Sediment Transport

(CEng 7063)

Berhane Grum (PhD)

EiT-M, School of Civil Engineering, WREEC
March 2020
 Chapter 2
Sediment transport mechanism, bed forms
and roughness
Contents:
▪ Transport mechanisms
▪ Bed forms
▪ Effective bed roughness and shear stress
▪ Velocity distribution in alluvial streams
Introduction
▪ For turbulent flow over a rigid bed a description of the flow
structure could be given only by empirical methods.
▪ Description of particle motion under the action of the flow is also
largely empirical so that it is not difficult to understand why there is
only a limited theoretical basis for the relation between flow and
sediment transport.
▪ Most of the existing knowledge is obtained from experiments and
general physical arguments.
▪ At greater values of the bed-shear stress sediment transport will
increase and deformation of the bed will occur.
▪ As the deformation is also time-dependent and nature is always
unsteady, an equilibrium situation will be hardly found in practice.
Sediment transport mechanism
▪ According to the mechanism of transport two major modes may be
distinguished:
Bed load
▪ Movement of particles in contact with the bed by rolling, sliding and
jumping.
Suspended load
▪ Movement of particles in the flow.
▪ The settling tendency of the particle is continuously compensated by
the diffusive action of the turbulent flow field.
▪ A sharp distinction is not possible for bed and suspended load but a
general criterion for the beginning of suspended load is a ration of
shear velocity and fall velocity of u* /ws = 2.
Sediment transport mechanism
▪ Before suspension sometimes saltation occurs.
▪ Saltation is the mode where particles bounce one position to another in the air.
▪ The maximum particle elevation of a particle moving in water is in the order of 2-3
times the diameter so that the mode of transport can be considered as bed load.

Figure: Mechanisms of sediment transport

Sediment transport mechanism
▪ According to the origin of the transported material sediment
transport is classified into bed-material and wash load.
Bed-material transport
▪ This transport has its origin in the bed, which means that the
transport is determined by the bed and flow conditions (can consist
of bed load and suspended load).
Wash load
▪ Transport of particles not or in small quantities in the bed.
▪ The material is supplied by external sources (erosion) and no direct
relationship with the local conditions exist (can only be transported
as suspended load, generally fine material <50 µm)
▪ Wash load is not important for changes in the bed of a river but only
for sedimentation in reservoirs etc.
Bed forms
▪ The interaction of flow and sediment transport often creates bed
forms.
▪ These bed forms in turn can interact with the flow to modify the
rate of sediment transport.
▪ Small and large sediment features covering the bed are known as
bed forms.
▪ Brush et al. (1996) defined bed forms as “any deviations, from a flat
bed, that are readily detectable by eye or higher than the largest
sediment size present in the parent bed material.”
▪ Other terms have been used by scientists: sand waves (Yalin, 1972),
bed irregularities (Garde and Ranga Raju, 1977) and bed
configurations (Simons and Sentürk, 1992).
Bed forms
▪ The bed forms in channels hold a significant role in the study of
sediment transport:
✓ Bed forms determine the roughness of a stream hence
influencing the near-bed velocity profile and the transport of
suspended sediment.
✓ The presence of bed forms influence the sediment mixing over
the flow depth.
✓ Navigation is limited by the maximum bed level and depends
therefore on the height of the bed deformation.
Bed forms
Classification of bed forms
▪ The development of bed forms has been studied extensively from the results of
flume experiments.
▪ Bed forms are defined and classified on the basis of flow conditions and
sediment properties (e.g. Allen, 1968; Simon & Richardson, 1966).
▪ The sketches of bed forms observed during the flume experiment are shown
below.

▪ The most widely used classification for unidirectional flow bed forms is based on
the flow regime under which the bed forms develop.
Bed forms
Classification of bed forms
Flow regime Bed form Characteristics
Lower flow ✓ Lower plane bed F < 0.84-1.0*
regime ✓ Ripples • Low rate of sediment transport,
✓ Dunes dominated by contact load.
• Bed forms out-of-phase with the
water surface
Upper flow ✓ Upper plane bed F > 0.84 - 1.0*
regime ✓ Anti-dunes • High rates of sediment transport,
✓ Chutes and pools • Bed forms in-phase with the water
surface
* Simons and Richardson (1961) set F < 1.0 for lower flow regime and F > 1.0 for upper
flow regime. However, subsequent work indicated that in-phase waves began to develop
over the range 0.84 < F < 1.0. Because in-phase waves were particularly characteristic of
the upper flow regime the limiting value of F has been adjusted accordingly here.
Bed forms
Classification of bed forms

Figure: Classification of bed forms after Simon and Richardson (1966).

