Function Of Bed Shear Stress Research Articles

A Conceptual Investigation of Transition to Self‐Driven Turbidity Currents From Along‐Shelf Current‐Supported Turbidity Currents

AbstractWave‐ and current‐supported turbidity currents (WCSTCs) are one of the sediment delivery mechanisms from the inner shelf to the shelf break. Therefore, they play a significant role in the global cycles of geo‐chemically important particulate matter. Recent observations suggest that WCSTCs can transform into self‐driven turbidity currents close to the continental margin. However, little is known regarding the critical conditions that grow self‐driven turbidity currents out of WCSTCs. This is in part due to the knowledge gaps in the dynamics of WCSTCs regarding the role of density stratification. Especially the effect of sediment entrainment on the amount of sediment suspension has been overlooked. To this end, this study revisits the existing theoretical framework for a simplified WCSTC, in which waves are absent, that is, along‐shelf current‐supported turbidity current. A depth‐integrated advection model is developed for suspended sediment concentration. The model results, which are verified by turbulence‐resolving simulations, indicate that the amount of suspended sediment load is regulated by the equilibrium among positive/negative feedback between entrainment and cross‐shelf gravity force/density stratification, and settling flux dissociated with density stratification. It is also found that critical density stratification is not a necessary condition for equilibrium. A quantitative relation is developed for the critical conditions for self‐driven turbidity currents, which is a function of bed shear stress, entrainment parameters, bed slope, and sediment settling velocity. In addition, the suspended sediment load is analytically estimated from the model developed.

A New Framework for Modelling Fine Sediment Transport in Rivers Includes Flocculation to Inform Reservoir Management in Wildfire Impacted Watersheds

Fine-grained cohesive sediment is the primary vector for nutrient and contaminant redistribution through aquatic systems and is a critical indicator of land disturbance. A critical limitation of most existing sediment transport models is that they assume that the transport characteristics of fine sediment can be described using the same approaches that are used for coarse-grained non-cohesive sediment, thereby ignoring the tendency of fine sediment to flocculate. Here, a modelling framework to simulate flow and fine sediment transport in the Crowsnest River, the Castle River, the Oldman River and the Oldman Reservoir after the 2003 Lost Creek wildfire in Alberta, Canada was developed and validated. It is the first to include explicit description of fine sediment deposition/erosion processes as a function of bed shear stress and the flocculation process. This framework integrates four existing numerical models: MOBED, RIVFLOC, RMA2 and RMA4 using river geometry, flow, fine suspended sediment characteristics and bathymetry data. Sediment concentration and particle size distributions computed by RIVFLOC were used as the upstream boundary condition for the reservoir dispersion model RMA4. The predicted particle size distributions and mass of fine river sediment deposited within various sections of the reservoir indicate that most of the fine sediment generated by the upstream disturbance deposits in the reservoir. Deposition patterns of sediment from wildfire-impacted landscapes were different than those from unburned landscapes because of differences in settling behaviour. These differences may lead to zones of relatively increased internal loading of phosphorus to reservoir water columns, thereby increasing the potential for algae proliferation. In light of the growing threats to water resources globally from wildfire, the generic framework described herein can be used to model propagation of fine river sediment and associated nutrients or contaminants to reservoirs under different flow conditions and land use scenarios. The framework is thereby a valuable tool to support decision making for water resources management and catchment planning.

Experimental Investigation of Erosion Characteristics of Fine-Grained Cohesive Sediments

In this short communication, the erosion process of the fine, cohesive sediment collected from the upper River Taw in South West England was studied in a rotating annular flume located in the National Water Research Institute in Burlington, Ontario, Canada. This study is part of a research project that is underway to model the transport of fine sediment and the associated nutrients in that river system. The erosion experimental data show that the critical shear stress for erosion of the upper River Taw sediment is about 0.09 Pa and it did not depend on the age of sediment deposit. The eroded sediment was transported in a flocculated form and the agent of flocculation for the upper River Taw sediment may be due to the presence of fibrils from microorganisms and organic material in the system. The experimental data were analysed using a curve fitting approach of Krone and a mathematical model of cohesive sediment transport in rotating circular flumes developed by Krishnappan. The modelled and measured data were in good agreement. An evaluation of the physical significance of Krone’s fitting coefficients is presented. Variability of the fitting coefficients as a function of bed shear stress and age of sediment deposit indicate the key role these two factors play in the erosion process of fluvial cohesive sediment.

