Soft Sediment Deformation Structures in the Sediment Deposits of Ganga River and Its Oxbow Lakes in Parts of Indo-Gangetic Plain: Implications for Quake Proxies and Paleoseismicity Tracking

The Late Quaternary thick sedimentary fills of the Ganga basin predominantly consist of unconsolidated fluvial sandy deposits which are often intercalated with mud. These deposits at various places record the evidence of earthquakes, which occurred in the recent geological past. The evidence is contained and manifested in the form of Soft Sediment Deformation Structures (SSDSs). Saturated sediments/muds/soils are liquefied by earthquake tremors which either generate SSDS or produce structural discordance in the pre-existing sedimentary structures. The present study reports the occurrence of SSDS, e.g. load and associated flame structures, clastic dikes and sill structures, slump structures and sedimentary breccias, etc. from the Ganga River and adjacent oxbow lake sediment deposits. An attempt has been made to establish the origin of soft sediment structures of this region in accordance with its neotectonic history and in turn, identification of seismic structural proxies to delineate paleoseismic events in this region with futuristic implications. The preservation of soft sediment deformation structures in large numbers with multiple geomorphology and scale, in the river and adjoining lake sediments, is indicative of frequent earthquakes of high magnitude consequent to tectonic activism in the Himalayan region.

Impacts of channel dredging on hydrodynamics and sediment dynamics in the main channels of the Jiaojiang River Estuary in China

Channel dredging in estuaries increases water depth and subsequently impacts sediment dynamics and morphology. The Jiaojiang River Estuary is dredged frequently owing to heavy shipping demands. In this study,the effects of different dredging schemes on siltation were assessed through numerical modeling. The sediment model of the Jiaojiang River Estuary utilized an optimized bottom boundary layer model that considered the bed sediment grain size and fluid mud, and this model was calibrated using field data. Result reveal that channel dredging modifies the flow velocity inside and around the channel by changing the bathymetry;subsequently, this affects the residual current, bed stress, suspended sediment concentration, and sediment fluxes. Increasing the dredging depth and width increases the net sediment fluxes into the channel and dredging depth has a greater influence on the channel siltation thickness. When the dredging depth is 8.4 m or11.4 m, the average siltation thickness of the channel is 0.07 m or 0.15 m per mouth respectively. The parallel movement of the channel has small effects on the siltation volume during the simulation period. The sediment deposits in the channel primarily originates from the tidal flats, through bottom sediment fluxes. Vertical net circulation has a dominant impact on siltation because the difference of horizontal current of each layer on the longitudinal section of the channel increases, which intensifies the lateral sediment transport between the shoal and channel. The influence of vertical frictional dissipation on the lateral circulation at the feature points accounts for more than 50% before dredging, while the non-linear advective term is dominant after dredging. Tidal pumping mainly affects the longitudinal sediment fluxes in the channel. These results can be used for channel management and planning for similar estuaries worldwide.

The sedimentary facies and dynamic environment of the Diaokou lobe in the modern Huanghe River Delta of China

The Huanghe River captures the Diaokou River in 1964 and forms a deltaic lobe in the subsequent 12 a. The progradational process of the Diaokou lobe is in associated with complicated evolution of riverine sheet flooding, merging, and swinging. On the basis of 11 borehole cores and 210 km high resolution seismic reflection data set, the sedimentary sequence and dynamic environment of the Diaokou lobe Cone subdelta lobe of the modern Huanghe River Delta） are studied. The stratigraphy of the lobe is characterized by an upward-coarsening ternary structure and forms a progradational deltaic clinoform. Totally six seismic surfaces are identifiable in seismic profiles, bounded six seismic units （SUs）. These SUs correspond to six depositional units （DUs） in the borehole cores, and among them, SUs 4-6 （DUs D to F） consist of the modern Diaokou lobe. Lithological and seismic evidences indicate that the delta plain part of the Diaokou lobe is comprised primarily by fluvial lag sediments together with sediments from sidebanks, overbanks, fluvial flood plains and levees, while the delta front part is a combination of river mouth bar sands （majority） and distal bar and deltaic margin sediments （minority）. As a result of the high sedimentation rate and weak hydrodynamic regime in the Huanghe River Delta, the sediments in the delta front are dominated by fine-grained materials. The grain size analysis indicates the Huanghe River hyperpycnal-concentrated flow shows the suspension, transportation and sedimentation characteristics of gravity flow, and the sediment transportation is primarily dominated by graded suspension, while uniform suspension and hydrostatic suspension are also observed in places. The strength of the hydrodynamic regime weakens gradually offshore from riverbed, river mouth bar, sidebank, distal bar subfacies to delta lateral margin and flooding plain subfacies.