Bed forms
Lower flat/plane bed
▪ At values of the bed shear just above the critical, sediment transport
without deformation of the bed is possible.
▪ Grains are transported by rolling and bouncing.
▪ The lower plane bed will only form on beds of sediment coarser than
0.7 mm and is characterized by its planar surface and relatively low
rates of sediment transport (limited to contact load).
▪ The limitation of lower plane beds to relatively coarse sand indicates
that this bed configuration will only form under dynamically rough
turbulent boundaries.
Bed forms
Ripples
▪ For sediment sizes < 2 mm and an increasing bed shear stress small regular
waves appear with wave lenghts in the order of 5-10 cm and heights in the
order of cm.
▪ Ripples are formed as soon as the current velocity is able to move the sand
grains.
▪ According to Van Rijn (1993), ripples can be divided into mini-ripples and
mega-ripples.
▪ The length of mini-ripples is much smaller than the water depth, while
the length of mega-ripples is about half of the flow depth. The
maximum slope of ripples (ripple height divided by ripple length) is about
0.2.
Bed forms
Dunes
▪ For all sediment sizes and increasing shear stress dunes are developed.
Dunes are more two-dimensional than ripples and have much greater
wavelengths and heights.
▪ At smaller shear stresses, several ripples are sometimes superposed on the
upstream face of the dunes
▪ The longitudinal profile of a dune resembles a triangle with gentle upstream
surface and lee side which is equal to the angle of repose.
▪ The geometry of dunes is much larger than ripples and depends on the flow
depth and bed shear stress. The maximum height and length of dunes is
respectively about 0.4 times and between 6 and 7 times the flow depth.

Dunes with ripples superposed Typical dunes

Bed forms
Upper flat/plane bed
▪ With increasing flow strength dunes become much longer and lower
and their lee slopes undergo a reduction in angle.
▪ Such dunes are commonly termed “washed-out” dunes because the
strong current seems to wash out the dune form.
▪ The heights of such dunes become progressively smaller and their
lengths become longer as the flow strength increases and they may
form very subtle bed forms.
▪ They appear to form a very gradual transition with the next bed form
with increasing flow strength: the upper flat/plane bed.
Bed forms
Anti-dunes
▪ A further increase in velocity and Froude numbers around 1.0 causes
the water surface to become unstable.
▪ Interaction of surface waves and the bed (sediment transport is
maximum under the troughs of the waves) gives a bed form called
anti-dunes.
▪ They can travel upstream and occur in trains of four to twenty. Anti-
dunes and surface waves grow in amplitude and often break in a way
similar to ocean waves.
Bed forms
Chute and pools
▪ When the bed slope is very steep and at higher flow at still higher
velocities chute and pools are formed.
▪ Trains of hydraulic jumps, resulting from strong feedback between a
flow and its bed, produce a range of bed forms depending on the
sediment characteristics and the flow.
▪ Where developed on sand with bed equilibrium or net aggradation
they have been termed chute-and-pool bed forms.
▪ These bed forms have usually erosive features.
Bed forms
Bed form classification criteria
▪ Several studies on the classification of bed forms on the basis of
flow conditions and sediment properties have been conducted.
▪ Dimensional and non-dimensional parameters of bed forms are
plotted from primarily flume data supported with some observations
in natural channels.

