Sediment transport: basics

Course of Hydrogeological risks in mountain area

Master of Science in Civil Engineering for Risk Mitigation (CERM)
Lecco Campus
Dr. Alessio Radice
Outline 2

• Examples (long and short time scales, real and lab experiments)

• Sediment properties

• Bed load: threshold and transport capacity

• Suspended load: threshold and transport capacity

• Total load
Outline 3

• Examples (long and short time scales, real and lab experiments)

• Sediment properties

• Bed load: threshold and transport capacity

• Suspended load: threshold and transport capacity

• Total load
 Examples 4

temporal scales:

hours / days years ages

engineering geomorphology
 Examples 5

temporal scales:

hours / days years ages

engineering geomorphology
 Examples 6

temporal scales:

hours / days years ages

engineering geomorphology
 Examples 7

Some reference
temporal scales:values:
Mean annualhours
water/ discharge
days = 17000 m3/s
years ages
Mean annual solid discharge = 2.7 m3/s

Annual volume in the Gulf of Mexico = 108 m3

engineering geomorphology
During floods: Qsolid,max = 20 m3/s
Examples 8
 Examples 9

Flooding  sediment deposition

 Examples 10

Fertile soil and delta formation

Examples 11
 Examples 12

Reservoir siltation
 Examples 13

river Honduras, after Hurricane Mitch

 Examples 14

Bank erosion
 Examples 15

river Adda
 Examples 16

river Orco, 2000

 Examples 17

Local bridge scour

Examples 18

Bed load
Examples 19
Examples 20

Suspended load (or, better, bed + suspended load)

Examples 21

Bedform creation
Examples 22

Bedform migration
Examples 23

Debris flow
Outline 24

• Examples (long and short time scales, real and lab experiments)

• Sediment properties

• Bed load: threshold and transport capacity

• Suspended load: threshold and transport capacity

• Total load
Sediment properties 25

• Density s; relative density s = s/ (s typically around 2.6)

• Porosity P0 = void volume/total volume

• Size: granulometric distribution and characteristic dimension ds

• Angle of repose

• Settling velocity w0
Sediment properties 26

1000

100

10
size range [mm]

0.1

0.01

0.001

0.0001
Clay Silt Sand Gravel Cobble Boulder
 Sediment properties 27

River Po, Italy

100%
90%
d 90 d 84
S  80%
d10 d16 70%
60%
50%
40%
S = 2.0 30%
20%
 = 1.7 10%
0%
sigma value higher than 1 tells us that, the sedment is not uniform
0.01 0.1 1 10 100
below 1.3 the sedmitent considered as uniform

grain size [mm]

Sediment properties 28
Sediment properties 29
 Sediment properties 30

Settling velocity: 2
1 2  d
 w0 C D s
stokes law states that, settling velocity of spherical particles is proportional to its radius squared.

A balance of the forces acting on the single 2 proportional to its radius

we assume soil particles are spherical particles. 4 squared
particle yields: the flow is laminar not turbulent.

4 g ds
w02  s  1 the particel in whcih the velocity is going to fall in still water.

3 CD
 d s3
g  s   
In addition, CD may be expressed 6
as:
CD is drag cofficient.
24
CD   1. 5
w0 d s

And the settling velocity can be

calculated.
Sediment properties 31

clay silt sand gravel cobble boulder

10

settling velocity [m/s] 1

0.1

0.01

0.001

0.0001

0.00001
0.0001 0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1000
particle size [mm]
Outline 32

• Examples (long and short time scales, real and lab experiments)

• Sediment properties

• Bed load: threshold and transport capacity

• Suspended load: threshold and transport capacity

• Total load
Bed load: threshold 33

Inception of bed load

General picture: generic grain under action of Drag, Lift and Gravity

Simplified view: spheres on horizontal bed

v D
b
a
P

G
Bed load: threshold 34

Inception of bed load L

Balance of moments around point P
v D
Db  L a G  a a
b
with P
1 d 2
D    v 2  CD  s
2 4
G
1 d s 2
L    v  CL 
2

