Fluvial and marine sediment transport

• Predict the conditions of incipient sediment motion and the subsequent development of bedforms (e.g. ripples, dunes, antidunes) within steady open channel flow, and quantitatively assess the changes in the flow resistance;
• Apply various bed load and longshore sediment transport formulas, and judge their applicability in a given physical situation;
• Calculate equilibrium channel characteristics and sediment grading within channel bends;
• Explain qualitatively the occurrence of meandering and braiding in rivers;
• Derive the governing equation for coastline development, and calculate erosion and deposition over time around simple coastal structures;
• Construct, apply, and interpret results from simple numerical models (in Matlab) for the calculation of bed and suspended sediment transport processes in currents and in waves;
• Identify and explain the importance of various contributions to cross-shore sediment transport.
• Write technical reports, to be submitted following written assignments.

Basic concepts: critical bed shear stress, bed load transport and suspended load transport in current and in waves. Bed forms (dunes and sand waves) and their significance for the flow resistance and sediment transport. Large scale morphology in rivers (meandering and braiding). Long- and cross-shore wave-induced currents. Sediment transport along coasts. Coastal morphology (bars, rip channels, coastline development).

41101/41102/41111, Elementary programming, for example with MATLAB or another programming language.

Lectures, problem sessions, preparation of reports

The course had previously the numbers 12522/41122/41127.