Numerical investigation of long-term planform dynamics and stability of river meandering on fluvial floodplains

Abstract

A mathematical model for river meandering and floodplain development is presented under the assumption of constant channel width, which combined Johanneson and Parker (1989) linear theory for flows in river bends and a conceptual depositional model from Howard (1992). A new bank erosion model is also developed, which takes into consideration of the nonlinearity in near-bank velocity and the outer bank height. Simulations reproduce the long-term behavior of river meandering and floodplain evolution in a way very similar to their natural processes. Based on the simulation results, stability of river meandering dynamics is discussed and the concept of filtration effect is introduced to highlight meandering rivers’ capability to filter out arbitrarily applied planform disturbance. Simulations are also carried out to investigate the influence of the velocity nonlinearity and the outer bank height in bank erosion model, as well as their combinations. Results show that the consideration of velocity nonlinearity in bank erosion model leads to highly upstream-skewing geometry of fully developed river meanders, as well as a slower downstream migration of meander trains. The influence of nonlinearity in bank erosion model is much smaller than the influence of bank height, which reduces the bank migration rate exponentially in the newly introduced bank erosion model. The outer bank height consideration tends to decelerate the downstream migration rate of river meanders and accelerate lateral expansion of the floodplain as well. Consequently, a broader floodplain is generated compared with simulations without bank height considerations.