Project	Contract	Dates	Description	Total award
Squaw Creek	US Corps of Engineers	1992-1993	Fluvial gravel dynamics and turbulence	£0.2M
Linear sand banks (LSB)	EU (Framework 2 - MAST 1)	1990 - 1993	Offshore sandbank dynamics	£0.75M
Rheingau Reach Project (RRP)	BfG, Germany	1993 - 1994	Measuring and modelling flow and sediment transport over barchan dunes in the Rhine	£0.35M
Circulation and sediment transport around banks (CSTAB)	EU (Framework 3 - MAST 2)	1993 - 1996	Dynamic links between offshore banks and beaches	£1.1M
Coastal area modelling for engineering in the long term (CAMELOT)	MAFF	1994 - 1988	Prediction of coastal morphology on decadal time-scales	£2.1M
Inlet dynamics initiative Algarve (INDIA)	EU (Framework 4 - MAST 3)	1996 - 2000	Understanding tidal inlet function	£2.1M
COAST 3D	EU (Framework 4 - MAST 3)	1996 - 2000	Validating state-of-the-art coastal models	£1.9M
Deltaflume I	EU TMR Programme	1997	Laboratory study of benthic landers	£0.2M
Forecasting Coastal Evolution (FORCE)	UK NERC	1998 - 2000	Development of methodologies to predict bathymetric evolution	£0.5M
Coastal sediment modelling (COSMOD)	UK EPSRC	1998 - 2000	Application of micro-models to the sediment entrainment problem	£0.4M
Living with the Sea (CHAMPS)	EU Life Nature	1999 - 2003	The development of CHAMPS (Coastal Habitat Management Plans) for dynamic coastlines	£2.2M
Deltaflume II	EU TMR Programme	2001	Laboratory study of waves-sediment interaction at full-scale	£0.25M
BARDEX - Barrier Dynamics Experiment	Hydralab III	2008-2009	Laboratory study  of gravel barrier dynamics. The project will simulate tides and waves in a large flume and examine barrier overtopping and profile responses.	£0.30M
CoFEE - Coastal Flooding by Extreme Events	NERC FREE Programme	2007-2010	Forecasting rate and extent of coastal flooding from extreme events. The project focuses on the Sefton Coast and involves UoL, EHU, POL & Sefton Council.	£0.76M
WHISSP - Wave Hub Impacts on Seabed and Shoreline Processes	South West Regional Development Agancy through PRIMaRE	2008-2011	The project will study the impact on the sea bed and shoreline of devices deployed in the Wave Hub Project.	£0.75M
MICORE - Morphological Impacts and Coastal Risks Induced by Extreme Stiorm Events.	EU FP7	2008-2011	The development and demonstration of on-line tools for reliable predictions of the morphological impact of storm events in support of civil protection strategies.	£2M

 

Publications

 

WILLIAMS J. J., BELL P. S., COATES L. E., METJE N. & SELWYN R. (2001) Laboratory study of interactions between a large instrument deployment frame and oscillatory flow over a sandy bed. Continental Shelf Research, 23(3-4), 355-375.

THORNE P. D., WILLIAMS J. J. & DAVIES A. G. (2001) Suspended sediments under waves measured in a large-scale wave flume. Journal of Geophysical Research, 107(C8), 4.1-4.16.

WILLIAMS J. J., ROSE C. P. & THORNE P. D. (2002) Role of wave groups in resuspension of sandy sediments. Marine Geology, 183, 17-29.

 WILLIAMS J. J., BELL P. S., COATES L. E., METJE N. & SELWYN, R. (2003) Interactions between a benthic tripod and waves on a sandy bed. Continental Shelf Research, 23, 355-375.

WILLIAMS J. J., BELL P. S. & THORNE P. D. (2003) Field measurements of flow fields and sediment transport above mobile bedforms. Journal of Geophysical Research, 108, C4, 3109, doi: 10.1029/2002JC001336.

WILLIAMS J. J., BELL P. S, HUMPHERY J. D., HARDCASTLE P. J. & THORNE P. D. (2003) New Approach to Measurement of Sediment Processes in a Tidal Inlet. Continental Shelf Research, 23(14-15), 1239-1254.

WILLIAMS J. J., BELL P. S. & THORNE P. D. (2004) Measured and predicted wave-generated bedforms. Journal of Geophysical Research, 109, CO2004, doi: 10.1029 / 2003JC001882.

