Author(s): Hasan Eslami; Alessio Radice
Linked Author(s): Alessio Radice
Keywords: Sediment overloading; Channel aggradation; Bed definition; Propagation celerity
Abstract: When a river channel is fed with a quantity of sediment that exceeds its transport capacity, aggradation occurs. In this study, we consider the swift aggradation process that, during an intense event, may determine a high increase of the bed elevation. Under a supercritical flow, the channel reacts to overloading by increasing its slope, to make the sediment transport capacity equal to the sediment feeding rate. A dispersive aggradation wave moves along the channel as it tends to a new morphodynamic equilibrium. Knowledge of the temporal scales of this propagation is important for hazard assessment. We present the results of laboratory experiments conducted to analyze the process phenomenology and quantitatively determine the aggradation wave celerity.
Year: 2025