Wood Loads Research Articles

Instream wood loads in montane forest streams of the Colorado Front Range, USA

Although several studies examine instream wood loads and associated geomorphic effects in streams of subalpine forests in the U.S. Southern Rocky Mountains, little is known of instream wood loads in lower elevation, montane forests of the region. We compare instream wood loads and geomorphic effects between streams draining montane forest stands of differing age (old growth versus younger) and disturbance history (healthy versus infested by mountain pine beetles). We examined forest stand characteristics, instream wood load, channel geometry, pool volume, and sediment storage in 33 pool–riffle or plane-bed stream reaches with objectives of determining whether (i) instream wood and geomorphic effects differed significantly among old-growth, younger, healthy, and beetle-infested forest stands and (ii) wood loads correlated with valley and channel characteristics. Wood loads were standardized to drainage area, stream gradient, reach length, bankfull width, and floodplain area. Streams flowing through old-growth forests had significantly larger wood loads and logjam volumes (pairwise t-tests), as well as logjam frequencies (Kruskal–Wallis test), residual pool volume, and fine sediment storage around wood than streams flowing through younger forests. Wood loads in streams draining beetle-infested forest did not differ significantly from those in healthy forest stands, but best subset regression models indicated that elevation, stand age, and beetle infestation were the best predictors of wood loads in channels and on floodplains, suggesting that beetle infestation is affecting instream wood characteristics. Wood loads are larger than values from subalpine streams in the same region and jams are larger and more closely spaced. We interpret these differences to reflect greater wood piece mobility in subalpine zone streams. Stand age appears to exert the dominant influence on instream wood characteristics within pool–riffle streams in the study area rather than beetle infestation, although this may reflect the relatively recent nature (<10years) of the infestation.

Disturbance legacies of historic tie-drives persistently alter geomorphology and large wood characteristics in headwater streams, southeast Wyoming

Instream wood is recognized as an integral component of stream morphology in forested areas. However, few studies have evaluated the legacy effects of historic wood removal activities and associated impacts on channel morphology, contemporary wood loading, and recruitment. This study investigates the role of historic tie-driving, a widespread channel disturbance legacy, in shaping present-day stream channel conditions in southern Wyoming. Geomorphic and riparian surveys were used to assess the extent of disturbance and degree of recovery within three sets of paired tie-driven and non-driven study reaches. Tie-driven streams were narrower, shallower, and had low cross-sectional roughness and higher width-to-depth ratios when compared to non-driven streams. Study reaches in first-order tie-driven streams were characterized by predominantly plane-bed morphologies and an extremely low abundance of wood compared to paired, non-driven reaches. Wood loads in second-order tie-driven reaches were similar to non-driven reaches, but overall wood distribution varied and was more likely to accumulate in jams. Existing wood loads in tie-driven reaches exhibited a narrower range of geomorphic functions and were less stable overall, although the relative state of decay was similar across all reaches. Basal area, stream power, and reach slope were identified as key mechanisms driving wood retention in the study reaches. The results of this study suggest that contemporary channel morphology and wood loads continue to reflect disturbance histories but have not yet been affected by other contemporary disturbances expected to influence wood loads such as bark beetle infestations.

Low‐Cost Restoration Techniques for Rapidly Increasing Wood Cover in Coastal Coho Salmon Streams

AbstractLike many rivers and streams in forests of the Pacific Northwest, California north coast rivers and streams have been depleted of downed wood through timber harvest and direct wood removal. Due to the important role of wood in creating and maintaining salmonid habitat, wood augmentation has become a common element of stream restoration. Restoration efforts in North America often focus on building anchored, engineered wood structures at the site scale; however, these projects can fail to meet restoration goals at the watershed scale, do not closely mimic natural wood loading processes or dynamics, and can be expensive to implement. For critically imperiled populations of Coho Salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch in California, there is a strong impetus to achieve as much habitat restoration as possible in priority watersheds in the shortest time and with limited resources, so cost‐efficient techniques are necessary. In this multi‐site project, we investigated unanchored techniques for wood loading to evaluate cost and contribution to salmonid habitat in Mendocino County, California. Over a period of 6 years, 72.4 km of stream were treated with 1,973 pieces of strategically placed wood. We found that unanchored wood loading techniques were much less costly than commonly used anchored techniques, reliably improved habitat, and retained wood at high rates (mean = 92%) in small‐ to moderate‐sized streams, at least over the short term (&lt;6 years). The average cost of design and construction for the unanchored projects was US$259 per log, equivalent to 22% of the cost associated with the anchored wood augmentation methods examined here. Our results suggest that this unanchored wood loading approach has the potential to increase the pace and scale at which wood augmentation projects are implemented in the Pacific Northwest and beyond.Received January 22, 2014; accepted June 25, 2014