2 4
d s 3
G   s     g
6

v2 4 b 
   CD   CL 
g  s  1 d s 3  a 
Bed load: threshold 35

Inception of bed load L

Velocity v in above equation is that
v D
Impacting the grain at an elevation z. b
a
But: P

v d z 
 f  , 
V*  ds ds  G

Therefore, the equilibrium equation written above may be rewritten as:

V *2 d 

 f  , seds, Re 
g  s  1 d s  ds 
Bed load: threshold 36

Inception of bed load L

Velocity v in above equation is that
v D
Impacting the grain at an elevation z. b
a
But: P

v d z 
 f  , 
V*  ds ds  G

Therefore, the equilibrium equation written above may be rewritten as:

V *2 d 

 f  , seds, Re  Shields number *
g  s  1 d s
ration of friction stress to quantities of that represent the ability of

 ds 
sedment particles to resist

DH
0 V*2 Sf
*    4
s ration of sedment density to water density  g s  1 d s g s  1 d s s  1 d s
 Bed load: threshold 37

Shields diagram

CRITICAL CONDITON FROM EXP.

o
*c c

0.1

FOR LARGE RAYNOLD

NUMBER THE TREND
BECOMES HORIZONTAL

shear re. number.

0.01 Re*
1.E-1 1.E+0 1.E+1 1.E+2 1.E+3 1.E+4
 Bed load: threshold 38

Incipient motion?
 Bed load: threshold 39

slope correction

 tan  s 
 c*   c*0 cos  1  
c*c/ *coc  cos  
1.00
IF THE SLOPE IS INCREASE THE CRITICAL
0.75 SHEILD IA LOW.

0.50 dc is critical diamter that is in incipent mothion

less stress is required to v=favoure the transport.

and the lower the critical value the larger the
critical diameter.

0.25 iin flood flow nothing is suspended in the equation

if we choose the higher treshould we hinder the
motion

0.00 CLOSER TO THE TRESHOULD THERE IS A VARIABILITY

NELSEON FORMULA IS INDEPENDENT TO THE
PARTICLE SIZE.
0.10 1.00 10.00 100.00

RIVER DISTANCE THE NIELSEN FORMULA , WE FIND EQUAL MOBILITY ,
 Bed load: threshold 40

Correction for small submergence (d/ds<6)

 d s 
* 
   1  0.67
*
Armanini e Scotton
c
c0
d 

 0.266
d 
τ  0.0851
*
c

 Suszka
 ds 

d/ds
 Bed load: transport capacity 41

Bed load

THE AMOUNT OF SENDMENT THAT IS TO BE TRANSPORTED DEPENDS ON EXCESS FRICTION

qs = solid discharge per unit width, m2/s

 = qs/[g(s-1)ds3]0.5, dimensionless

dm/dt = sqs, mass solid discharge, kg/s/m

In general: qs,  = f(*, *c)

 * 
f  * 
c 

f  *   c* 
...
 Bed load: transport capacity 42

Bed load

u(z) 
VELOCITY OF SEDMENT PARTICLE
Cs, vs PROPERTIES OF BED LOAD

qs s THICKNESS OF SEDMENT LAYER

 Bed load: transport capacity 43

Bed load

Equation of Van Rijn

u(z) 
qs = Cs vs s
Cs, vs
qs s
 Bed load: transport capacity 44

empirical formulas for bed load/1

 Bed load: transport capacity 45

empirical formulas for bed load/2

the surface of the bed is determined

by thr ordinary flow.
 Bed load: transport capacity 46

empirical formulas for bed load/2

 Bed load: transport capacity 47

formulas for bed load (for

high slopes), laboratory
data

measured

computed
 Bed load: transport capacity 48

formulas for bed load (for

high slopes), field data

qs


q s  2.5 sin   q  qc 
1.5

s
qc
 0.083s  1 sin  7 6
53
3
gd 40

q-qc
 Bed load: transport capacity 49

formulas for bed load,

computations for
rectangular channel

FORMULE DI TRASPORTO SOLIDO

0.04
0.035
0.03
qs [m 3/s m]

0.025 Einstein
0.02 Meyer-Peter
0.015 Nielsen
0.01
0.005
0
0.000 0.100 0.200 0.300 0.400 0.500 0.600 0.700
τ*
 Bed load: skin friction 50

Why do we talk about a «skin friction»?

