Abstract
When planning the development of a river basin, it is obvious that we should have thorough knowledge of the river system. Not only with respect to the water that it carries, but also with respect to sediment content and channel stability. An alluvial river, in the state of nature, maintains a delicate balance between its water discharge, sediment discharge, slope, meander pattern, and channel cross-section. Any disturbance at any point may have repercussions throughout the entire river system. If we build a dam somewhere, sediment will accumulate in the reservoir, the upstream river channel will aggrade, and the downstream channel will degrade. When we take water out of a river for irrigation the channel downstream as well as upstream may silt up. When we cut off river bends to aid navigation or flood control, the river upstream may degrade, while the river downstream may aggrade. In all such cases we should know in advance where and how fast these changes will take place.
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Bibliography
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Grunsky, C. E. (1930). ‘Silt transportation by Sacramento and Colorado Rivers.’ Trans. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., Vol. 94, pp. 1104–33. (Suspended-sediment transportation is shown to vary with cross-section, discharge, time of the year and location along the river. Interesting discussion of eccentric river phenomena, such as boils and pulsations.)
Harrison, A. S. (1953). ‘Deposition at the head of reservoirs.’ Bull. Univ. Iowa, 34, Studies in Eng., pp. 199–227. (Very interesting discussion of the factors which must be taken into account in an engineering estimate of future deposition of sediment at the heads of existing or proposed reservoirs, so that action for the control or alleviation of problems which could arise therefrom can be planned before the problems become serious.)
Harrison, A. S. (1954). ‘Study of effects of channel stabilization and navigation project on Missouri River levels.’ Corps of Engineers, U.S. Army, Omaha District, Memorandum 18. (Contains an interesting discussion of the effect of the sediment-transport intensity on hydraulic resistance of the river channel.)
Hathaway, G. A. (1948). ‘Observations on channel changes, degradation and scour below dams.’ Int. Ass. Hyd. Res. Rpt., pp. 287–307. (Discusses the significance of sediment transportation as associated with channel changes below hydraulic structures. Interesting example of aggradation on the Arkansas River due to the use of water for irrigation.)
Hjulstrom, F. (1935). ‘Studies of the morphological activity of rivers as illustrated by the River Fyris.’ Bull. Geol. Inst. Univ. Uppsala, Vol. 25, pp. 221–528. (Discusses the mechanics of streams, in particular the changes of mass of water under the influence of gravity and its own kinetic energy; laminar movement, the transition between laminar and turbulent and the characteristics of turbulence. Considers the problem of the transportation of solid matter in water as bed load and suspended load.)
Inglis, Sir Claude (1947). ‘Meanders and their bearing on river training.’ Inst. civ. Engrs., Lond. Maritime and Waterways Paper No. 7. (An interesting paper in which an attempt is made to show that when variations in discharge and sediment load are taken into account, meandering is determined by the same basic factors as flow in straight channels. Formulae are given, expressing the meander length and meander width in terms of stream-channel width and river discharge.)
Inglis, Sir Claude (1949). ‘The behaviour and control of rivers and canals.’ Pub. No. 13, Central Waterway, Irrigation and Navigation Research Station, Poona Prison Press, India, pt. 1: 280 pp., pt. 2: 200 pp. (A discussion of rivers and canals, based mostly on the regime theory, developed by Kennedy and Lacey. Lengthy descriptions of laboratory experiments with river training structures. The book is mainly of interest in that it tends to develop the reader’s own independent approach to the various problems.)
Kuiper, E. (1953, 1954). ‘Hydrometric surveys 1953, 1954.’ Saskatchewan River Reclamation Project, Interim Reports Nos. 3 and 8, P.F.R.A., Winnipeg, Man., Canada, 24 pp. and 36 pp. (An account of hydrometric survey trips on the Churchill River and Saskatchewan River, including discussions of features of delta formation.)
Kuiper, E. (1960). ‘Sediment transport and delta formation.’ Proc. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., Feb. 1960, HY2, pp. 55–68. (This paper deals with sediment computations that were carried out in connection with dike design for the Saskatchewan Delta Reclamation Project.)
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Lacey, G. (1930). ‘Stable channels in alluvium.’ (See in Bibliography to Chapter 8.)