Distributions of surficial sediments and its response to dynamic actions in the Xiamen Bay sea area, China

Sediment distribution is important for morphodynamic evolution and shoreline changes in coastal zones and estuaries. In the study, the data of 230 surface sediment samples collected from the Xiamen Bay sea area in September 2008 are used to investigate the spatial distribution and sediment transport pathway. The grain size distribution of surficial sediments in the Xiamen Bay area is shown distinctly in this study. In addition, the Grain Size Transport Analysis model is used for conveying trend analysis of the sediment in this area, particularly for determining the sediment movement trend. The results indicate that eight sediment types are present for samples, with clayey silt comprising the highest percentage in the study area at 65.22%. Moreover, in the different subareas, the characteristics of grain size parameters are obviously different owing to different sediment sources and hydrodynamic conditions. Furthermore, runoff, tides, and waves are the main forces dominating sediment dynamics on the seabed and tidal flats, and the sediment movement trend is closely related to hydrodynamic conditions.

A three-dimensional,wave-current coupled,sediment transport model for POM

In the high-energy environment of coastal seas and estuaries,strong sediment resuspension/ deposition events are driven by surface waves,tides,winds and buoyancy driven currents.In recent years,A POM based three-dimensional,wave-current coupled,sediment transport model has been developed by the University of New South Wales.This paper presents several examples of the model applications to study sediment dynamics in the environments where forcings such as waves,tides,and winds are equally important to affect sediment fluxes and distributions.Firstly,the sediment transport model coupled to the Yellow Sea general circulation model and a third generation wave model SWAN was implemented in the Yellow Sea to study the dynamics of the sediment transport and resuspension in the northern Jiangsu shoal-wate(rNJSW).The sediment distributions and fluxes and their inter-annual variability were studied by realistic numerical simulations.The study found that the surface waves played a dominant role over the tides to form the turbidity maxima along the muddy coast of NJSW. Secondly,the sediment transport model was used to explore the effect of suspended sediment-induced stratification in the bottom boundary laye(rBBL).The model uses a re-parameterized bottom drag coefficient Cd that incorporates a linear stability function of flux Richardson number Rf.The study has shown that the sediment induced stratification in the BBL reduces the vertical eddy viscosity and bottom shear stress in comparison with the model prediction in a neutrally stratified BBL.In response to these apparent reductions,the tidal current shear is increased and sediments are abnormally concentrated within a thin wall layer that is overlain by a thicker layer with much smaller concentration.The formation of this fluid-mud layer near the seabed has led to a significant reduction in the total sediment transport.This study contributes to the understanding of formations of tidal flats along the coasts of turbid seas and estuaries.

Modelling of sediment movement in the surf and swash zones

Under the action of marine currents,non-cohesive sediments evolve by bed-load,by saltation or suspension depending on their granulometry.Several authors have considered that the movement of sediment is bidimensional and modelized the effects of swell by a constant velocitynear the seabed.Here we have studied the velocity profile of fluctuating currents near the seabed and studied the movement of sediment in 3D.The results show that in the areas of study（surf and swash）the movement of sediment occurs in a volume,and the evolution of sediment varies from an areato another.The obtained theoretical profiles of the position and velocity vectors confirm the observations of several authors.

