Impact of Vertical Hydraulic Gradient on Rill Erodibility and Critical Shear Stress

2010 ◽  
Vol 74 (6) ◽  
pp. 1914-1921 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sayiro K. Nouwakpo ◽  
Chi-hua Huang ◽  
Laura Bowling ◽  
Phillip Owens
2015 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaromír Říha ◽  
Jan Jandora

The hole erosion test (HET) is used in the study of soil erosion in the case of what is known as “piping” when concentrated leaks occur. The HET enables the determination of soil erosion characteristics such as the critical shear stress along the pre-formed hole (pipe) and the coefficient of soil erosion. Normally, in the HET, the hydraulic gradient is determined from the difference between the piezometric heads measured at the inflow and outflow chambers (upstream and downstream of the soil specimen). Hydraulic analysis shows that such measurements ignore losses at the entrance and exit of the hole, causing the overestimation of the hydraulic gradient along the length of the hole, and thus the calculated shear stress. In this technical note, the results of preliminary analysis using the Bernoulli principle and of numerical study of the pressure conditions in the HET apparatus are shown. The turbulent flow in the HET apparatus was calculated using ANSYS commercial CFD (computational fluid dynamics) software. The analysis was performed for various hole entrance shapes. The conclusion of this note details the differences between traditionally determined hydraulic gradients and those numerically derived along the length of a hole.


2001 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 796-808 ◽  
Author(s):  
Celestina Adu-Wusu ◽  
Ernest K Yanful ◽  
Mohammed H Mian

Flooding of tailings under shallow water covers is an effective method of decommissioning potentially acid generating mine tailings. The low diffusivity and solubility of oxygen in water are attractive features of this technology. However, wind-induced waves can resuspend flooded tailings and expose them to greater contact with dissolved oxygen, thereby increasing the potential for oxidation and acid generation. Field measurements of wind activity and waves under different water cover depths and associated resuspension for a mine tailings pond in Ontario are presented and discussed. The results show that wind speeds greater than 8 m/s above water covers that are shallower than 1 m create waves of height greater than 10 cm and bottom shear stresses greater than 0.2 Pa. Under these conditions the critical shear stress of the mine tailings was exceeded, resulting in erosion and subsequent resuspension.Key words: mine tailings, water cover, wind-induced waves, resuspension, wind speed, shear stress.


Author(s):  
Shinya NAKASHITA ◽  
Kyeongmin KIM ◽  
Yuki IMAMURA ◽  
Tadashi HIBINO

2021 ◽  
Vol 64 (2) ◽  
pp. 587-600
Author(s):  
Xiaojing Gao ◽  
Qiusheng Wang ◽  
Chongbang Xu ◽  
Ruilin Su

HighlightsErosion tests were performed to study the critical shear stress of cohesive soils and soil mixtures.Linear relationships were observed between critical shear stress and cohesion of cohesive soils.Mixture critical shear stress relates to noncohesive particle size and cohesive soil erodibility.A formula for calculating the critical shear stress of soil mixtures is proposed and verified.Abstract. The incipient motion of soil is an important engineering property that impacts reservoir sedimentation, stable channel design, river bed degradation, and dam breach. Due to numerous factors influencing the erodibility parameters, the study of critical shear stress (tc) of cohesive soils and soil mixtures is still far from mature. In this study, erosion experiments were conducted to investigate the influence of soil properties on the tc of remolded cohesive soils and cohesive and noncohesive soil mixtures with mud contents varying from 0% to 100% using an erosion function apparatus (EFA). For cohesive soils, direct linear relationships were observed between tc and cohesion (c). The critical shear stress for soil mixture (tcm) erosion increased monotonically with an increase in mud content (pm). The median diameter of noncohesive soil (Ds), the void ratio (e), and the organic content of cohesive soil also influenced tcm. A formula for calculating tcm considering the effect of pm and the tc of noncohesive soil and pure mud was developed. The proposed formula was validated using experimental data from the present and previous research, and it can reproduce the variation of tcm for reconstituted soil mixtures. To use the proposed formula to predict the tcm for artificial engineering problems, experimental erosion tests should be performed. Future research should further test the proposed formula based on additional experimental data. Keywords: Cohesive and noncohesive soil mixture, Critical shear stress, Erodibility, Mud content, Soil property.


2013 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 1187-1208 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Stark ◽  
A. E. Hay ◽  
R. Cheel ◽  
C. B. Lake

Abstract. The impact of particle shape on the friction angle, and the resulting critical shear stress on sediment dynamics, is still poorly understood. In areas characterized by sediments of specific shape, particularly non-rounded particles, this can lead to large departures from the expected sediment dynamics. The steep slope (1:10) of the mixed sand-gravel beach at Advocate Harbour was found stable in large-scale morphology over decades, despite a high tidal range of ten meters or more, and strong shorebreak action during storms. The Advocate sand (d < 2 mm) was found to have an elliptic, plate-like shape. Exceptionally high friction angles of the material were determined using direct shear, ranging from φ &amp;approx; 41–46°, while the round to angular gravel was characterized by φ = 33°. The addition of 25% of the elliptic sand to the gravel led to an immediate increase of the friction angle to φ = 38°. Furthermore, re-organization of the particles occurred during shearing, being characterized by a short phase of settling and compaction, followed by a pronounced strong dilatory behavior and an accompanying strong increase of shear stress. Long-term shearing (24 h) using a ring shear apparatus led to destruction of the particles without re-compaction. Finally, submerged particle mobilization was simulated using a tilted tray in a tank. Despite a smooth tray surface, particle motion was not initiated until reaching tray tilt angles of 31° and more, being 7° steeper than the latest gravel motion initiation. In conclusion, geotechnical laboratory experiments quantified the important impact of the elliptic, plate-like shape of Advocate Beach sand on the friction angles of both pure sand and sand-gravel mixtures. The resulting effect on initiation of particle motion was confirmed in tilting tray experiments. This makes it a vivid example of how particle shape can contribute to the stabilization of the beachface.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie F. López-Soto ◽  
Bryant A. Robbins

The critical shear stress and erodibility of soil are fundamental parameters for modeling embankment breaching. Unfortunately, very few studies have examined the erosion characteristics of soils consisting predominantly of particles larger than sand. This report presents results of an experimental study in which the erosion characteristics of gravelly soils were measured. A flume apparatus was developed in which 0.45-m-square samples were extruded into confined flow. A mechanical laser system allowed the measurement of scour in real time, resulting in a continuous and automated erosion test. The critical shear stress of a uniform gravel was found to match the expected values based on the Shields diagram, while tests that were composed largely of gravel but contained other soils, such as sand, silt, and clay, varied significantly with the critical shear stress and erodibility, depending highly on the characteristics of the finer soils.


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