Let us remember that there are several sources of roughness (sediments,

vegetation, bedforms, channel regularity, …)

It is considered that only the sediment-related part of the stress would yield
sediment transport

Computed by a skin Manning as

Outline 51

• Examples (long and short time scales, real and lab experiments)

• Sediment properties

• Bed load: threshold and transport capacity

• Suspended load: threshold and transport capacity

• Total load
 Suspended load: threshold 52

Suspended load

Occurs above the bed load layer

Effect of

convection and

advective diffusion
 Suspended load: threshold 53

Suspended load

Occurs above the bed load layer

Effect of

convection and

advective diffusion
 Suspended load: threshold 54

Suspended load

Occurs above the bed load layer

Effect of

convection and

advective diffusion
 Suspended load: threshold 55

Suspended load IS BETWEEN SHEAR VELOCITY AND SETTLING VELOCITY.

Occurs above the bed load layer

Effect of

convection and

advective diffusion

Threshold: V*/w0 larger than a critical value (0.2 – 2)

 Suspended load: transport capacity 56

Suspended load

Calculation of the suspended sediment transport rate

Definition:
 Suspended load: transport capacity 57

Suspended load

Calculation of the suspended sediment transport rate

Definition:

(comparison with Van Rijn’s formula for bed load, qs=Cs vs s)
 Suspended load: transport capacity 58

Suspended load

Calculation of the suspended sediment transport rate

Definition:

Calculation of the terms:

 Suspended load: transport capacity 59

Suspended load

Calculation of the suspended sediment transport rate

Definition:

Calculation of the terms: ???

 Suspended load: transport capacity 60

Suspended load WE USE TOTAL FRICTION, FOR BED LOAD WE USE SKIN FRICTION
TOTAL

Calculation of the suspended sediment transport rate

k s  26  n 
1
6

Definition:

Calculation of the terms: ???

 Bed and suspended load: skin friction 61

In summary, about conceptual treatment of shear velocity

1
d 906
• Bed load: skin friction only, since we concentrate near the bed nsed 
26
• Suspended load: total friction, since we need to account for the turbulent
structure of the whole stream
Outline 62

• Examples (long and short time scales, real and lab experiments)

• Sediment properties

• Bed load: threshold and transport capacity

• Suspended load: threshold and transport capacity

• Total load
 Total load 63

Total sediment transport rate

In principle:

qs(total) = qs(bed load) + qs(suspended load)

There are some formulas developed for prediction of the total load without
distinction: examples on textbook by Chanson, page 219.

Weaker on the point of view of conceptual separation of roughness (or shear

velocity)
 Total load 64

Total sediment transport rate

In principle:

qs(total) = qs(bed load) + qs(suspended load)

There are some formulas developed for prediction of the total load without
distinction: examples on textbook, page 219.
 Bed load: some simple computations 65

Consider a rectangular channel in uniform flow. Benchmark situation is:

B = 100 m; Q = 2000 m3/s; S0 = 0.002; n = 0.035 s/m1/3

 Compute bed shear stress and sediment transport capacity for d90 = 50 mm
and ds = 30 mm

Then, do some sensitivity analysis with reference to (one change every time):

• Increasing Q to 2500 m3/s

• Increasing S0 to 0.003

• Increasing B to 150 m

• Increasing n to 0.05 s/m1/3

• Increasing d90 to 70 mm

• Variable ds as 1, 5, 20, 40, 55 mm

 Bed load: some simple computations 66

So, let us have a closer look at the trends

Consider a rectangular channel in uniform flow

Computations:

1ST CHOISES FOR THIS PROCESS.

