Understanding watershed suspended sediment transport

2008 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 243-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peng Gao
Keyword(s):  
Sediment Transport ◽  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Sediment Load ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Suspended Sediment Transport ◽  
Suspended Sediment Load ◽  
Watershed Scale ◽  
Rating Curve ◽  
Sediment Rating Curve ◽  
Sediment Monitoring

Suspended sediment at the watershed scale has played a critical role in sediment pollution, water-quality degradation, and the impairment of riparian ecosystems, and thus has been widely studied in many disciplines. This paper synthesizes a variety of methods adopted in suspended sediment monitoring, estimation and modelling for understanding sediment transport processes and determining the suspended sediment load. Methods for sediment monitoring are described in terms of direct and indirect approaches. Estimation of suspended sediment load is commonly achieved by establishing a sediment rating curve. Different approaches toward the establishment of a sediment rating curve are examined thoroughly. Techniques of sediment modelling are summarized via depiction of various hydrological and sediment models at the watershed scale. The paper ends with the discussion of future developments in suspended sediment studies at the watershed scale.

Geomorphological dynamics of subhumid mountain badland areas — weathering, hydrological and suspended sediment transport processes: A case study in the Araguás catchment (Central Pyrenees) and implications for altered hydroclimatic regimes

2010 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Nadal-Romero ◽  
D. Regüés
Keyword(s):  
Sediment Transport ◽  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Flood Frequency ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Suspended Sediment Transport ◽  
Rainfall Erosivity ◽  
Maximum Rainfall ◽  
Erosion Processes ◽  
Central Pyrenees

This study investigates the geomorphological dynamics of badland areas in the Araguás catchment (0.45 km2) in the Central Pyrenees. The genesis and development of badlands in the Central Pyrenees is favoured by the presence of Eocene marls and a markedly seasonal climate. The Araguás catchment has been monitored since 2004. Analysis of weathering processes and regolith dynamics showed that alternating freeze-thaw and wetting-drying cycles are the main causes of regolith development and weathering, and effectiveness and intensity of these processes is maximum in winter and summer. Evolution of the badland surfaces is related to regolith moisture level and temperature, closely associated with the season and slope exposure, which cause cyclical variations in regolith physical conditions. The most important effect associated with regolith dynamics is the temporal delay between maximum rainfall erosivity and variation in maximum surface runoff generation, reflected in seasonal differences in sediment transport. The dynamics of weathering and erosion processes affecting badland areas are the principal factors controlling geomorphological development, and the extreme hydrological and sedimentological responses of badlands are the main effects of such morphologies. From a hydrological point of view, badlands increase water production, and flood frequency relative to neighbouring areas; from a sedimentological point of view, suspended sediment transport from badland areas can reach amounts two or three orders of magnitude higher than other nearby environments. Given these results, possible responses of badland dynamics to altered hydroclimatic regime are briefly discussed.

Simulation of Suspended Sediment Transport in a Tidal River

1992 ◽  
Vol 26 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 1421-1430 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Kusuda ◽  
T. Futawatari
Keyword(s):  
Sediment Transport ◽  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Transport Model ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Tidal River ◽  
Numerical Dispersion ◽  
Suspended Sediment Transport ◽  
Fluid Mud ◽  
River Modeling

Based on the results of field observation in a tidal river, modeling of sediment transport processes is performed and the suspended sediment transport over a long term is simulated with a newly developed procedure, in which the Lagrangian reference frame is used in order to reduce numerical dispersion. The suspended sediment transport in the tidal river is calculated with erosion and deposition of sediments, consolidation of fluid mud to bed mud, and transport by turbidity current. Sediment transport processes concerned with formation and maintenance of turbidity maxima are sufficiently simulated for a fortnightly cycle with the Lagrangian sediment transport model (LSTM).

scholarly journals Geomorphological factors influencing hysteresis patterns between suspended load and flow rate in Alpine rivers

2018 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
pp. 04004
Author(s):  
Clément Misset ◽  
Alain Recking ◽  
Cédric Legout ◽  
Alain Poirel ◽  
Marine Cazilhac
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Sediment Load ◽  
Hysteresis Loops ◽  
Total Solid ◽  
Suspended Load ◽  
Suspended Sediment Transport ◽  
Suspended Sediment Load ◽  
Fine Sediments ◽  
Erosion Processes

Suspended sediment load represents a large part of total solid fluxes transported in most rivers. Thus, for hydropower plan management or for environmental issues, it is crucial to understand how these sediments are produced, stored and transported in a given catchment. Hysteresis loops in discharge-suspended load signals are commonly used to assess sediment sources and production processes but most of the time the shape of this relation is analyzed qualitatively on short time series or for few events. In this study we analyzed quantitatively 10 long time series of suspended sediment load of various alpine catchments. This method allows us to compare events and to assess to which extent fine sediments originate from hillslope erosion processes or from river bed remobilization. We found that watersheds with braided bed morphology are dominated by clockwise loops while those with narrower bed as step-pool morphology are dominated by counter-clockwise hysteresis or have no general trend. These results suggest that storage and remobilization of fine sediments within the bed could play a major role in suspended sediment transport in Alpine streams, especially in large braided rivers.

scholarly journals Sub-Bankfull Flow Frequency versus Magnitude of Flood Events in Outlining Effective Discharges. Case Study: Trotuș River (Romania)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Dumitriu
Keyword(s):  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Sediment Load ◽  
Temporal Variations ◽  
Data Series ◽  
Suspended Sediment Transport ◽  
Suspended Sediment Load ◽  
Flood Events ◽  
Effective Discharge ◽  
Bankfull Discharge

Effective discharge, which represents the flow, or range of flows, that transport the most sediment over long term, was determined based on the mean daily flow discharge and mean daily suspended sediment discharge recorded between 1994 and 2014 at four gauging stations along the Trotuș River. This study proposes an efficient method for the estimation of effective discharge based on observed values of the suspended sediment load. By employing this method the suspended sediment load is no longer either under- or overestimated as in the cases when the assessment is based on sediment rating curves. The assessment on effective discharge was performed at two distinct levels: for the entire data series during the investigated time spans and, subsequently, for flows less than the bankfull discharge. The effectiveness curves of the suspended sediment transport characteristics revealed highly multimodal characteristics with many peaks, indicating ample ranges for the effective discharges. The main effective discharge corresponded to large flood events, which are typical for the upper end of the discharge range, whereas the secondary effective discharges corresponded to sub-bankfull flows, which are more frequent. The changes that occurred in the channel bed are reflected by the temporal variations in the effective discharge.

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