Huanghe River Mouth Research Articles

The controlling factors of high suspended sediment concentration in the intertidal flat off the Huanghe River Estuary

The Huanghe River (Yellow River) is known by its high suspended sediment concentration (SSC) in its river mouth tidal flat. However, the factors controlling the high SSC over there are not well understood. Therefore, we conducted 7-d hydrodynamic observations (water depth, wave height, and current velocity) and SSC measurements on the tidal flat off the Huanghe River Mouth. The data shows that in most of time, under the calm sea condition, the SSC ranges 0.1–3.5 g/L, and sediment discharge from the river is the main source. However, when hydrodynamics are enhanced in a tidal cycle and large-scale erosion occurs on the seafloor, resuspended sediment becomes the main source, and the SSC in the water column reaches 17.3 g/L. We find the suspended sediment flux is mainly controlled by the tidal current and Stokes drift, while the wave-induced shear stress could also affect the variation of suspended sediment flux. During the observation period, when sea under calm-rippled conditions, the current-induced resuspended sediment concentration (RSC) was greater than the wave-induced RSC. In contrast, in smooth-wavelet sea conditions, the wave-induced RSC was greater than the current-induced RSC, for instance, a single wave event was found to cause 11.8 cm seabed erosion within 6 h. This study reveals different controlling factors for the high SSC near a river-influenced tidal flat, and helps us get a better understanding of a delta’s depositional and erosional mechanisms.

Numerical study of three-dimensional wave-induced longshore current’s effects on sediment spreading of the Huanghe River mouth

A three-dimensional wave radiation stress is introduced into the hydrodynamic sediment coupled model COHERENS-SED, which has been developed through introducing wave-enhanced bottom shear stress, wave dependent surface drag coefficient, wave-induced surface mixing, SWAN, damping function of sediment on turbulence, sediment model and depth-dependent wave radiation stress to COHERENS. The COHERENS-SED is adopted to study the effects induced by wave-induced three-dimensional longshore current on suspended sediment spreading of the Huanghe River (Yellow River) mouth. Several different cases divided by setting different wave parameters of inputting boundary waves are carried out. The modeling results agree with measurement data. In terms of simulation results, it is easy to know that three-dimensional wave radiation stress plays an obvious role when inputting boundary wave height is stronger than 3 m. Moreover, wave direction also affects the sediment spreading rules of the mouth strongly too.

Numerical modeling of hyperpycnal flows in an idealized river mouth

Numerical experiments in an idealized river mouth are conducted using a three-dimensional hydrodynamics model (EFDC model) to examine the impacts of suspended sediment concentration (SSC), settling velocity of sediment and tidal mixing on the formation and maintenance of estuarine hyperpycnal flows. The standard experiment presents an illustrative view of hyperpycnal flows that carry high-concentrated sediment and low-salinity water in the bottom layer (>1.0 m in thickness) along the subaqueous slope. The structure and intra-tidal variation of the simulated hyperpycnal flows are quite similar to those previously observed off the Huanghe (Yellow River) mouth. Results from the three control experiments show that SSC of river effluents is the most important parameter to the formation of hyperpycnal flows. High SSC will increase the bulk density of river effluents and thus offset the density difference between freshwater and seawater. Low SSC of river effluents will produce a surface river plume, as commonly observed in most large estuaries. Both the settling velocity of sediment particles and the tidal mixing play an important role in maintaining the hyperpycnal flows. Increasing settling velocity enhances the deposition of sediment from the hyperpycnal layer and thus accelerates the attenuation of hyperpycnal flows, whereas increasing tidal mixing destroys the stratification of water column and therefore makes the hyperpycnal flows less evident. Our results from numerical experiments are of importance to understand the initiation and maintenance of hyperpycnal flows in estuaries and provide a reference to the rapidly decaying hyperpycnal flows off the Huanghe river mouth due to climatic and anthropogenic forcing over the past several decades.

