Torsten Schlurmann

Bio: Torsten Schlurmann is an academic researcher from Leibniz University of Hanover. The author has contributed to research in topics: Breaking wave & Wave flume. The author has an hindex of 17, co-authored 116 publications receiving 1265 citations. Previous affiliations of Torsten Schlurmann include United Nations University & Braunschweig University of Technology.

"Last-Mile" preparation for a potential disaster – Interdisciplinary approach towards tsunami early warning and an evacuation information system for the coastal city of Padang, Indonesia

Abstract: . Extreme natural events, like e.g. tsunamis or earthquakes, regularly lead to catastrophes with dramatic consequences. In recent years natural disasters caused hundreds of thousands of deaths, destruction of infrastructure, disruption of economic activity and loss of billions of dollars worth of property and thus revealed considerable deficits hindering their effective management: Needs for stakeholders, decision-makers as well as for persons concerned include systematic risk identification and evaluation, a way to assess countermeasures, awareness raising and decision support systems to be employed before, during and after crisis situations. The overall goal of this study focuses on interdisciplinary integration of various scientific disciplines to contribute to a tsunami early warning information system. In comparison to most studies our focus is on high-end geometric and thematic analysis to meet the requirements of small-scale, heterogeneous and complex coastal urban systems. Data, methods and results from engineering, remote sensing and social sciences are interlinked and provide comprehensive information for disaster risk assessment, management and reduction. In detail, we combine inundation modeling, urban morphology analysis, population assessment, socio-economic analysis of the population and evacuation modeling. The interdisciplinary results eventually lead to recommendations for mitigation strategies in the fields of spatial planning or coping capacity.

Hard Structures for Coastal Protection, Towards Greener Designs

Abstract: Over recent years, many coastal engineering projects have employed the use of soft solutions as these are generally less environmentally damaging than hard solutions. However, in some cases, local conditions hinder the use of soft solutions, meaning that hard solutions have to be adopted or, sometimes, a combination of hard and soft measures is seen as optimal. This research reviews the use of hard coastal structures on the foreshore (groynes, breakwaters and jetties) and onshore (seawalls and dikes). The purpose, functioning and local conditions for which these structures are most suitable are outlined. A description is provided on the negative effects that these structures may have on morphological, hydrodynamic and ecological conditions. To reduce or mitigate these negative impacts, or to create new ecosystem services, the following nature-based adaptations are proposed and discussed: (1) applying soft solutions complementary to hard solutions, (2) mitigating morphological and hydrodynamic changes and (3) ecologically enhancing hard coastal structures. The selection and also the success of these potential adaptations are highly dependent on local conditions, such as hydrodynamic forcing, spatial requirements and socioeconomic factors. The overview provided in this paper aims to offer an interdisciplinary understanding, by giving general guidance on which type of solution is suitable for given characteristics, taking into consideration all aspects that are key for environmentally sensitive coastal designs. Overall, this study aims to provide guidance at the interdisciplinary design stage of nature-based coastal defence structures.

Sand mining in the Mekong Delta revisited - current scales of local sediment deficits

Abstract: The delta of the Mekong River in Vietnam has been heavily impacted by anthropogenic stresses in recent years, such as upstream dam construction and sand mining within the main and distributary channels, leading to riverbank and coastal erosion. Intensive bathymetric surveys, conducted within the Tien River branch during the dry and wet season 2018, reveal a high magnitude of sand mining activities. For the year 2018, an analysis of bathymetric maps and the local refilling processes leads to an estimated sand extraction volume of 4.64 $$\pm $$ 0.31 Mm$${}^{3}$$/yr in the study area, which covered around 20 km. Reported statistics of sand mining for all of the Mekong’s channels within the delta, which have a cumulative length of several hundred kilometres, are 17.77 Mm$${}^{3}$$/yr for this period. Results from this study highlight that these statistics are likely too conservative. It is also shown that natural sediment supplies from upper reaches of the Mekong are insufficient to compensate for the loss of extracted bed aggregates, illustrating the non-sustainable nature of the local sand mining practices.

A review on Hilbert‐Huang transform: Method and its applications to geophysical studies

Abstract: [1] Data analysis has been one of the core activities in scientific research, but limited by the availability of analysis methods in the past, data analysis was often relegated to data processing. To accommodate the variety of data generated by nonlinear and nonstationary processes in nature, the analysis method would have to be adaptive. Hilbert-Huang transform, consisting of empirical mode decomposition and Hilbert spectral analysis, is a newly developed adaptive data analysis method, which has been used extensively in geophysical research. In this review, we will briefly introduce the method, list some recent developments, demonstrate the usefulness of the method, summarize some applications in various geophysical research areas, and finally, discuss the outstanding open problems. We hope this review will serve as an introduction of the method for those new to the concepts, as well as a summary of the present frontiers of its applications for experienced research scientists.

Closure of "Bedload and Size Distribution in Paved Gravel-Bed Streams"

Abstract: Field data are used to study the size distribution of bedload in paved gravel-bed streams. Similarity analysis yields the results that all grain size ranges are of approximately equal transportability when the critical condition for breaking the pavement is exceeded. This result is only approximately correct due to deviations from similarity. However, it is adequate to justify development of a method for calculating total bedload, which requires only the subpavement median grain size rather than the size distribution. A method for calculating bedload size distribution that accounts for deviation from similarity is also developed.

Random seas and design of maritime structures

Abstract: Evolution of Design Method Against Random Waves Statistical Properties and Spectral of Sea Waves Transformation and Deformation of Random Sea Waves Design of Breakwaters Design of Coastal Dikes and Seawalls Probabilistic Design of Harbor Facilities Harbor Tranquility and Vessel Mooring Hydraulic Model Tests with Random Waves Theoretical Description of Random Sea Waves Statistical Theory of Irregular Waves Techniques of Random Wave Analysis 2D Computation of Wave Transformation with Random Breaking and Nearshore Currents Statistical Analysis of Extreme Waves Prediction and Control of Beach Deformation Processes.