Vries, S. de (Sierd)

Sierd de Vries is a coastal engineer by education (MSc in Delft in 2007). He has obtained his PhD degree at Delft University in September 2013. His PhD work entitles 'The Physics of Blown Sand and Coastal Dunes' where he studied the growth of coastal dunes due to natural processes of wind. He is particularly interested in the dynamic morphological behavior of the coast as a result of sediment transport by wind, currents and waves. To study specific aspects of coastal behavior he combines the development of innovative monitoring techniques with state of the art modelling approaches.

Research

My research aims for the sustainable development of dynamic coastal landscapes. Nowadays, coastal landscapes and its inherent dynamics are increasingly governed by the complex interaction between a natural system that is influenced by human interventions. In my research I intend to develop the base of knowledge that is needed to develop engineering measures for the sustainable development of coastal landscapes that provides socioeconomic functions to society.

I focus on 2 specific aspects:

1. Understand the relevant physical processes that govern dynamic coastal landscapes.
2. Model and predict the eco-physical development of coastal landscapes.

Examples of dynamics coastal landscapes that are governed by natural processes and human interventions

I am specialized in broad aeolian coastal landscapes and more particularly in coastal dunes and beaches. I use remote sensing applications in combination with in situ measurements and state of the art numerical modelling.

For more details visit my Research Projects and Publications pages. Students typo3/can visits the Student projects page to get inspired by previous student project in order to define their own.