Quantifying the role of woody debris in providing bioenergetically favorable habitat for juvenile salmon

The habitat complexity of a riverine ecosystem influences the bioenergetics of drift feeding fish. We coupled hydrodynamic and bioenergetic models to assess the influence of habitat complexity generated by large woody debris (LWD) on the growth potential of juvenile Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in a river that lacked large wood. Simulations indicated how LWD diversified the flow field, creating pronounced velocity gradients, which enhanced fish feeding and resting activities at the sub-meter scale. Fluid drag created by individual wood structures increased under higher wood loading amounts, leading to a 5–19% reduction in the reach-averaged velocity. The reach-scale growth potential was asymptotically related to wood loading, suggesting that the river became saturated with LWD and additional loading would produce minimal benefit for the configurations we simulated. In the scenario we analyzed for illustration, LWD additions could quadruple the potential growth area available before that limit was reached for the configurations selected for demonstration. Wood depletion in the world's rivers has been documented extensively, leading to widespread attempts by river managers to reverse this trend by adding wood to simplified aquatic habitats. However, systematic prediction of the effects of wood on fish growth has not been previously accomplished. We offer a quantitative approach for assessing the influence of wood on habitat potential for fish growth at the microhabitat and reach-scales.

Influence of large wood on channel morphology and sediment storage in headwater mountain streams, Fraser Experimental Forest, Colorado

Large fallen wood can have a significant impact on channel form and process in forested mountain streams. In this study, four small channels on the Fraser Experimental Forest near Fraser, Colorado, USA, were surveyed for channel geometries and large wood loading, including the size, source, and characteristics of individual pieces. The study is part of a larger effort to understand the impact of mountain pine beetle infestation on a suite of watershed properties. Here, we present baseline data collected at the onset of widespread tree mortality. Channels range from 1.5 to 2m in width, with slopes ranging from 3 to >10%. Median (D50) streambed particle sizes range from gravel to very coarse gravel. Channels are characterized as cascade, step-pool, and plane bed over varying scales. Large wood loads ranged from about 0.4 to 1.0 piece per meter length of channel, which is comparable to values reported for other Colorado sites. Much of the wood showed indications of being in place for long periods of time (decayed/rotten, broken into ramps, and partially buried in beds and banks). Nearly all surveyed reaches contained steps formed from small boulders and/or logs. Significant portions of the elevation drop in some of the reaches were made up by log steps, though the percentages varied (0 to 60%). Individual log steps trap a portion of the coarse sediment moved as bedload, forming wedge-shaped accumulations upstream of the logs. The particle size distributions for measured bedload and step accumulations largely overlapped, but more so for the coarse ends of the distributions, suggesting a trapping inefficiency for the finer component of bedload. Estimates of the total volume of sediment stored behind log steps were approximately an order of magnitude greater than the mean sediment volume exported on an annual basis, as determined from measured accumulations in weir ponds. The particle size distribution of sediment in the ponds – ranging from sand to medium gravel – is considerably finer than sediment stored in steps. The series of comparisons between storage volumes, particle size distributions, and sediment export suggests that log steps effectively trap coarse sediment moved in these small streams and act as a series of check dams that inhibit channel erosion, but may be less effective at trapping finer sediment (sand and small gravel).