▪ Many of the results are based on empirical correlations and

theoretical models are not very convincing.
▪ Some empirical approaches of bed form classification are presented
below.
Bed forms
Liu (1957)
▪ Liu (1957) used a bed form classification based on the the ratio of
bed shear velocity (u* ) and particle fall velocity (ω ) and. The
grain shear Reynolds number (Re* = u*d50 /ν ) was proposed in
which d50 is median grain size (m) and ν is kinematic viscosity
(m2/s).
▪ To understand the beginning of ripple formation, an experiment was
conducted in a flume with 12.2 m length, 0.3 m width and 0.6 m depth.
▪ Flow depths and bed shear velocities up to 0.12 m and 0.03 m/s
respectively were recorded.
▪ According to Simons and Sentürk (1992), the bed form classification
proposed by Liu (1957) is not able to predict bed forms in field
conditions.
Bed forms
Liu (1957)

Figure: Classification of bed forms after Liu (1957)

Bed forms
Simons and Richardson (1966)
▪ A classification on the basis of the medium grain size (d50) and
stream power (w = τbU ) was proposed in which τb is the bed shear
stress and U is the depth integrated velocity.
▪ The data were collected from a flume with 45.7 m length, 2.4 m
width and 0.6 m depth.
▪ Quartz sands with median diameter between 0.19 mm and 0.93 mm
were used in the experiments.
▪ The stream power is in N/s.m and the median grain size is in mm.
▪ This approach was applied successfully for shallow streams (Julien,
1995), however, it fails to predict dunes in the large rivers with flow
depths about 15 m.
Bed forms
Simons and Richardson (1966)

Figure: Classification of bed forms after Simons and Richardson (1966)

Bed forms
Athaullah (1968)
▪ Athaullah (1968) studied several dimensionless parameters which
are associated with bed form types such as hydraulic radius, slope of
energy grade line, diameter of bed material, Froude number, shear
velocity, fall velocity, Reynolds number and kinematic viscosity.
▪ Some plots of these parameters showed considerable scatter, and the
best fit was obtained by relating the Froude number (Fr) with the
relative roughness (R / d50).
▪ The relative roughness is related to the stream turbulence due to bed
forms.
▪ According to Simons and Sentürk (1992), this approach cannot
distinguish bed forms in natural systems.
Bed forms
Athaullah (1968)

Figure: Classification of bed forms after Athaullah (1968).

Bed forms
Van Rijn (1993)
▪ Van Rijn (1993) classified bed forms on the basis of particle size
and transport regime.
▪ The particle size is represented by the dimensional particle
parameter (D* ) defined as:
1/3
𝜌𝑠 − 𝜌 − 1 𝑔
𝐷∗ = 𝑑50
𝜗2

▪ where d50 is the median grain size (m), ρs is the sediment density
(kg/m3), ρ is the water density (kg/m3), g is the acceleration due to
gravity and ν is the kinematic viscosity (m2/s).
Bed forms
Van Rijn (1993)
▪ The transport regime is measured by a transport stage which is the
dimensionless parameter of the shear stress (T ) defined as
follows:

𝜏𝑏′ −𝜏𝑏,𝑐
𝑇=
𝜏𝑏,𝑐

▪ where τ’b is the bed shear stress (N/m2) due to the grains and τb,c is
critical bed shear stress (N/m2).
▪ It was developed from large number of flume and field data, hence
several zones of bed forms are identified.
▪ Unlike other classifications, Van Rijn (1993) distinguished ripples
into mini-ripples and mega-ripples.
Bed forms
Van Rijn (1993)

Figure: Classification of bed forms after Van Rijn (1993).

Bed roughness
▪ The bed roughness ks is also called the equivalent Nikurase
grain roughness, because it was originally introduced by
Nikurase in his pipe flow experiments, where grains are
glued to the smooth wall of the pipes.
▪ All bed forms have their own specific roughness
▪ For a flat or plane without transport it can be assumed that
the roughness is in the order of the grain size (for example
d50 or d65).
Bed roughness
▪ A flat or plane bed with sediment transport can have a friction factor
slightly different from that of a flat bed without transport
▪ For flows over ripples and dunes the total resistance consists of two
parts: the roughness of the grains and the form drag of the bed
forms
▪ The roughness of a dune bed is much greater than that of a flat bed
and the corresponding friction factor is also much larger
▪ Dunes generally give the maximum roughness of a flow
▪ If the waves break however, the friction factor will be increased due
to the energy dissipation in wave breaking.
▪ It cannot be expected in general that the friction factor of an alluvial
channel is constant
Effective bed roughness
▪ Generally the bed roughness can be obtained indirectly by the
velocity measurement.
▪ The large collection of bed roughness values, obtained by velocity
measurement and fitting, covering various flow regions with
different sediment size is:

1 − 10 𝑑50 flat bed

𝑘𝑠 = ൞
100𝑑50 rippled bed
Effective bed roughness
▪ In the presence of ripples, the resistance to the flow consists of two
parts, one originating from the skin friction, another due to the form
pressure of the ripples.
▪ Prediction methods for the roughness of an alluvial stream generally
divide the total shear 𝜏𝑏 or friction factor (C or f ) into two parts:
(a) Grain resistance accounting for forces acting on individual
particles (surface drag) denoted by 𝜏𝑏 ' or C' or f'
(b) Form resistance due to bed-form configurations (𝜏𝑏 ", C" or f'")
𝜏𝑏 = 𝜏𝑏 ′+𝜏𝑏 ′′

where 𝜏′𝑏 is also called effective shear stress, because it is 𝜏′𝑏 which is
acting on single sediment.
Effective bed roughness

Figure: The resistance to flow over a rippled bed

Effective bed roughness
▪ The total bed shear stress is the sum of two components
𝜏𝑏 = 𝜏𝑏 ′+𝜏𝑏 ′′
▪ In terms of the Shield’s diagram: 𝜏∗ = 𝜏∗ ′+𝜏∗ ′′ or
𝜏𝑏 𝜏𝑏′ 𝜏𝑏′′
= +
𝛾𝑠 −𝛾 𝑑50 𝛾𝑠 −𝛾 𝑑50 𝛾𝑠 −𝛾 𝑑50
where
✓ τ∗ is the total Shields parameter,
✓ τ’∗ the grain Shield’s parameter
✓ τ‘’∗ is the form Shields parameter.
▪ Notice that for Manning and Chezy’s coefficients:
n ≠ n’ +n’’ and C ≠ C’ +C’’.
Effective bed roughness
▪ From the shear (resistance) formula on bed forms:
2 𝑓
𝜏𝑏 = 𝜌𝑢∗ = 𝛾𝑅ℎ 𝑆𝑓 = 𝜌𝑉 2
8
▪ For bed shear
𝜏𝑏 = 𝜏𝑏 ′+𝜏𝑏 ′′
▪ For shear velocity
2 2 2
𝑢∗ = 𝑢′∗ + 𝑢′′∗
▪ For hydraulic radius
𝑅ℎ = 𝑅′ℎ + 𝑅′′ℎ
Effective bed roughness
▪ For Darcy-Weisbach friction factor
𝑓 = 𝑓 ′ + 𝑓 ′′
▪ For Chezy’s coefficient
𝑓 2
𝛾𝑅ℎ 𝑆𝑓 = 𝜌𝑉
8
8𝑔
𝑉 = 𝐶 𝑅ℎ 𝑆𝑓 , in which 𝑓 =
𝐶2

1 1 1
= +
𝐶2 𝐶′2 𝐶′′2
Total and grain resistance with bed-forms
▪ The total resistance to flow can be obtained from field
measurements of flow depth h, main flow velocity V, and friction
slope Sf from
8𝑔ℎ𝑆𝑓
𝑓=
𝑉2

▪ The roughness height ks can then be obtained from

8 12.2ℎ
= 5.75𝑙𝑜𝑔
𝑓 𝑘𝑠

▪ Grain roughness can be estimated using:

8 12.2ℎ
= 5.75𝑙𝑜𝑔
𝑓′ 𝑘𝑠 ′

where 𝑘𝑠′ is estimated from 𝑘𝑠 ′ ≈ 6.8𝑑50 or 𝑘 𝑠 ′ ≈ 3𝑑90

Total and grain resistance with bed-forms
▪ Using the Manning-Strickler approximation, the following relation is
obtained:

𝑉 8 ℎ 1/6
= ≈5
𝑢′ ∗ 𝑓′ 𝑑50

or
1/3
𝑑50
𝑓′ ≅ 0.32
ℎ

▪ Subtracting grain resistance from the total resistance 𝑓 has been

commonly used to estimate the form resistance 𝑓′′.
Bed shear stress
▪ Equation of motion