Lacey, G. (1933). ‘Uniform flow in alluvial rivers.’ (See in Bibliography to Chapter 8.)
Lacey, G. (1946). ‘A general theory of flow in alluvium.’ (See in Bibliography to Chapter 8.)
Lane, E. W. (1934). ‘Retrogression of levels in river beds below dams.’ Engng. News Rec. Vol. 112, pp. 836–38. (Interesting presentation of degradation data below dams on the Sutlej River in India, Yuba River and Rio Grande River in the U.S.A., and the Saalach River in Germany. The article is followed by three supplementary statements by L. F. Harza, S. Schulits, and A. M. Shaw, giving further details of some of the degradation examples.)
Lane, E. W. (1937). ‘Stable channels in erodible material.’ Trans. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., Vol. 102, pp. 123–42. (Very interesting paper, outlining the principles involved in the design of stable channels as related to the size, shape, and quantity of sediment transport.)
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Lane, E. W., and Borland, W. M. (1953). ‘River-bed scour during floods.’. Proc. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., separate 254. (Interesting discussion of the lowering of stream beds during floods. It is concluded that during floods the bed of the Rio Grande, in general, scours out at the narrow sections and that most of the material thus removed is deposited in the next wide section downstream. See on this subject also Straub, 1935, p. 1152; and Gilbert, 1914, p. 221.)
Lane, E. W., and Kalinske, A. A. (1939). ‘The relation of suspended load to bed-material in rivers.’ Trans. Amer, geophys. Un., Vol. 20, pp. 637–41. (This paper refers to the equation of O’Brien, 1933, which relates the suspended-material concentration at any relative distance above the bottom of a river channel to the known concentration at some relative distance. The purpose of the paper is to develop the relationship between the composition and concentration of the suspended material and the composition of the stream bed, and the hydraulic characteristics of the river. For further development of this theory, see Einstein, 1950.)
Leighly, J. B. (1932). ‘Toward a theory of the morphologic significance of turbulence in the flow of water in streams.’ Univ. Calif. Publ. Geogr., Vol. 6, pp. 1–22. (An attempt is made to apply a theory of turbulence to problems of geomorphologic activity in streams. It is shown that maximum erosion will likely occur at the base of steep slopes and not in the middle of the river bottom or in the sloping banks. This feature may be sufficient to explain meandering and an appeal to centrifugal action may be unnecessary. An interesting paper, although somewhat difficult to read.)
Leliavsky, S. (1955). An Introduction to Fluvial Hydraulics. 257 pp. London; Constable. (This book reviews the various theories, methods and facts bearing on the flow of water in erodible channels. Some chapter headings: Traction and suspension; Surface slope and particle size; Dunes and ripples; Bed-load; Side-slope stability; Sediment transport.)
Leopold, L. B., and Maddock, T. (1953). ‘The hydraulic geometry of stream channels.’ U.S. Geol. Surv., Prof. Paper 252, 56 pp. (An interesting paper dealing with the relationship between depth, width, velocity, suspended load, and discharge of stream channels. The suspended load is shown to be an index to total load for purposes of explaining the observed average characteristics of natural channel systems.)
Lindner, C. P. (1952). ‘Diversions from alluvial streams.’ Proc. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., Vol. 78, separate 112. (Very interesting discussion of the hydraulic effects of diversion and their withdrawal of sediment from alluvial streams. Factors influencing the diversion of bed load and the variation in the quantity of diversion with the angle of diversion are developed. It is noted that branching channels carry relatively more sediment than the straight main channel. This is explained as follows: The highest velocities occur in the upper layers of the stream. These layers of water are deflected into the side channel with greater difficulty than the lower layers. These lower layers transmit most of the sediment load, and a large proportion of this load is thus moved into the branch channel. The paper is followed by interesting discussions by A. R. Thomas, D. C. Bondurant and others.)
Lobeck, A. K. (1939). Geomorphology. 731 pp. New York; McGraw-Hill. (A textbook containing about 100 pages of interesting discussions on the morphology of rivers. Devotes much space to the concept of graded rivers. Diagrams illustrate the change in river profile due to changes in sediment transport.)
Mackin, J. H. (1948). ‘Concept of the graded river.’ Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., Vol. 59, pp. 463–512. (Very interesting paper extending the theory of grade originally set forth by Gilbert and Davis. Discusses the profile of a graded stream and factors controlling slope of graded profile.)