Estimating fluvial wood discharge using time‐lapse photography with varying sampling intervals

ABSTRACTMonitoring large wood (LW: width &gt; 10 cm, length &gt; 1 m) in transport within rivers is a necessary next step in the development and refinement of wood budgets and is essential to a better understanding of basin‐wide controls and patterns of LW flux and loads. Monitoring LW transport with coarse interval (≥ 1 min) time‐lapse photography enables the deployment of monitoring cameras at large spatial and long temporal scales. Although less precise than continuous sampling with video, it allows investigators to answer broad questions about basin connectivity, compare drainages and years,and identify transport relationships and thresholds. This paper describes methods to: (i) construct fluvial wood flux curves; (ii) analyze the effects of sample interval lengths on transport estimates; and (iii) estimate total wood loads within a specified time period using coarse‐interval time‐lapse photography. Applying these methods to the Slave River, a large‐volume (103 m3 s‐1), low‐gradient (10− 2 m km− 1) river in the subarctic (60∘ N), yielded the following results. A threshold relationship for wood mobility was located around 4500 m3 s‐1. More wood is transported on the rising limb of the hydrograph because wood flux declines rapidly on the falling limb. Five‐ and ten‐minute sampling intervals provided unbiased equal variance estimates of 1 min sampling, whereas 15 min intervals were biased towards underestimation by 5–6%, possibly due to periodicity in wood flux. Total LW loads estimated from the 1 min dataset and adjusted for a 15% misdetection rate from 13 July to 13 August are: 1600 ± 200 # pieces, 600 ± 200 m3 and of the order of 1.3 × 105 kg carbon. The total wood load for the entire summer season is probably at least double this estimate because only the second half of the summer was monitored and a large early summer peak freshet was missed. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Effects of forest stand age on the characteristics of logjams in mountainous forest streams

ABSTRACTWe measured longitudinal spacing and wood volume of channel‐spanning logjams along 30 1‐km reaches of forest streams in the Colorado Front Range, USA. Study streams flow through old‐growth (&gt; 200 year stand age) or younger subalpine conifer forest. Evaluating correlations between the volume and longitudinal spacing of logjams in relation to channel and forest characteristics, we find that old‐growth forest streams have greater in‐stream wood loads and more jams per kilometer than streams in younger forest. Old‐growth forests have a larger basal area close to the stream and correlate with larger piece diameters of in‐stream wood. Jam volume correlates inversely with the downstream spacing for ramp and bridge pieces that can act as key pieces in jams. Most importantly, old‐growth streams have shorter downstream spacing for ramp and bridge pieces (&lt; 20 m). Our results suggest that management of in‐stream wood and associated stream characteristics can be focused most effectively at the reach scale, with an emphasis on preserving old‐growth riparian stands along lower gradient stream reaches or mimicking the effects of old growth by manipulating the spacing of ramp and bridge pieces. Our finding that average downstream spacing between jams declines as wood load increases suggests that the most effective way to create and retain jams is to ensure abundant sources of wood recruitment, with a particular emphasis on larger pieces that are less mobile because they have at least one anchor point outside the active channel. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Properties of slurries made of fast pyrolysis oil and char or beech wood

The properties of slurries made of pyrolysis oil mixed with wood, char or ground char were investigated with respect to phase transitions, rheological properties, elemental compositions, and energy density. Also the pumping properties of the slurries were investigated at temperatures of 25, 40 and 60 °C and solid loadings from 0 to 20 wt%. The phase transitions of the wood slurry samples were observed at lower solid loadings compared to the char slurry samples. The apparent viscosity of the slurry samples was found to be considerably impacted by solid loading (0–20 wt%) and temperature (25–60 °C), especially in the phase transition region. The slurry viscosities with 20 wt% char loading, 20 wt% ground char loading and 15 wt% wood loading (at a shear rate of 100 s−1) are 0.7, 1.0 and 1.7 Pa.s, respectively at 60 °C and these values increases 1.2–1.4 times at 40 °C and 3–4 times at 25 °C. The wood, char and ground char slurry samples with 5–20 wt% solid loading obtain a volumetric energy density of 21–23 GJ/m3. The slurry sample with 20 wt% ground char having a d80 of 118 μm was pumped successfully into a pressurized chamber (0–6 bar) while plugging appeared when the slurry samples with 15 wt% char having a d80 of 276 μm was pumped into the pressurized chamber.

