Flow–sediment relationship as functions of spatial and temporal scales in hilly areas of the Chinese Loess Plateau

Zheng, Minghui; Yang, Jialong; Qi, Deli; Sun, Liying; Qiangguo, Cai

doi:10.1016/j.catena.2012.05.013

Cited by 46 publications

(68 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…However, research has increasingly highlighted the stochastic and variable nature of each stage of this basic process (Phillips, 2003). In fact, it is this complexity in the field-catchment-river sediment transfer system that makes estimation of the provenance, transport and deposition of sediment in rivers so challenging (Gao, 2008;Poulenard et al, 2009;Rickson, 2014;Sun et al, 2015;Zhang et al, 2013;Zheng et al, 2012). Currently, we are unable to accurately predict SS concentrations in rivers over multiple timescales because we lack comprehensive understanding of how different drivers of SS transport interact over space and time.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Suspended sediment transport dynamics in rivers: Multi-scale drivers of temporal variation

Vercruysse

Grabowski

Rickson

2017

Earth-Science Reviews

342

181

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Suspended sediment is a natural part of river systems and plays an essential role in structuring the landscape, creating ecological habitats and transporting nutrients. It is also a common management problem, where alterations to sediment quantity and quality negatively impact ecological communities, increase flood hazard and shorten the lifespan of infrastructure. To address these challenges and develop appropriate sustainable management strategies, we need a thorough understanding of sediment sources, pathways and transport dynamics and the drivers that underlie spatial and temporal variability in suspended sediment transport in rivers. However, research to date has not sufficiently addressed the temporal complexity of sediment transport processes, which is limiting our ability to disentangle the hydro-meteorological, catchment, channel and anthropogenic drivers of suspended sediment transport in rivers. This review critically evaluates previously published work on suspended sediment dynamics to demonstrate how the interpretation of sediment sources and pathways is influenced by the temporal scale and methodology of the study. To do this, the review (i) summarizes the main drivers of temporal variation in suspended sediment transport in rivers; (ii) critically reviews the common empirical approaches used to analyze and quantify sediment sources and loads, and their capacity to account for temporal variations; (iii) applies these findings to recent case studies to illustrate how method and timescale affect the interpretation of suspended sediment transport dynamics; and finally (iv) synthesizes the findings of the review into a set of guidelines for a multi-timescale approach to sediment regime characterization. By recognizing a priori that study design and temporal scale have an impact on the interpretation of SS dynamics and employing methods that address these issues, future research will be better able to identify the drivers of suspended sediment transport in rivers, improve sediment transport modelling, and propose effective, sustainable solutions to sediment management problems.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Suspended sediment transport dynamics in rivers: Multi-scale drivers of temporal variation

Vercruysse

Grabowski

Rickson

2017

Earth-Science Reviews

342

181

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…The fall velocity of sediment grains in hyper-concentrated flows is reduced by one (Pierson 2005) even two or three (Chien and Wan 1999) orders of magnitude relative to that in clear water. The calculation by Chien and Wan (1999) indicates that inclusion of additional sediment particles would not burden flows any more when sediment concentration exceeds 400 kg m -3 , a value much smaller than the mean sediment concentration of single events in the Chabagou watershed (680-800 kg m -3 ; see Table 4 in Zheng et al (2012)). …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The procedures are essentially identical to the international procedures (Xu and Yan 2005). See Zheng et al (2012) and Zheng et al (2013) for details of the measurement procedures.…”

Section: Study Area and Data Sourcementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Observations at 13 gauging stations (Table 1) and 5 runoff experimental plots Table 1. The Plot numbers in (c) correspond to those given in Table 2 in Zheng et al (2012). Plot length was presented in (c).…”

Section: Study Area and Data Sourcementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The number of recorded events ranged from 36 to 58 over the monitoring period 1961-1969. Detailed information is available in Table 2 of Zheng et al (2012). Whether land use or topography of these plots were typical of the loss area of the Wudinghe basin.…”

Section: Study Area and Data Sourcementioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Sediment delivery across multiple spatio-temporal scales in an agriculture watershed of the Chinese Loess Plateau

Zheng

et al. 2015

J. Mt. Sci.

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Sediment concentrations in run‐off varying with spatial scale in an agricultural subwatershed of the Chinese Loess Plateau

Zheng

2015

Hydrological Processes

Self Cite

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Abstract:Information is scarce on the spatial-scale effect on sediment concentrations in run-off. This study addressed this issue within an agricultural subwatershed of the Chinese Loess Plateau, using data observed at a hilltop plot, three nested hillslope plots, two entire-slope plots (a combination of hillslope and valley side slope) and the subwatershed outlet. Dominated by the splash and sheet erosions, the hilltop plot has a minimum C ae (mean sediment concentration for all recorded events) of 45 kg m À3 . Unexpectedly, the high sediment concentrations at the hilltop do not occur at high rainfall intensities or large run-off events because of the protection of surface soils by relatively thick sheet flows. Because of the emergence of rills, C ae is as high as 310 kg m À3 even on the most upper hillslope. Downslope, both C ae and ESC (extreme large values of recorded sediment concentrations) increase; such a slope length effect attenuates with increasing slope length and event magnitude as a result of insufficient sediment availability associated with rill development. Active mass wastings ensure sufficient sediment supply and thus a spatially invariant C ae (approximately 700 kg m À3 ) and ESC (approximately 1000 kg m À3 ) at the scale of the entire slope and subwatershed. Detailed examination shows that most small events experience a decrease in sediment concentrations when moving from the entire slope to the subwatershed, indicating that the spatially invariant sediment concentration is valid only for large run-off events. This study highlights the control of the spatial scale, which determines the dominant erosional process, on erosional regime.

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Flow–sediment relationship as functions of spatial and temporal scales in hilly areas of the Chinese Loess Plateau

Cited by 46 publications

References 31 publications

Suspended sediment transport dynamics in rivers: Multi-scale drivers of temporal variation

Suspended sediment transport dynamics in rivers: Multi-scale drivers of temporal variation

Sediment delivery across multiple spatio-temporal scales in an agriculture watershed of the Chinese Loess Plateau

Sediment concentrations in run‐off varying with spatial scale in an agricultural subwatershed of the Chinese Loess Plateau

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