IS SKIN FRICTION IMPORTANT OR NO, IF YES WE CONSIDER THE SECOND COLUMN. IF NOT WE COMPUTE THE BED FRICTION USING THE TOTAL MASS.
WHICH IS THE TRESHOLD NUMBER OF SHIELDS NUMBERWE SHOULD PEAK THE MEAN VALUE.
WHICH TRANSPORT VALUE DO WE USE
SHILEDS NUMBER
 Bed load: some simple computations 67

First results:

MORE DISCHARGE , MORE VELOCIT, MORE FRICTION , MORE SEDMENT RANSPORT

increase ntotal

increase d90
increase S0
increase Q

increase B
HIGHER WIDTH RESULTS IN REDUCTION TO SEDMENT TRANSPORT.
base

Q (m3/s) 2000 2500 2000 2000 2000 2000

S0 0.002 0.002 0.003 0.002 0.002 0.002
B (m) 100 100 100 150 100 100
ntotal (s/m1/3) 0.035 0.035 0.035 0.035 0.05 0.035
d (m) 5.43 6.24 4.78 4.17 6.79 5.43
V (m/s) 3.68 4.01 4.18 3.19 2.95 3.68

d90 (mm) 50 50 50 50 50 70
1/3
nskin (s/m ) 0.023 0.023 0.023 0.023 0.023 0.025
 (Pa) 42.7 48.4 57.2 34.5 25.6 47.8

ds (mm) 30 30 30 30 30 30
* 0.091 0.103 0.121 0.073 0.054 0.102
*c 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047
*/*c 1.93 2.19 2.58 1.56 1.16 2.16
 0.073 0.106 0.162 0.034 0.005 0.102
qs (m2/s) 1.5E‐03 2.2E‐03 3.3E‐03 7.0E‐04 1.0E‐04 2.1E‐03
qs/qs_base 1.00 1.44 2.22 0.47 0.07 1.39
 Bed load: some simple computations 68

WHEN THE TRANSPORT BECOMES ENOGH ENTENSE, WHEN THE FLOW BECOMES WHEN THE SHELDS NUMBER BECOMES HIGH ENOGH. THE
Then, changing ds: SEDMENT TRANSPORT RATE BECOMES INDSENSITIVE TO THE PARTICLE SIZE. H
Equal mobility
FOR INCREASING SEDMENT SIZE THE VALUE OF QS IS VARIES.

for higher discharge.

increase ntotal

increase d90

ds = 20 mm

ds = 30 mm

ds = 40 mm

ds = 55 mm
increase S0
increase Q

increase B

ds = 1 mm

ds = 5 mm
base

Q (m3/s) 2000 2500 2000 2000 2000 2000 2000 2000 2000 2000 2000 2000
S0 0.002 0.002 0.003 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002
B (m) 100 100 100 150 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100
ntotal (s/m1/3) 0.035 0.035 0.035 0.035 0.05 0.035 0.035 0.035 0.035 0.035 0.035 0.035
d (m) 5.43 Influence of d
6.24 4.78 s 4.17 6.79 5.43 5.43 5.43 5.43 5.43 5.43 5.43
V (m/s) 100 3.68 4.01 4.18 3.19 2.95 3.68 3.68 3.68 3.68 3.68 3.68 3.68

10
d90 (mm) 50 50 50 50 50 70 50 50 50 50 50 50
1)
n  (s/m1/3 0.023 0.023 0.023 0.023 0.023 0.025 0.023 0.023 0.023 0.023 0.023 0.023
skin
 (Pa) 0.1 42.7 48.4 57.2 34.5 25.6 47.8 42.7 42.7 42.7 42.7 42.7 42.7
0.01
ds (mm) 30 30 30 30 30 30 1 5 20 30 40 55
0.001
* 0.091 0.103 0.121 0.073 0.054 0.102 2.723 0.545 0.136 0.091 0.068 0.050
*c 0.0001 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047 0.047
*/*
0.00001
c 1.93 2.19 2.58 1.56 1.16 2.16 57.94 11.59 2.90 1.93 1.45 1.05
 1 0.073 0.106 10
0.162 0.034 0.005 100
0.102 35.020 2.808 0.213 0.073 0.024 0.001
qs (m2/s) 1.5E‐03
tau* 2.2E‐03 3.3E‐03
tau/tau*c 7.0E‐04
PHI 1.0E‐04
qs 2.1E‐03 4.4E‐03 3.9E‐03 2.4E‐03 1.5E‐03 7.8E‐04 5.1E‐05
qs/qs_base 1.00 1.44 2.22 0.47 0.07 1.39 2.91 2.61 1.58 1.00 0.51 0.03