Scale-dependent interactions between wood and channel dynamics: Modeling jam formation and sediment storage in gravel-bed streams

[1] A stochastic model is used to investigate how the geomorphic function of wood changes with watershed scale, assuming wood recruitment occurs due to the mortality of individual trees, not to mass recruitment events such as landslides or episodic bank erosion. The model replicates the downstream decline in total wood load observed in the field, but predicts that the functional wood load peaks in channels having bankfull widths about 33% of the characteristic riparian tree height. The model also predicts that the greatest potential impact of jams on channel pattern—both in terms of sediment stored behind individual jams and the potential for jams to trigger avulsions—will typically be associated with channel widths between 25% and 67% of the riparian tree height. The simulation results are used to refine the categories that describe wood in alluvial channels, and the equivalent terms that describe the size of streams with forested riparian areas: small channels (or channels with large wood) are associated with widths less than 25% of the tree height; large channels (or channels with small wood) are associated with widths greater than 67% of tree height; and medium channels (or channels with intermediate wood) have widths between 25% and 67% of the tree height. We surmise that large wood acts primarily to store bed material (in small channels); intermediate wood tends to form channel-spanning jams, which can induce channel avulsions and create anabranched channel patterns (in medium channels); and small wood may increase the morphologic diversity, but does not store significant quantities of bed material or form channel-spanning jams capable of inducing stream avulsions (in large channels).

Improving interfacial adhesion in pla/wood biocomposites

Two reactive coupling agents, N,N-(1,3-phenylene dimaleimide) (BMI) and 1,1-(methylenedi-4,1-phenylene)bismaleimide (DBMI) were used to improve interfacial adhesion in PLA/wood composites. First the effect of the coupling agents was established in a series of experiments in which the amount of coupling agent changed at constant wood content, and then the effect of coupling was determined at various wood loadings (0–60 vol%). Composites were homogenized in an internal mixer and compression molded to plates. Tensile properties were determined and micromechanical deformations were studied by acoustic emission measurements. The two compounds improved the properties of the composites. Stiffness, strength and deformability increased simultaneously supplying sufficient proof for coupling. Because of the flexibility of the molecule, DBMI is a more efficient coupling agent in the studied composites than BMI. However, the effect of coupling is small, because only a few very large particles debond under the effect of external load. Smaller particles adhere strongly to the matrix even without coupling proving that interfacial adhesion is strong in PLA/wood composites.

&lt;i&gt;In Situ&lt;/i&gt; Compression Stress-Deformation Measurements along the Timber Depth Profile

The paper presents a novel concept and a prototype of a diagnostic tool for in-situ assessment of timber in existing structures and buildings. The device enables direct determination of conventional compressive strength and modulus of deformation in arbitrary depth along timber profile. The measurement of the stress-deformation relationship is performed in a prepared hole of a very small diameter by means of a special small size symmetrical loading jack. Testing and verification of the new device behaviour during loading of wood along the fibres has been carried out on fir which is the most frequent wood species in European buildings. The comparison of stress-strain diagrams acquired by means of the new device with those measured in compliance with the European standard for testing of wood shows a very good correlation including the determination of the compressive strength values. This semi-destructive method causes a very gentle damage and can be also used for the assessment of historic timber structures.

Variable contribution of wood to the hydraulic resistance of headwater tropical streams

We investigated the relative contribution of wood to total flow resistance in a tropical setting by measuring wood load and hydraulic resistance in six forested headwater sites at a range of subformative discharges. We evaluated the effectiveness of wood in increasing resistance by comparing measured velocity with predicted velocity from nondimensional hydraulic geometry equations that include slope, unit discharge, and either bed grain size (D84) or bed elevation variation (σt). The predictive equation that uses D84 as the characteristic roughness length successfully predicts velocity in the steep, coarse‐bed study reaches, but greatly overpredicts velocity in the low‐energy, sand‐bed study reaches. The degree of overprediction correlates with a dimensionless wood load metric (α*), which incorporates projected area of wood per unit volume of flow in the reach (α) and average wood diameter (dave). We use this correlation to suggest a wood load adjustment factor for the D84‐based predictive equation. The equation that uses σt as the roughness length successfully predicted velocity in the sand‐bed reaches, where large wood pieces incorporated into the bed and oriented perpendicular to flow cause most bed elevation variation. In our study sites, frequent and flashy floods appear to reorganize the wood in high‐energy reaches, leaving wood that is concentrated in low‐velocity zones along the channel margins and streamlined to flow, thus reducing wood resistance compared to similar streams in snowmelt‐dominated or spring‐fed hydrologic settings. However, in our low‐energy, sand‐bed study reaches, wood contributes strongly to flow resistance by increasing channel bed and margin complexity.