Recent changes in sediment delivery by the Huanghe (Yellow River) to the sea: Causes and environmental implications in its estuary

Over the past 60 years, climate change and human activities in the Huanghe (Yellow River) basin have changed the river system. In particular, construction of large reservoirs and soil-conservation practices within the river basin have reduced sediment flux to the sea by ∼90% and increased the grain size of suspended sediment delivered to the sea (30 μm now versus 18 μm before in median grain size). Scouring of the channel in the lower reaches has added a new sediment source to those derived from the loess region of the middle reaches. Before construction of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir at the downstream end of the middle reaches, suspended sediment concentrations at station Lijin, the last hydrographic station before the river enters the sea, were high enough (>35 kg/m3) in the flood season to offset the density contrast between freshwater and ambient seawater. Thus, hyperpycnal flows developed along the subaqueous slope at the river mouth during the flood season. Observations from two cruises near the Huanghe river mouth, one before and one after the operations of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir, suggest that buoyant hypopycnal plumes, rather than hyperpycnal plumes, have occurred at the river mouth since the dramatic changes in concentration and grain size of suspended sediment discharged to the sea. The rapid decrease of sediment discharge to the sea and the increase of grain size of suspended sediments not only changed the sediment dispersal pattern at the river mouth, but also modified the shoreline and subaqueous slope. The effects of climate change and human activities in the river basin have been transferred along the hydrological pathway to the estuary and delta, and have changed estuarine sediment dynamics and delta morphology. The Huanghe presents an illustrative example of river basin–coastal zone interactions in the context of climate change and human activities.

Sediment transport off the Huanghe (Yellow River) delta and in the adjacent Bohai Sea in winter and seasonal comparison

Based on the data on the current velocity, water temperature, salinity, turbidity and concentration of suspended sediment collected in November 2006 along three survey transects at three time-series, ship-based stations off the Huanghe (Yellow River) delta, and at twenty-four grid survey stations in the adjacent Bohai Sea, sediment transport off the Huanghe delta and in the adjacent Bohai Sea under winter regime were studied and compared with those from the summer season. The homogeneous distribution of salinity, temperature and sediment in the water column indicated a well-mixed body of water. A zone of high suspended sediment concentrations (SSC) >100 mg l −1 with a width of 35 km was identified along the delta coast. Two highest SSC centers were found in the surface and middle water layers around the abandoned Diaokou Huanghe river mouth and the present Huanghe river mouth, and the third one in the bottom layer around the abandoned Qingshuigou Huanghe river mouth. These three highest SSC centers become major sediment source areas in winter. Based on the location of the high bottom shear stress zone, the prevailing wave directions and the protuberant topography of the river mouths, we identified the resuspension origin of the three highest SSC centers caused mostly by the winter storm waves, partially by tidal currents. Suspended sediment flux (SSF) along the three coastal transects indicated that the sediment in the northwest part of the delta was transported northeastward and southeastward along the coast of the recent delta lobe. The SSC and SSF were higher in winter than summer by 1.7–27.1 and 2–122.5 times, respectively, except around the present river mouth. This indicates that the intensity of sediment transport in winter is much stronger than in summer due to the powerful effect of winter storms although the river water and sediment discharges to the sea were much greater in summer. The massive Huanghe sediment to the sea was accumulated in a narrow coastal area due to weak hydrodynamics in summer, and then strongly resuspended mostly by storm waves in winter and transported to the offshore area. The coastal area off the Huanghe delta acts as a sediment sink in summer and converted to be a sediment source in winter in response to the seasonal variation of the East Asian monsoon in this region. The erosion–accumulation pattern of the Huanghe subaqueous delta from 1976 to 2003 illustrates that river-laden sediment is deposited mainly in the southern part off the coastal area and it is also the result of intensive southward sediment transport in winter.