The role of waterfalls and knickzones in controlling the style and pace of landscape adjustment in the western San Gabriel Mountains, California

Bedrock rivers set the pace of landscape adjustment to tectonic and climatic forcing by transmitting signals of base-level change upstream through the channel network and ultimately to hillslopes. River incision is typically modeled as a monotonic function of bed shear stress or stream power, modulated by sediment tools and cover effects, but these models do not apply in channels with steep or vertical bedrock reaches due to changes in flow dynamics, hydraulic geometry, and bed cover. Here, we investigate how such knickzones (oversteepened channel reaches often containing waterfalls) influence the propagation of slope-break knickpoints that separate relict from adjusting topography, and thus the response times of landscapes to external forcing. We use a conceptual long-profile model to explore the consequences of waterfalls and knickzones on channel response and compare predictions to light detection and ranging (LiDAR) topography, field observations, and cosmogenic radionuclide data from Big Tujunga Creek, a 300 km2 watershed in the San Gabriel Mountains, California. Three prominent knickzones along Big Tujunga Creek, characterized by numerous waterfalls, show contrasting behavior. For the upper knickzone, waterfalls align with bands of harder rock exposed on adjacent hillslopes, and between waterfalls, the channel is mantled by large (>2 m) boulders, indicating knickzone retreat is slow compared to predictions of slope-break knickpoint retreat from stream-power models, enhancing the preservation of an upstream relict landscape. The middle knickzone shows evidence for both fast and slow knickzone retreat, as well as significant deviations from predictions of uniform tributary knickpoint elevations derived from stream-power models. The lower knickzone is characterized by a waterfall and knickzone within an incised inner gorge that provide evidence of rapid retreat relative to background channel incision. Overall, we find a pattern of decreasing knickzone and waterfall retreat rate with distance upstream of the range front, beyond decreases predicted by simple area-dependent celerity models. Our results highlight that waterfalls and knickzones can both enhance and inhibit landscape adjustment, leading to divergent controls on the pace of landscape evolution.

The erosion behaviour of biologically active sewer sediment deposits: Observations from a laboratory study

The erosion behaviour of various fine-grained sediment deposits has been investigated in laboratory experiments. This work mainly focused on tests using sewer sediment in which strong biochemical reactions were observed during the deposit formation period. A small number of initial tests were conducted in which the deposits were made from mixtures of “clean” mineral and organic sediments. The erosion behaviour observed in these tests was compared with the erosion characteristics for sediments taken from deposits in a sewer. The impact of the biological processes on physical properties such as bulk density, water content, deposit structure and the erosive behaviour as a function of bed shear stress are quantified and discussed. Based on these observations it is believed that bio-processes weaken the strength of the in-pipe sediment deposits. A significantly weaker sediment surface layer was observed during deposition under quiescent oxygen-rich conditions. This resulted in a deposit with low shear strength which may be a cause of a first foul flush of suspended sediment when flow rates were increased. Comparison between tests with sewer sediments and the artificial representative surrogates suggested that the deposits of the later did not correctly simulate the depositional development and the resultant erosion patterns observed with the more bio-active sewer sediment.

Fractal dimensions of cohesive sediment during settling in steady state flow with different initial sediment concentrations

Morphology of particle populations of cohesive sediment were examined during settling experiments in an annular flume with different initial sediment concentrations (200 and 350 mg/L) at constant bed shear stress (0.121 N/m2) using fractal dimensions. The area, longest axis, and perimeter of suspended solids were measured with light microscopy and an image-analysis system to determine three fractal dimensions (D, D1, D2). The ratio between the initial and steady state (time T = 300 min) sediment concentration was 0.54 for both experimental runs and is a function of bed shear stress, not the initial sediment concentration. The fractal dimension D changed from 1.32 at the start of the experiment to 1.36 at steady state, which represents an increase in shape irregularity of larger particles over time compared with smaller particles. At steady state, D1 and D2 were 1.19 and 1.66, respectively. Small increases in D1 and D2 over time indicated a change in morphology towards longer and more elongated particles. The D2 measurements in the present study indicate that differential sedimentation is the predominant flocculation mechanism of cohesive sediments in the flume settling experiments. Fractal dimensions of suspended solids were not significantly different at steady state as a function of initial sediment concentration.Key words: particle morphology, fractal dimensions, cohesive sediment, flocculation, deposition, annular flume.