Does it make economic sense to restore rivers for their ecosystem services?

Summary Temperate forests managed to maximize sustainable yield of wood products can reduce the availability of dead wood on the forest floor and in adjacent streams, which in turn can impair ecological processes such as retention and transformation of organic matter. Lack of tools to link ecological processes with their effects on human well‐being leads forest managers to ignore the cost on other services from terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. We examine how adding dead wood to restore stream channel complexity affects the provision and value of selected ecosystem services, mainly related to the retention and transformation of matter and cycling of nutrients, as well as to the effects on aquatic biota. Specifically, we evaluated the cost‐effectiveness of stream restoration through a comparative analysis of four reach‐scale projects in streams flowing through temperate forest and into a drinking water reservoir and two scenarios of active and passive restoration at the basin scale. Results indicate that the lack of dead wood in streams has an important economic cost because of the effects on fish provisioning, opportunities for recreation and tourism, water purification and erosion control. Active reach‐scale restoration resulted in a 10‐ to 100‐fold increase in the monetary benefits provided by streams, accounting as much as 1·8 € per metre of restored river length each year. Results of the reach‐scale cost–benefit analyses estimated that the time required to recover the active restoration investment ranged from 15 to 20 years in low‐ to middle‐order streams. Synthesis and applications. Our study showed that restoration of natural wood loading in streams greatly increases the ecosystem services they provide. The benefits in terms of the analysed services surpass the costs of active restoration over realistic timeframes, whereas this was not the case for passive restoration. Inclusion of other ecosystem services such as conservation of biodiversity might make restoration more economically profitable. Overall, our study provides a decision framework for managing temperate riparian forests in the context of ecological services.

The effects of wood on stream habitat and native fish assemblages inNewZealand

AbstractHistoric deforestation has deprived many river systems of their natural wood loadings. To study the effects of the loss of wood from waterways, a field trial was conducted in three small forested streams inNewZealand. The objectives were to (i) examine differences in fish assemblages among wooded pools (where wood provided cover), open pools and riffles and (ii) measure the effects of wood removal on channel morphology and fish assemblages. In the first part of the study, no significant differences were found in total fish density among the three habitats. However, total fish biomass was significantly higher in wooded pools (64% of total fish biomass) compared with open pools and riffles. Mean density and biomass of banded kokopu (Galaxias fasciatus) and mean biomass of longfin eel (Anguilla dieffenbachii) were highest in wooded pools, whereas the density and biomass of bluegill bully (Gobiomorphus hubbsi) and torrentfish (Cheimarrichthys fosteri) were highest in riffles. In the second part of the study, wood was removed from a 200‐m section (treatment) in each stream, significantly reducing pool area and increasing the proportion of channel area and length in riffles. At the habitat scale, banded kokopu and large longfin eel were the two species mostly affected by wood removal. At the reach scale, banded kokopu biomass was significantly lower in the treatment sections. Although wooded pools were a small portion of total habitat, they provided important habitat for two ofNewZealand's larger native fish taxa.

