Channel Width Adjustment During Scour and Fill

Abstract

The adjustment of stream channel width during streambed scour and fill is explained by the stream's tendency to establish equal power expenditure along the channel, i.e., the straight water-surface profile. In the process of establishing the uniform power expenditure, channel width adjustment is not necessarily toward streamwise uniformity. It is illustrated that the straight water-surface profile can be approached by significant spatial width variation during scour and fill.