WILLIAMS J. J., BELL P. S. & THORNE P. D. (2005) Unifying Large and Small Wave-Generated Ripples, Journal of Geophysical Research, 10, C2, C02008,10.1029/2004JC002513. 

 WILLIAMS J. J, & ESTEVES L. S., (2005) Predicting shoreline changes: a case study in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, Geophysical Research Letters, 32. L11602, doi:10.1029/2005GL022979.

WILLIAMS J. J., CARLING P. A, & BELL P. S., 2006. Dynamics of intertidal gravel dunes, Journal of Geophysical Research, 111, doi: 10.1029 / 2005JC003000.

WILLIAMS, J. J., METJE, N., COATES L. E. & ATKINS, P. R., 2007. Modelling Convective Sand Resuspension, Geophysical Research Letters, 34, L15603, doi:10.1029/2007GL03076..

WILLIAMS J. J., CARLING P. A. & BELL P. S., 2007. Dynamics of Intertidal gravel dunes II. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue 50, 673-677.

CARLING, P. A., WILLIAMS, J. J., CROUDACE, I.W. and Amos, C.L. (2008). Sedimentology and hydrodynamics of mud ridge-furrow structures in the Severn Estuary, UK. Continental Shelf Research, doi:10.1016/j.csr.2008.12.009

WILLIAMS, J. J., CARLING, P. A.,  AMOS, C. L. & Thompson, C. 2008. Turbulence measurements over mud ridge-furrow structures in the Severn Estuary, UK, Estuarine, Coastal & Shelf Science, 79(2), 213-229. 

ESTEVES, L.S., WILLIAMS, J.J. & LISNIOWSKI, M.A. 2009. Measuring and modelling longshore sediment transport. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 83, 47-59. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Reports & invited lectures

1. WILLIAMS J. J., BELL, P. S., COATES L. E., HARDCASTLE P. J., HUMPHERY J. D., MOORES S. P., THORNE P. D. & TROUW K. (1998) Evaluation of the performance of STABLE. Final Report to the European Union TMR Programme ‘Access to Large-Scale Facilities and Installations Programme’, EC-Contract ERBFMGECT950045. 45pp.

2. WILLIAMS J. J (1998) Inlet Dynamics Initiative – Fieldwork Strategy. INDIA Progress Report No. 1 to EU, POL, 12pp.

3. O’CONNOR B. A., WILLIAMS J. J., DIAS J .M. & HALE I. (1998) Environmental Data: Peninsula Ancão, Algarve, Portugal. University of Liverpool, Report No. CE/02/98, 62pp.

4. WILLIAMS J. J (1998) Inlet Dynamics Initiative – Process studies. INDIA Progress Report No. 2 to EU, 24pp.

5. WILLIAMS J. J (1999) INDIA Fieldwork Plan, Health and Safety Issues and Risk Assessment. Document to all INDIA Partners, POL, 47pp.

6. WILLIAMS J. J (1999) Inlet Dynamics Initiative – Fieldwork Activities Report. INDIA Progress Report No. 3 to EU, 35pp.

7. HUMPHERY J. D., BANASZEK A. D. & WILLIAMS J. J. (1999) Deployment and recovery of offshore moorings for the MAST3 INDIA Project (INlet Dynamics Initiative - Algarve), CCMS POL Cruise Report No. 34, 21pp.

8. WILLIAMS, J. J. & FERREIRA, O. (2003) Quantification and modelling of coastal morphology changes caused by storm events. Final Report to the British Council Treaty of Windsor Programme, Lisbon, Portugal, 25 pp.

9. VINZON, S. & WILLIMS J. J. (2004) Fluid mud layers and wave attenuation in coastal waters: field experiment in Cassino beach, Brazil. Report to ONR, Washington, (Award Number: N00014-03-1-1069), May 26-28, 2004, Hoteis Atlantico, Praia de Cassino, RS, Brazil.

10. WILLIAMS J. J & PLATER, A., (2006). Lytham St. Anne’s Sand Extraction Environmental Impact Assessment: Coastal Geomorphology. Confidential report to AMEC Earth and Environmental Services. 122 pp.

Invited seminars and lectures given at: Universities of: Algarve; Amsterdam; Bangor; Barcelona; Berlin; Birmingham; Bordeaux; Cadiz; Coimbra; East Anglia; Lancaster; Liverpool; Plymouth and Southampton. Also at NoC, Delft Hydraulics and HR-Wallingford, 1990 to 2007.