Experimental Studies of Dynamic River Ice Processes

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River ice jams are of major concern to many Canadian communities as they pose a significant threat to both lives and property. Ice jams are dangerous because they can form very rapidly, and typically cause higher flood levels than open water events (e.g. Selkirk, MB). They can also release quickly, creating dangerous surges of ice and water (e.g. Fort McMurray, AB). Flooding in 2009 caused by ice jams on the Red River strained the limits of the province's flood control infrastructure as adequate predictive models were not available and had to be hurriedly developed in response to rapidly increasing water levels. It is estimated that water levels during the event rose 1.22 m in 4 hours, with a total rise of 2.8 m. This prompted a $4.4 million buyout program for flood-prone properties along the Red River as the dramatic rise in water level made it difficult to adequately warn the local residents.***It is important to be able to predict and examine the impacts of these dynamic ice processes so that stakeholders can address issues such as public safety, optimized hydroelectric generation operations, and effects on the aquatic environment. However, numerical models remain in the development stage primarily because of their reliance on subroutines that are based on empirical relationships rather than actual flow physics. The transport and accumulation of ice is of great importance to the formation of ice jams and is considered one of the most complicated problems in river ice engineering because of the complex fluid dynamics surrounding individual ice floes. At present, much of our knowledge of these processes is necessarily qualitative, due to the inherent logistical difficulties and safety issues that arise when trying to measure dynamic ice processes in the field. This is particularly true for ice floe transport under ice jams. ***The objective of the proposed research program is to investigate river ice jam dynamics to advance our fundamental knowledge of these processes, including a better understanding of the transport of individual ice floes and the formation of ice jams. This will provide essential validation for numerical models currently being developed by others and expand our ability to implement improved numerical models that have a greater physical basis. Four graduate students will be trained under this research program through a series of innovative experiments and will become some of Canada's future experts in river ice hydraulics.**