Splash–Saltation of Sand due to Wind‐Driven Rain

Abstract

Transport of sediment under wind‐driven rains is generally not accounted for in equations for sediment transport by wind. However, the contribution of this rainsplash–saltation process can be substantial. Wind‐tunnel experiments, in which horizontal fluxes were measured at four heights above a sand surface, were conducted to study sediment transport under wind‐driven rain and rainless wind conditions. It was shown that the horizontal flux could be described by a single exponential equation under both conditions. By integration of the horizontal flux over the height of rainsplash–saltation and saltation, respectively, the sediment transport rate was computed. Hence the obtained data set was used to validate the sediment transport models of Cornelis et al., which were developed from measurements of vertical deposition fluxes under wind‐driven rain and rainless wind conditions. The data followed the models very well, which suggests that they are adequate to predict the transport rate of sediment under wind‐driven rain and rainless wind.