Modelling coupled hydraulics and sediment transport of a high-magnitude flood and associated landscape change

Abstract

AbstractProcesses and mechanisms of erosion, transport and deposition within high-magnitude outburst floods such as jökulhlaups and lahars are poorly understood and remain largely unquantified. This study therefore applies a two-dimensional or depth-averaged hydrodynamic model, with fully integrated sediment transport, to reconstruct a Holocene jökulhlaup to have occurred from Kverkfjöll volcano, Iceland. Results indicate simultaneous inundation of multiple channels, flow around islands, hydraulic jumps and multi-directional flow including backwater areas and hydraulic ponding. These flow characteristics are typical of outburst floods that are volcanically triggered, flow through steep volcanic terrain and contain high concentrations of volcaniclastic sediment. Kverkfjöll jökulhlaups had low frontal flow velocities but as stage increased, velocities reached 5–15ms–1. Peak stage was prolonged in zones of hydraulic ponding, but generally attenuated in magnitude and duration downstream. Suspended load transport persisted over the entire hydrograph but bed load transport was spatially discontinuous and comprised distinct pulses. A hierarchy of landforms is proposed, ranging from highest energy zones (erosional gorges, scoured bedrock, cataracts and spillways) to lowest (valley-fills, bars and slackwater deposits). Bedrock erosion was generally where flow exceeded ∽3m flow depth, ∽7ms–1 flow velocity, ∽1×102Nm–2 shear stress and 3 ×102Wm–2 stream power. Deposition occurred below ∽8m flow depth, 11 ms–1 flow velocity, 5 ×102Nm–2 shear stress and 3 ×103Wm–2 stream power. Hydraulic ranges associated with erosion and deposition have considerable overlap due to transitional flow phenomena, transitions in sediment concentration and the influence of upstream effects, such as hydraulic ponding behind topographic constrictions. These results are the first of coupled hydraulic and sediment transport phenomena in high-magnitude outburst floods with fluid rheology and high sediment content, such as jökulhlaups and dilute lahars. Modelled changes in sediment mass closely resembled field-mapped zones of erosion and deposition. This paper therefore introduces a capability to simulate rapid landscape change due to high-magnitude outburst flood.