The effect of micron sized wood fibers in wood plastic composites

The popularity and demand for wood plastic composites (WPC) has focused research on fiber properties associated with performance. In this study, maple wood fibers (WF) were ball milled and classified into discrete size fractions. Fiber analyses showed only three distinct WF size classes (80-100, 100-200 and <200 mesh). High density polyethylene (HDPE) based WPC were made from classified WF (10 to 50%). The effect of WF size, loading, and maleated polyethylene (MAPE) coupling agent on WPC rheological behavior (torque rheometry and melt flow rate (MFR)) and flexural properties were examined. The WPC MFR decreased with wood loading, increased with a reduction in WF size. The modulus of rupture (MOR) was shown to increase with a reduction in WF size and increase with the addition of MAPE. The increase in MOR is likely due to an increase in the interfacial interaction between the polymer and WF. Modulus of elasticity (MOE) was shown to increase with an increase in wood loading and decrease with a decrease in WF size. The toughness of the WPC was shown to increase with a decrease in WF size and increase upon addition of MAPE.

Morphology, Thermal Behavior and Dynamic Rheological Properties of Wood Polypropylene Composites

Wood polymer composites (WPCs) were made with pine and polypropylene matrix (PP). The composites were produced by melt blending in a Brabender at 180°C. Characterization of the samples, with the aid of scanning electron microscopy supplemented by microscope photography, showed an improved dispersion of wood in the polymeric material in presence of polypropylene grafted with maleic anhydride (MAPP) or nanoclay. The use of the MAPP instead of clay seems to have enhanced the level of crystallinity in the composites for the same levels of wood loading and also accelerates the crystallization. Melt rheological measurements of neat PP and PP-wood composites were carried out at 180°C with an ARES Rheometer scientific mechanical spectrometer in oscillatory frequency. All the composites materials exhibit viscoelastic values greater than those for neat PP. The samples containing MAPP as comptabilizer show the higher Newtonian viscosity, however, the addition of a small concentration of nanoparticles like nanoclays does not improve the resulting melt viscoelastic behavior of the composite.

Dynamics and management alternatives of in-channel large wood in mountain basins of the southern Andes

Large wood has a positive effect on channel morphodynamics and freshwater biodiversity of mountain streams. However, its presence can enhance the risks associated with extreme flood events in inhabited floodplains. This study reports on wood abundance, spatial distribution, recruitment and depositional mechanisms in three third-order basins of south-eastern Andes (Tres Arroyos, Rio Toro and Buena Esperanza). Major differences in large wood loads and quantity exist among the analyzed basins, due to different disturbance history and forest cover features. Marked logs in Buena Esperanza and Tres Arroyos were surveyed before and after floods. Ordinary events (recurrence interval < 2 years) moved only small and isolated logs (diameter < 0.25 m; length < 3 m) and for relatively short distances. The reported study basins are taken as paradigmatic cases to illustrate a management strategy for hazards associated with wood transport during major floods. Log removal and riparian vegetation cuts are not effective strategies because high-magnitude, infrequent events are able to recruit trees from hillslopes due to mass wasting processes. Flood-prone area should be preserved free from sensitive settlements. However, important localized infrastructures can be protected with specifically designed structural solutions. Their potential use in the context of the three analyzed Andean basins is discussed.

Modeling wood dynamics, jam formation, and sediment storage in a gravel‐bed stream

In small and intermediate sized streams, the interaction between wood and bed material transport often determines the nature of the physical habitat, which in turn influences the health of the stream's ecosystem. We present a stochastic model that can be used to simulate the effects on physical habitat of forest fires, climate change, and other environmental disturbances that alter wood recruitment. The model predicts large wood (LW) loads in a stream as well as the volume of sediment stored by the wood; while it is parameterized to describe gravel bed streams similar to a well‐studied field prototype, Fishtrap Creek, British Columbia, it can be calibrated to other systems as well. In the model, LW pieces are produced and modified over time as a result of random tree‐fall, LW breakage, LW movement, and piece interaction to form LW jams. Each LW piece traps a portion of the annual bed material transport entering the reach and releases the stored sediment when the LW piece is entrained and moved. The equations governing sediment storage are based on a set of flume experiments also scaled to the field prototype. The model predicts wood loads ranging from 70 m3/ha to more than 300 m3/ha, with a mean value of 178 m3/ha: both the range and the mean value are consistent with field data from streams with similar riparian forest types and climate. The model also predicts an LW jam spacing that is consistent with field data. Furthermore, our modeling results demonstrate that the high spatial and temporal variability in sediment storage, sediment transport, and channel morphology associated with LW‐dominated streams occurs only when LW pieces interact and form jams. Model runs that do not include jam formation are much less variable. These results suggest that river restoration efforts using engineered LW pieces that are fixed in place and not permitted to interact will be less successful at restoring the geomorphic processes responsible for producing diverse, productive physical habitats than efforts using LW pieces that are free to move, interact, and form LW jams.