Figure 2.1 Fluid forces and bottom shear stress

Bed shear stress
▪ For steady uniform flow

or
or

▪ where I = sinβ = energy gradient

▪ τ varies linearly with z
For z = 0 this yields
Bed shear stress
Definition

Which results

where
τb = bed-shear stress, N/m2
u* = bed-shear velocity, m/s
ρ = fluid density, kg/m3
g = gravity acceleration, m/s2
h = flow depth, m
Turbulent flow
▪ Turbulence is a random fluctuating velocity field which
interacts with and derives its energy from the mean flow
field
▪ In turbulent flow the water particles move in very irregular
paths, causing an exchange of momentum from one portion
of fluid to another, and hence, the turbulent shear stress
(Reynolds stress).
▪ In turbulent flow both viscosity and turbulence contribute to
shear stress
Turbulent flow
▪ Turbulent flow commonly occurs in the majority of flow
depth
Turbulent flow
▪ According to the Reynolds’ procedure, the shear stress in
turbulent flow at height z in a steady uniform flow can be
described as:

or

in which

is viscous shear stress

Turbulent flow
is turbulence shear stress
u = time-averaged fluid velocity at height z
u’ = turbulent fluid velocity fluctuation in horizontal direction
w’ = turbulent fluid velocity fluctuation in vertical direction
ρ = fluid density
ν = kinematic viscosity coefficient
Turbulent flow

▪ Although the time-averaged vertical velocity w is

equal to zero (w = 0), the vertical turbulent fluctuations
are not equal to zero (w’ ≠ 0). Consequently, the
turbulence shear stress
Turbulent flow

Figure: Turbulent shear stress τt is dominant in the major part of the flow depth
Turbulent flow
Turbulent flow
▪ In case of a smooth bottom the viscous shear stress τν becomes
dominant close to the bottom because the turbulent fluctuations u’
and w’ die out near the bottom and are equal to zero at the bottom
(u’ = w’ at z = 0)
▪ The layer where viscous shear stress is dominant is called the viscous
sub-layer (δv)
▪ The most important turbulent sub-layer is the logarithmic sub-layer
▪ Between the viscous sub-layer and the logarithmic sub-layer there is
a transition sub-layer, sometimes called buffer sub-layer
▪ Above the viscous sub-layer the flow is turbulent
▪ Above the logarithmic sub-layer there is an outer sub-layer
Hydraulic flow regimes
▪ The roughness elements mainly influence the velocity distribution
close to the bottom by generating eddies (with a size of the order of
the roughness of elements)
▪ Further away, the eddies will rapidly be absorbed in the general
existing turbulence pattern
▪ The type of flow regime can be related to the ratio of the Nikurase
roughness (ks) and a length scale of the viscous sub-layer (v/𝑢∗)
in which
v = kinematic viscosity coefficient (m2/s)
𝑢∗ = bed‐shear velocity (m/s)
Hydraulic flow regimes
▪ Experimental results show that:
✓ Hydraulically smooth flow

▪ Roughness of elements are much smaller than the thickness of the

viscous sub-layer (δv) and do not affect the velocity distribution
▪ The flow velocity distribution is dependent on the viscosity (ν) of the
fluid but not on the turbulent.
 Hydraulic flow regimes
✓ Hydraulically transitional flow

▪ The velocity distribution is affected by viscosity as well as by the

bottom roughness.
✓ Hydraulically rough flow

▪ Bed roughness is so large that it produces eddies close to the bottom

▪ Viscous sub-layer (δv) does not exist and the flow velocity distribution
is not dependent on the viscosity (ν) of the fluid.
Mixing length
▪ In turbulent flow, fluid parcel travels over a length l before its
momentum is transferred, i.e., before losing their identity by mixing
Mixing length
▪ Fluid parcel, located in layer 1 and having the velocity u1, moves to
layer 2 due to eddy motion
▪ There is no momentum transfer during movement, i.e., the velocity
of the fluid parcel is still u1 when it just arrives at layer 2, and
decreases to u2 sometime later by momentum exchange with other
fluid in layer 2
▪ This action will speed up the fluid in layer 2 which can be seen as a
turbulent shear stress τt acting on layer 2 trying to accelerate layer 2
Mixing length
▪ Horizontal instantaneous velocity fluctuation of the fluid parcel in layer 2 is