Matthes, G. H. (1934). ‘Floods and their economic importance.’ (See in Bibliography to Chapter 6.)
Matthes, G. H. (1941). ‘Basic aspects of stream meanders.’ Trans. Amer. Geophys. Un., Vol. 22, pp. 632–36. (Very interesting discussion, setting forth certain fundamentals relating to the dynamics of meandering streams derived from observations on streams of various sizes.)
Matthes, G. H. (1947). ‘Mississippi River cutoffs.’ Trans. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., Vol. 113, pp. 1–15. (Describes natural and artificial cut-offs in the lower Mississippi River along a 50 mile stretch north of Vicksburg, Miss. Gives the effects of cut-offs on river shortening and flood-stage lowering.)
Matthes, G. H. (1956). ‘River engineering.’ Section 15 of Abbett, Vol. II (see reference in Bibliography to Chapter 5). (This section contains 61 pages on river characteristics and sediment transport.)
Meyer-Peter, E., and Muller, R. (1948). ‘Formulas for bed-load transport.’ Internatl. Ass. for Hydr. Res. Rpt. 2nd Mtg., Stockholm, pp. 39–64. (One of the important papers on the transport of bed load. Describes the development of the Swiss experimental bed-load transportation formula from its first simple form in 1934 to its later more complicated form in 1948.)
Nedeco (1959). ‘River studies of the Niger and Benue.’ North Holland Publishing Co., Amsterdam, 1,000 pp. (This is a report by the Netherlands Engineering Consultants to the Government of Nigeria regarding the navigation potential of the Niger and Benue Rivers. The report is of general interest inasmuch as it presents extensive discussion of river morphology and sediment transport.)
O’Brien, M. P. (1933). ‘Review of the theory of turbulent flow and its relation to sediment transportation.’ Trans. Amer. Geophys. Un., Vol. 14, pp. 487–91. (One of the first papers demonstrating that if the average concentration of suspended sediment at any point in a wide, straight stream was known, the average concentration at any other point could be determined. For further development of this theory, see Lane and Kalinske, 1939.)
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Powell, J. W. (1961). The Exploration of the Colorado River. 176 pp. New York; Doubleday. (A reprint of Major Powell’s diary from 1870. An account of the first trip down the Colorado River by boat, entertaining in style, and including discussions of fluvial erosion.)
Ripley, H. C. (1927). ‘Relation of depth to curvature of channels.’ Trans. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., Vol. 91, pp. 207–65. (Gives formulae for the computation of the cross-section of river bends as a function of the mean depth, width, and radius of curvature. Followed by an interesting and critical discussion. It is mentioned that the South Platte in Denver tore out a railroad bridge and carried away a locomotive. After the waters had subsided to the usual small trickle, the sandy bottom appeared precisely as before but the locomotive was never seen again.)
Rubey, W. W. (1933). ‘Equilibrium conditions for debris-laden streams.’ Trans. Amer. Geophys. Un., Vol. 14, pp. 497–505. (Derives a general energy equation of stream work, including the energy consumed in friction and in supporting suspended sediment. The latter is in some cases only a few per cent of the first.)
Rubey, W. W. (1952). ‘The geology of Hardin Quadr., Illinois.’ U.S. Geol. Surv., Prof. Paper 218. (Contains an interesting section—Concept of adjusted cross-section of stream channels, pp. 129–36—dealing with a quantitative analysis of stream characteristics.)
Salisbury, R. D., and Atwood, W. W. (1908). ‘The interpretation of topographic maps.’ U.S. Geol. Surv., Prof. Paper 60, 84 pp. 170 plates. (Contains a very interesting discussion, pp. 26–40, of stream erosion, alluviation, and the meaning of young, mature and old streams, illustrated by sections of full-size topographic maps.
Schaank, E. M. H., and Slotboom, G. (1937). ‘Enkele mededeelingen betreffende de zandbeweging op den Neder-Rijn.’ De Ingenieur, 52e Jaargang, pp. B167–71. (A report in Dutch on the transport of sand on the Rhine River in Holland.)
Shukry, A. (1950). ‘Flow around bends in an open flume.’ (See in Bibliography to Chapter 3.)
