PROGRESS REPORTS ON RESEARCH SPONSORED BY 



THE BEACH EROSION BOARD 



Compiled by Thorndike Saville, Jr., Research Division 

 Beach Erosion Board 



Summaries of progress made during fiscal year 1960 (i.e. to June 

 30, 1960) on the several research contracts in force between universities 

 or other institutions and the Beach Erosion Board, together with brief 

 statements as to the status of some research projects being prosecuted 

 in the laboratory of the Beach Erosion Board, are presented below. These 

 summaries supplement and continue those contained in prior issues of the 

 Bulletin. 



I. University of California, Contract DA-49-055-eng-8. Sources of 

 Beach Sand . 



Seasonal sampling of eighteen beaches in the San Francisco area 

 was continued. Sampling has been extended to a series of beaches between 

 Russian River and the Oregon line to indicate properties of Northern 

 California beaches. Studies along the more northern beaches will also 

 permit comparison with the previous work done in the San Francisco area. 

 The university has obtained (under other work) an electric magnetic 

 separator which it plans to use to aid in the segregation of minerals of 

 different magnetic susceptibility in samples from these beaches. It is 

 hoped that analyses in this manner may aid in the tracing of sand move- 

 ment, and determination of source areas. 



II. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Contract DA-49-055-eng-16 . 

 Sorting of Beach Sand by Waves . 



A report "The Damping of Oscillatory Waves by Laminar Boundary 

 Layers" discussed in the last Annual Bulletin report, has been published 

 as Technical Memorandum No. 117 of the Board. The applicability of the 

 two previously developed equations for incipient and equilibrium sediment 

 motion to the prediction of the sorting of natural sands on equilibrium 

 beaches has been studied experimentally with a few tests on a 1 to 20 

 slope beach. Although results are somewhat preliminary, a degree of 

 correlation of sand sorting as predicted by theory was noted. A com- 

 prehensive report covering the last two years of work is being prepared. 



III. University of California, Contract DA-49-055-eng 17. Fundamental 

 Mechanics of Sand Movement by Waves . 



A report "Sand Movement by Wind Action (on the Characteristics of 

 Sand Traps)" will be published in August 1960 as Technical Memorandum 

 No. 119 of the Board. This report discusses the calibration of various 

 types of sand traps in a wind tunnel; efficiencies of these various 

 types have been checked and compared with each other. As a result of 



35 



