Turbulent diffusion in the near-bottom boundary layer of the Black Sea shelf zone

In the Black Sea shelf zone, direct measurements of the vertical profiles o f currents and hydrological parameters in the bottom boundary layer (BBL) u sing OLT-D type profilers have been used to calculate the vertical diffusio n coefficient Kz in the near-bottom region. Various known models were appli ed for this purpose. The results of the calculations have shown that satisf actorily consistent estimates of Kz in the range from several cm(2)/s to 15 -20 cm(2)/s. At large Kz there is greater variation among the estimates giv en by the different models. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reser ved.