Simons, D. B., and Richardson, E. V. (1962). ‘Resistance to flow in alluvial channels.’ (See in Bibliography to Chapter 3.)
Stanley, J. W. (1951). ‘Retrogression on the lower Colorado River.’ Trans. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., Vol. 116, pp. 943–57. (An interesting survey of bed and bank erosion, sediment deposition and sediment loads in the river, subsequent to the closure of the Hoover Dam in 1935.)
Stevens, J. C. (1936). ‘The silt problem.’ Trans. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., Vol. 101, pp. 207–250. (A comprehensive treatise pertaining to various subjects related to transportation and deposition of sediment. Gives the amount of sediment deposits for 25 reservoirs in the U.S. and 7 foreign reservoirs.)
Stevens, J. C. (1947). ‘Future of Lake Mead and Elephant Butte Reservoir.’ Trans. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., Vol. III, pp. 1231–54. (A report presenting an analysis of sediment records for Elephant Butte Reservoir. From these data, the useful lives of Lake Mead and Elephant Butte Reservoir are estimated. To prolong the life of Lake Mead, considers upstream storage of sediment. No practical method of removing the enormous amounts of sediment in the reservoirs has yet been found.)
Straub, L. G. (1935). ‘Silt investigations in the Missouri Basin.’ In Missouri River, 73rd Congr., 2nd sess., H. Doc. 238, pp. 1032–183. (Comprehensive study of the sedimentary characteristics of the Missouri River system. Discusses variation of silt discharge from its source to its mouth; relation of silt discharge to water discharge and to velocity; bed-load transportation; theoretical basis for the measurement of the amount of bed material transported; relation between bed load and suspended load; interesting miscellaneous observations concerning the behaviour of the stream channels.)
Straub, L. G. (1942). ‘Mechanics of rivers.’ (Interesting discussion of river regime, including such topics as character of sediment in rivers, sorting of bed-material, analysis of changes in river beds, channel contraction works, river gradients and river-bed changes. See reference in Bibliography to Chapter 2: Meinzer, O. E., 1942, Hydrology, pp. 614–36.)
Sundborg, A. (1956). The River Klaralven: A Study of Fluvial Processes. 316 pp. Esselte Aktiebolag; Stockholm. (A Swedish book, published in English, presenting a synopsis of recent facts and theories regarding fluvial processes, and applying some of these to the investigation of an actual river.)
Thornbury, W. D. (1954). Principles of Geomorphology. 618 pp. New York; John Wiley. (A geological textbook that contains an excellent description of river morphology. Some chapter headings: The fluvial geomorphic cycle; Complications of the fluvial cycle; Stream deposition; The peneplain concept.)
Todd, O. J., and Eliassen, S. (1940). ‘The Yellow River problem.’ Trans. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., Vol. 105, pp. 346–416. (Interesting paper dealing with problems of controlling the Yellow River. Section on the regime of the stream and the sediment-transport characteristics. Interesting discussions by H. van der Veen, E. W. Lane, and others.)
Turnbull, W. M., and others (1950). ‘Geology of Lower Mississippi Valley.’ In Applied Sedimentation by P. D. Trask, New York; John Wiley, pp. 210–29. (Interesting description of the morphologic history of the Lower Mississippi River. Discussion of natural river levees, point bar deposits and crevasses.)
Twenhofel, W. H. (1950). Principles of Sedimentation. 673 pp. New York; McGraw-Hill. (Primarily a geological textbook on sedimentation, which covers the subject rather concisely. Contains an interesting chapter on sediment transportation and deposition.)
United Nations (1951). ‘Methods and problems of flood control in Asia and the Far East.’ U.N. Publ., Sales No. 1951. II.F.5., Bangkok, 45 pp. (An interesting review of flood-control problems with emphasis on diking problems. Contains the following chapters: 1. Flood-control methods in Asia, discussing different local methods of laying out and constructing river dikes; 2. Problems of flood control, discussing stability of rivers and flood control by dikes, reservoirs, and land conservation methods.)