Tidal straining effect on the suspended sediment transport in the Huanghe (Yellow River) Estuary, China

Tidal straining effect on sediment transport dynamics in the Huanghe (Yellow River) estuary was studied by field observations and numerical simulations. The measurement of salinity, suspended sediment concentration, and current velocity was conducted during a flood season in 1995 at the Huanghe river mouth with six fishing boats moored at six stations for 25-h hourly time series observations. Based on the measurements, the intra-tidal variations of sediment transport in the highly turbid river mouth was observed and the tidal straining effect occurred. Our study showed that tidal straining of longitudinal sediment concentration gradients can contribute to intra-tidal variability in sediment stratification and to asymmetries in sediment distribution within a tidal cycle. In particular, the tidal straining effect in the Huanghe River estuary strengthened the sediment-induced stratification at the flood tide, thus producing a higher bottom sediment concentration than that during the ebb. A sediment transport model that is capable of simulating sediment-induced stratification effect on the hydrodynamics in the bottom boundary layers and associated density currents was applied to an idealized estuary to demonstrate the processes and to discuss the mechanism. The model-predicted sediment processes resembled the observed characteristics in the Huanghe River estuary. We concluded that tidal straining effect is an important but poorly understood mechanism in the transport dynamics of cohesive sediments in turbid estuaries and coastal seas.

Rapid shifts of the river plume pathway off the Huanghe (Yellow) River mouth in response to water-sediment regulation scheme in 2005

Freshwater plume represents a key passage for the river to deliver sediment to the coastal ocean. A water-sediment regulation scheme was implemented for the Huanghe River in 2005; in order to examine the effect of such an activity on the river plume dynamics, three cruises were carried out off the Huanghe River mouth. The preliminary results of the in-situ measurements suggested that the plume pathway shifted rapidly during the period of less than twenty days, which was confirmed by satellite remote sensing data in the same period. The rapid shifts were resulted from intensive interactions between river discharge and the varying bathymetry in the river mouth area. A large amount of river sediment was delivered to the coastal region during this period and mostly deposited in the mouth bar area due to jet-flow deceleration, forming a cluster of mouth bars across the river mouth, which caused the rapid shifts of the plume pathway.

River mouth bar formation, riverbed aggradation and channel migration in the modern Huanghe (Yellow) River delta, China

This paper addresses the recent (1970s–1990s) processes of river mouth bar formation, riverbed aggradation and distributary migration in the Huanghe River mouth area, in the light of station-based monitoring, field measurements and remote sensing interpretation. The results show that the morphological changes of the river mouth bar have been closely associated with the largely reduced fluvial discharge and sediment load. Landform development such as bar progradation occurred in two phases, i.e. before and after 1989, which correspond to faster and lower bar growth rates, respectively. Fast riverbed aggradation in the mouth channel was strongly related to river mouth bar progradation. During 1976–1996, about 2.8% of the total sediment loads were deposited in the river channel on the upper to middle delta. Therefore, the river water level rose by a few meters from 1984 to 1996. The frequent distributary channel migration, which switched the radial channel pattern into the SE-directed pattern in the mid-1980s, was linked with mouth bar formation. Marine conditions also constrain seaward bar progradation. Furthermore, the history of river mouth bar formation reflects human impacts, such as dredging and dyking in order to stabilize the coastal area.

Spatial-temporal changes of tidal flats in the Huanghe River Delta using Landsat TM/ETM+ images

Integrating remote sensing, geographic information system (GIS) and fractal theory, change characteristics of tidal flats and tidal creeks in the Huanghe (Yellow) River Delta over the period of 1986–2001 were discussed. The results show that evolutions of tidal flats throughout the Huanghe River Delta are influenced by various factors, and that progressive succession and regression of tidal flats concur in different coastal segments of the delta. Human activities have played an increasingly important role in the succession process of tidal flats. Due to land reclamation in coastal zones of the delta in the last 15 years, lots of tidal flats were occupied, the artificial coastline migrated seaward (the maximum change rate was 0.8 kmyr−1) and tidal creeks became sparser (the highest decreasing rate of length of tidal creeks was 14.9 kmyr−1). Except for two coastal segments from the Tiaohe Estuary to the 106 Station and from the south of the Huanghe River mouth to the north of the Xiaodao River Estuary, fractal dimension values of tidal creeks in the remaining coastal segments of the delta decreased. In addition, the time dimension, sediment fluxes into the sea, waves and tidal-currents have profound influences on the evolution process of tidal flats. Four types of tidal flats-river-dominated tidal flats, tide-dominated tidal flats, wave-dominated tidal flats and man-dominated tidal flats can be identified. Owing to the intensification of human activities in coastal zones of the delta, man-dominated tidal flats have become the main kind of tidal flats.