Initiation of Motion of Calcareous Sand

This paper examines the initiation of motion of four natural and five sieved calcareous sand samples in unidirectional flow. Flume experiments yield the sediment transport rate as a function of bed shear stress up to bed-form development. Reference-based criteria are supplemented by visual observations to determine the critical shear stress. The results are compared with published data for rounded and irregular particles in terms of the median sieve size and the corresponding nominal and equivalent diameters as functions of particle Reynolds number. The comparison shows that the critical shear stresses of the irregular particles are higher than the Shields curve in the hydraulically smooth flow regime and lower in the rough turbulent flow regime.

Modelling Erosion and Deposition of Cohesive Sediments from Hay River, Northwest Territories, Canada

A large volume sample of river-bed cohesive sediment and water from Hay River, Northwest Territories, Canada was collected during a spring field program in 2000 as part of a study on under-ice movement of sediment just before breakup. Controlled laboratory experiments were subsequently conducted on the Hay River water/sediments in a rotating annular flume at Burlington, Ontario, Canada to better understand the deposition and erosion processes of cohesive sediment transport. The deposition experiments in the rotating flume confirmed that the Hay River sediment is cohesive and the critical shear stress for deposition and the rates of deposition are a function of bed shear stress and the initial concentration of the sediment in suspension. The erosion experiments provided quantitative data on the critical shear stress for erosion and the rates of erosion as a function of bed shear stress and the age of the sediment deposit. The erosion experiments also indicated that the growth of the biofilm had an influence on the erosion characteristics of the Hay River sediment. Based on the data from the rotating circular flume experiments, a modelling strategy is proposed for calculating the under-ice transport of the cohesive sediments in the Hay River.

Transport characteristics of fine sediments from an on-stream stormwater management pond

Transport characteristics of fine sediment deposited in an on-stream stormwater management pond were studied in a rotating circular flume. In deposition experiments, the critical shear stress for deposition (τcd=0.050N/m2) and the amount of sediment that would stay in suspension permanently were established. For two consolidation periods, 41 and 138 h, respectively, the critical shear stress for erosion of the surface sediment layer was estimated as 0.12N/m2. Finally, empirical relationships were developed to estimate the sediment deposition and erosion as a function of bed-shear stress and recommended for future modelling of fine sediment transport in the pond studied.

Transport characteristics of tile-drain sediments from an agricultural watershed

The use of tile drains for subsurface drainage in agricultural watersheds It as created concern for the delivery of sediment to receiving waters and potential undesirable effects on surface and subsurface water quality. In this study, transport characteristics of sediment from the drains in an agricultural watershed of the Thames River, near Kintore, Ontario, Canada were tested in a 5 m diameter. rotating circular flume located at the National Water Research Institute in Burlington. Ontario. Tile drain sediments were collected and mixed with river water at different speeds in the flume to study transport processes such as deposition, erosion and flocculation as a function of bed shear stress. During deposition and erosion experiments. water samples were collected to detennine changes in the concentrations of rations, anions and dissolved organic carbon. The results show that tile drain sediments have a tendency to flocculate when subjected to a range of shear stresses. The median diameter (D50) of the floc size distribution reached a maximum value at a shear stress of 0.169 Nn2 which can be considered an optimum shear stress for flocculation for this sediment. The critical shear stress at which all of the initially suspended sediment deposited to the flume bed was measured as 0.056 Nm2. The pH and cation concentrations remained relatively constant during erosion and deposition experiments. Anion concentrations were more variable, most likely due to the presence of bacteria which could have also played a role in the flocculation mechanism oftile drain sediment.