United Nations (1953). ‘River training and bank protection.’ U.N. Publ., Sales No. 1953, II.F.6., Bangkok, 100 pp. (A comprehensive review of different river training and bank protection methods, with emphasis on problems in Asia and the Far East. Contains the following chapters: 1. River training, discussing the theory of river flow and river training, methods of river training in general, and in Asia in particular; 2. Bank protection, discussing bank erosion and theory of erosion and scour, methods of bank protection in general, and in Asia in particular; 3. River-work practice in other regions, discussing Mississippi River problems and river works in Europe, Australia and New Zealand.)
United Nations (1953). ‘The sediment problem.’ U.N. Publ., Sales No. 1953. II.F.7., Bangkok, 92 pp. (A summary report of literature on transport and deposition of sediment, with emphasis on sediment problems in Asia and the Far East. Contains the following chapters: 1. Soil erosion, providing data on silt yield of various drainage areas; 2. Transportation of sediment, discussing the mechanics of sediment transport in detail. See on this subject also a publication by Chien, 1955, on sediment transport; 3. Silting and scouring of channels, summarizing the regime theory of irrigation channels; 4. Silting of reservoirs, mostly a summary of a study by Brown, 1944; 5. Action of sediment on the regime of rivers, discussing briefly some aspects of river regime; 6. Sampling and analysis of sediment, mostly a summary of reports by the U.S. Government, 1952.)
U.S. Government (1952). ‘A study of methods used in measurement and analysis of sediment loads in streams.’ St. Paul Dist. Sub-ofHce, Corps of Engrs.; Hydraulics Lab., Univ. of Iowa. (The most comprehensive study on this subject, published in the following nine reports: 1. Field practice and equipment used in sampling suspended sediment, 1940; 2. Equipment used for sampling bed load and bed-material, 1940; 3. Analytical study of methods of sampling suspended sediments, 1941; 4. Methods of analysing sediment samples, 1941; 5. Laboratory investigations of suspended-sediment samplers, 1941; 6. The design of improved types of suspended-sediment samplers, 1952; 7. A study of new methods for size analysis of suspended-sediment samples, 1943; 8. Measurement of the sediment discharge of streams, 1948; 9. Density of sediments deposited in reservoirs, 1943.)
Vanoni, V. A. (1946). ‘Transportation of suspended sediment by water.’ Trans. Amer. Soc. civ. Engrs., Vol. 111, pp. 67–133. (One of the important papers on laboratory measurements of sediment and velocity distributions for various values of slope of channel, rate of flow and sediment transport. It was found that the measured distributions have the same form as the theoretical distributions, but do not agree quantitatively. It was also found that suspended sediment tends to reduce the turbulent transfer of momentum and, hence, the resistance to flow, allowing the sediment-laden water to flow more rapidly than a comparable clear-water flow. See also on this subject, Buckley, 1923. Interesting discussions by R. W. Powell and P. F. Nemenyi on double spiral motion in straight open conduits.)
Vanoni, V. A., and Nomicos, G. N. (1960). ‘Resistance properties of sediment laden streams.’ (See Bibliography to Chapter 3.)
Vetter, C. P. (1949). ‘The Colorado River Delta.’ ‘Reclamation Era, Vol. 35, Nos. 10 and 11, pp. 216–20 and 217–19. (Very interesting brief description of the formation of a large river delta.)
Vetter, C. P. (1953). ‘Twenty years of sediment work on the Colorado River.’ Univ. Iowa, Studies in Engng., Bull. 34, pp. 5–33. (Interesting description of the change in the regime of the Colorado River subsequent to the construction of the Hoover Dam, Parker Dam, Imperial Dam, and others. Quantitative data on stream-channel aggradation and degradation are included.)
Vogel, H. D., and Thompson, P. W. (1933). ‘Flow in river bends.’ Civ. Engng., Vol. 3, pp. 266–68. (Experiments on a Mississippi River model seem to discredit helicoidal theory of flow. It was found that bed load moves from the concave towards the convex bank, but that the bottom current is parallel to the banks. Reference is made to Leighly, 1932, and his theory of ‘turbulence in the direction of decreased velocity.’)
Woodford, A. O. (1951). ‘Stream gradients and Monterey Sea Valley.’ Bull. Geol. Soc. Amer., Vol. 62, pp. 799–852. (Includes an interesting discussion of river profiles and the various factors that influence the shape of the profile.)
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Kuiper, E. (1965). River Morphology. In: Water Resources Development. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-6281-2_4
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