Phase-transfer of nitrogen species within the water column of the Bohai Sea

Biogeochemical constituents, especially the different phases of nitrogen, were investigated in the central and southern Bohai Sea, China, during fall 1998 and spring 1999 by repeatedly sampling a regular station grid. Apart from at the area off the Huanghe River, dissolved organic nitrogen dominated the nitrogen fraction, indicating the seasonally maturated stage of the ecosystem. Inputs of dissolved inorganic nitrogen from the Yellow Sea (by the “Yellow Sea Warm Current”) as well as by the Huanghe River fuelled primary production and led to high primary production at the entrance of the Bohai Sea during both seasons and in the shallow areas, especially at the Huanghe River mouth, during spring. Beside the nitrogen import, resuspension and remineralisation processes of nitrogen contributed to the ongoing phytoplankton blooms and, thus, to the conversion of nitrogen. In spite of the high variability indicated by strong changes within a fortnight, seasonal differences could be detected, such as specific contribution of phytoplankton to suspended matter. Correlations of particulate nitrogen with total suspended matter as well as changes in concentrations of the different nitrogen species as well as in primary production rates helped in distinguishing between conversion and transport/diffusion processes. Overall, the Bohai Sea was revealed as a huge “bioreactor” for the conversion of nitrogen, and—due to permanent nitrogen input and extensive water–sediment interaction processes—as a possible important sink on a global scale for nitrogen via denitrification processes.

Short time dynamics of ciliate abundance in the Bohai Sea (China)

The ciliate community in the Bohai Sea (China) was studied from 23 September to 7 October 1998. A hurricane struck the study area between the two grid station investigations, which were six days apart. Six tintinnid species (Favella panamensis, Leptotintinnus nordqvisti, Tintinnopsis butschlii, T. karajacensis, T. Radix, T. Radix andWangiella dicollaria) were identified. Total cililate abundance in the surface layer ranged from 20 to 770 ind/l. In the first grid investigation,Tintinnopsis karajacensis dominated in the warm, low salinity waters at the Huanghe River mouth. Aloricate ciliate sp.1 dominated in the cold, high salinity waters in the northwest of the study area and the Bohai Strait. In the second grid investigation,T. Karajacensis almost disappeared. The abundance of aloricate ciliate sp. 1 decreased drastically. The aloricate ciliate sp.2 dominated at the Bohai Strait. The change of ciliate abundance may be due to the disturbance of hurricane.

Recent change of hydrographic features in the Cheju Strait (southeastern Yellow Sea), Korea: contrast between planktonic and benthic foraminifera isotope composition

Abstract AMS 14 C dates on a 260 cm-long gravity core, NPC-2, collected from the Cheju Strait (southeastern Yellow Sea) revealed that the core sediments were deposited only during the last 1200 yr B.P. Under such relatively rapid sediment deposition (about 2 mm/yr of sedimentation rate), the δ 18 O and δ 13 C compositions of planktonic ( Globigerionoides bulloides ) and benthic ( Ammonia beccarii, s.l.) foraminifera provide a new information on the evolution of surface and bottom water masses in the study area. The discrepancies of δ 18 O and δ 13 C values between planktonic and benthic foraminifera were consistent between the bottom and 50 cm downcore, whereas both values diverged gradually in the upper 50 cm of core and the difference reaches at maximum at the top of core. In accordance with the linear covariances between δ 18 O and δ 13 C values of both planktonic and benthic foraminifera, a common principal factor to govern the isotopic composition of foraminiferal calcite may be judged. Considering not only temperature fractionation of calcite but gradients of salinity to δ 18 O w of seawater, the isotopic variation and excursion in the upper part of core NPC-2 suggest that the contribution from the gradual decreasing salinity be emphasized in contrast with increasing temperatures at the surface layer. The low-salinity waters have accumulated greatly during the last 250 yr, part of which is likely to result from the divergence of Huanghe River mouth. Thus, the modern hydrographic changes are recorded as the negative shift of δ 18 O and δ 13 C values in the shallow Yellow Sea.