A Field-Based Estimation of the Variability of Particle Entrainment in Coarse-Bed Rivers
[EN] The determination of critical shear stresses is fundamental to bedload sediment transport prediction in gravel-bed rivers. Due to the heterogeneous shape and arrangement of the individual clasts in a riverbed, critical shear stresses typically show a large spatial variability, which is not adeq...
| Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | article |
| Publication Date: | 2024 |
| Country: | España |
| Institution: | Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) |
| Repository: | DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:digital.csic.es:10261/370207 |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10261/370207 https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/85206199428 |
| Access Level: | Open access |
| Keyword: | Shear stress Bed mobility Bedload Critical shields number Gravel-bed rivers Sediment entrainment |
| Summary: | [EN] The determination of critical shear stresses is fundamental to bedload sediment transport prediction in gravel-bed rivers. Due to the heterogeneous shape and arrangement of the individual clasts in a riverbed, critical shear stresses typically show a large spatial variability, which is not adequately captured by the reach-averaged description followed in common studies. In this regard, there is a general paucity of field data on this spatial variability of the critical shear stress, largely due to the lack of a standardized measurement method. In an attempt to fill this gap, we propose a field-based workflow to estimate the frequency distribution of dimensionless critical shear stress (also named critical Shields number), which is based on the measurement of a series of variables related to the position, orientation and resistance to motion of individual clasts in a gravel-bed river, combined with a probabilistic approximation to drag and lift coefficients. Following this workflow, the patch-scale variability of particle incipient-motion conditions was determined in a gravel bar of the Upper Cinca River, Spain. The results are consistent with what is known about sediment entrainment in gravel-bed rivers. We consider this method to have great potential to advance our understanding of particle initiation of motion in gravel-bed rivers as it provides valuable systematic field information. |
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