Large eddy simulation of the bubbly ocean: New insights on subsurface bubble distribution and bubble-mediated gas transfer

Bubbles injected by breaking waves are brought into the boundary layer by episodic bubble plumes, and they form near-surface streaks in the convergence zone of Langmuir circulations. The equilibrium bubble distribution decays exponentially with depth and is a manifestation of intermittent bubble plumes whose bubble number density is at least one order of magnitude higher than the mean bubble number density.

Bubble distribution in the injection zone is influenced by injection, turbulent transport, and dissolution. Bubble distribution below the injection zone is determined by the strength of turbulence and dissolution. For a given sea state, bubble e-folding depth increases linearly with friction velocity.