Modeling channel morphodynamic response to variations in large wood: Implications for stream rehabilitation in degraded watersheds

Anthropogenic modification of forests has often decoupled streams from riparian ecosystems and altered natural wood recruitment processes. Extensive research has shown that large wood significantly impacts channel dynamics, especially in small and intermediate sized forested streams where wood pieces are similar in length to channel width, and many stream rehabilitation efforts now involve the addition of large wood to streams. The primary objective of this research is to investigate the relation between large wood and reach scale channel morphology and hydraulics using a physical model, in order to better inform stream rehabilitation programs and future modeling efforts. Four experiments, each comprising numerous five hour runs, were conducted using a Froude-scaled stream table with wood loads scaled to 0m3/m2, 0.011m3/m2, 0.016m3/m2, and 0.022m3/m2. The addition of large wood significantly decreased the reach-averaged velocity in all experiments, and was associated with decreased sediment transport and increased sediment storage in the reach. Increases in bed and water surface slope compensated for the loss of energy available to transport sediment, and enabled the system to reach a new steady state within the equivalent of 6 to 9years. Adding wood increased pool frequency, as well as the variability in cross-sectional depth, while causing the reach to undergo a transition from a plane-bed to a riffle-pool morphology. Retention of fine sediment increased the availability of fish spawning substrate, while increased water stage improved connectivity between the channel and the floodplain. The changes in habitat complexity were generally related to the wood load added to the reach, but were also dependent on the orientation and arrangement of the pieces. These results demonstrate that wood may exert a primary control on channel morphodynamics and the availability of aquatic habitat in intermediate sized streams, and suggest that the benefits from stream rehabilitation efforts are highly dependent on project scale. The relatively long time needed to realize habitat benefits demonstrates that long term monitoring of rehabilitation projects is necessary.

After-treatment of household wood-fired stove emissions: From catalyst formulation to full-scale system

The development of a suitable after-treatment system for the abatement of the pollutant emissions contained in the flue gases of wood fired stoves, is the object of this work. All steps from powder catalyst synthesis, to the deposition of the selected catalyst on lab-scale monoliths, and finally the implementation of all developed concepts in a full-scale monolith, to be mounted in the chimney of a commercial stove to experience real working conditions, were tackled.A series of La–Cr perovskite catalysts was developed to undertake this task, from which La0.9Na0.1CrO3 demonstrated to be the best compromise in terms of CO, HC and soot oxidation. The addition of 2% of Au enhanced the CO oxidation activity of the catalyst.The selected catalyst was then deposited on a lab-scale structured monolith (200cpsi) to assess the best catalyst loading. It emerged that, at a 10% oxygen concentration and a GHSV of 3500h−1, a 6% loading (referred to the monolith weight) of La0.9Na0.1CrO3+2%Au completely removed all CO and HC from the gaseous flow around 400°C. This is a remarkable result since most of the wood combustion cycle produces an exhaust gas stream above this temperature.Finally, a full-scale monolith was mounted on the chimney of a stove, and was exposed to several wood loading cycles and different wood stacking protocols. The catalyzed monolith, with a 10wt% catalyst loading, but a much lower cell density (50cpsi), was able to abate all gaseous emissions throughout the entire wood combustion cycle, even at its lowest temperatures (around 200°C). This was possible because, after some repeated wood loading cycles, the monolith heated up and stayed at suitable thermal levels (thanks to its inertia) viable for CO and HC oxidation, due to the exotermicity of these reactions. The soot emissions were also reduced by more than order of magnitude, thanks to the above described reason, and the high levels of SOF, which confer both reactivity towards combustion and sticking enhancement at the monolith surface.The developed catalyzed filter proved also to be very stable in terms of performances, even after a severe aging protocol of 160h.