▪ Assuming the vertical instantaneous velocity fluctuation has the same

magnitude

where negative sign is due to the downward movement of the fluid parcel
▪ Products of velocity fluctuations were then formulated in terms of the
mixing length
𝟐
𝒅𝒖
𝒖′ 𝒘′ = −𝒍𝟐
𝒅𝒛
Mixing length
▪ Turbulent shear stress now becomes

▪ Turbulent shear stress depends on the magnitude of the velocity

gradient and the mixing length

▪ Mixing length is related to the distance z from the wall

where k is Von Karman coefficient

Velocity distribution over depth
Turbulent sub-layer
▪ In the turbulent sub-layer the total shear stress contains only
the turbulent shear stress
▪ Total shear stress increases linearly with depth

▪ By Prandtl’s mixing length theory

Velocity distribution over depth
Turbulent sub-layer
▪ Assuming the mixing length

where Von Karman constant κ = 0.4, we get

▪ Integration of the equation gives the famous logarithmic velocity

profile

where z0 is corresponding to the elevation of zero velocity

Velocity distribution over depth
Viscous sub-layer
▪ In the case of hydraulically smooth flow there is a viscous sub-
layer

▪ Viscous shear stress is constant in this layer and equal to the

bottom shear stress

▪ Integrating and applying uz=0 = 0 gives

𝝉𝒃/𝝆 𝒖𝟐∗
𝒖 𝒛 = 𝒛= 𝒛
𝝑 𝝑
Velocity distribution over depth
Viscous sub-layer
▪ There is linear velocity distribution in the viscous sub-layer
▪ Linear velocity distribution intersect with the logarithmic velocity
distribution at the elevation z = 11.6 ν/u* yielding a theoretical
viscous sub-layer thickness:

▪ With shear velocities of the order of 0.1 m/s, the laminar sub‐layer
thickness in open‐channel flow is typically of the order 0.1 mm,
which is the size of sands
▪ Generally speaking, a plane bed surface is hydraulically smooth for
silts and clays
Velocity distribution over depth
Viscous sub-layer

Figure: Velocity distribution in smooth and rough flow

Velocity distribution over depth
Transitional (buffer) sub-layer
▪ Approximation to the velocity profile between turbulent flow and
the laminar sub‐layer has been given by Spalding
2 3
𝑢∗ ෥2
𝑘𝑢 ෥2
𝑘𝑢
= 𝑢+0.1108
෤ 𝑒 𝑘𝑢෥ − 1 − 𝑘 𝑢෤ − −
𝜗 2 6

where 𝑧(𝑥)
𝑢෤ =
𝑢∗

▪ Alternatively, an explicit formulation has been proposed by Guo and

Julien (2007)
𝑢(𝑧) −1 𝑢∗ 𝑧 7 −3 𝑢∗ 𝑧 −4 𝑢∗ 𝑧
= 7tan + tan − 0.52 tan
𝑢∗ 7𝜗 3 7𝜗 7𝜗
Velocity distribution over depth
▪ Integration constant of the logarithmic velocity profile, z0,
corresponding to the elevation of zero velocity is given as
Smooth flow regime

for

Rough flow regime

for

Transitional flow regime

for
Velocity distribution over depth
▪ Averaging over depth of the turbulent flow velocity gives
Velocity distribution over depth
▪ Neglecting the zo/h-parameter, the depth-averaged flow velocity does
occur at z = h/e ≈ 0.37h, in which e is the base of natural logarithm
(e ≈2.72)

▪ Applying depth‐averaged velocity in logarithmic vertical velocity

profile, the velocity distribution can also be expressed as
Velocity distribution over depth
▪ The mean flow velocity for hydraulically smooth and rough
boundaries are, respectively

ഥ
𝑢 𝑢∗ ℎ
≅ 5.75𝑙𝑜𝑔 +3.25
𝑢∗ 𝜗

and

ഥ
𝑢 ℎ 12ℎ
≅ 5.75𝑙𝑜𝑔 +6.25≅ 5.75𝑙𝑜𝑔
𝑢∗ 𝑘𝑠 𝑘𝑠
Thank You!!