Process-based modeling of morphodynamics of a tidal inlet system

The morphodynamic evolution of an idealized inlet system is investigated using a 2-D depthaveraged process-based model,incorporating the hydrodynamic equations,Englund-Hansen’s sediment transport formula and the mass conservation equation.The model has a fixed geometry,impermeable boundaries and uniform sediment grain size,and driven by shore-parallel tidal elevations.The results show that the model reproduces major elements of the inlet system,i.e.,flood and ebb tidal deltas,inlet channel.Equilibrium is reached after several years when the residual transport gradually decreases and eventually diminishes.At equilibrium,the flow field characteristics and morphological patterns agree with the schematized models proposed by O’Brien （1969） and Hayes （1980）.The modeled minimum cross-sectional entrance area of the tidal inlet system is comparable with that calculated with the statistical P-A relationship for tidal inlets along the East China Sea coast.The morphological evolution of the inlet system is controlled by a negative feedback between hydrodynamics,sediment transport and bathymetric changes.The evolution rates decrease exponentially with time,i.e.,the system develops rapidly at an early stage while it slows down at later stages.Temporal changes in hydrodynamics occur in the system;for example,the flood velocity decreases while its duration increases,which weakens the flood domination patterns.The formation of the multi-channel system in the tidal basin can be divided into two stages;at the first stage the flood delta is formed and the water depth is reduced,and at the second stage the flood is dissected by a number of tidal channels in which the water depth increases in response to tidal scour.

Multi-scale calculation of settling speed of coarse particles by accelerated Stokesian dynamics without adjustable parameter

The calculation of settling speed of coarse particles is firstly addressed, with accelerated Stokesian dynamics without adjustable parameters, in which far field force acting on the particle instead of particle velocity is chosen as dependent variables to consider inter-particle hydrodynamic interactions. The sedimentation of a simple cubic array of spherical particles is simulated and compared to the results available to verify and validate the numerical code and computational scheme. The improved method keeps the same computational cost of the order O（NlogN） as usual accelerated Stokesian dynamics does. Then, more realistic random suspension sedimentation is investigated with the help of Mont Carlo method. The computational results agree well with experimental fitting. Finally, the sedimentation of finer cohesive particle, which is often observed in estuary environment, is presented as a further application in coastal engineering.

Tracking historical storm records from high-barrier lagoon deposits on the southeastern coast of Hainan Island,China

The relationship between storm activity and global warming remains uncertain.To better understand storm–climate relationships,coastal lagoon deposits are increasingly being investigated because they could provide high-resolution storm records long enough to cover past climate changes.However,site-specific sediment dynamics and high barriers may bias storm reconstructions.Here,we aimed to investigate these factors through the reconstruction of five distinct storm records(XCL-01,XC-03,XC-06,XC-07,XC-08)from different water depths in a lagoon with a high barrier(i.e.,Xincun Lagoon of Hainan Island).Sediment cores were characterized using high-resolution grain size and XRF measurements,to identify storm events.These data were coupled with a numerical simulation to obtain bed shear stress data with high-spatial resolution to better understand storm-induced sediment transport mechanisms.^(210) Pb dating and Pb pollution chronostratigraphic markers indicated that the chronology of the storm deposit sequences of the cores span the period between 117 a and 348 a.The grain size and XRF results indicated numerous,highly variable and short-duration fluctuations,suggesting that storm-induced coarse-grained sediments were deposited at these core sites.The inconsistent storm events recorded in these cores suggest that these sites have different preservation potentials for storm deposits.However,the consistence between storm sediment records and historical documents for Core XCL-01 indicates that high-barrier lagoons could provide long-term storm event records with high preservation potential.

Classification of highly turbid Jiaojiang Estuary

The Jiaoiang Estuary is shallow, macro-tidal dominated and extremely turbid, with a larger variation of the freshwater discharge. The estuarine stratification and classification are analysed by using a set of field data observed in wat season.In spring tide, the depth-mean peak tidal currents can reach 2 m/s. During flood tide the water column is vertically hamogeneous, but the horizontal salinity gradient is large and there is a fresh water front. A 1 m thick fluid mud layer capped by lutocline is formed when the tidal current is less than 0. 3 m/s. As the low-salinity trapped in the fluid mud layer, underlying saltier water enhances vertical mixing when the fluid mud layer is eroded and the water column is only slishily stratified during ebb tide.During neap tide, the tidal currents are reduced, two lutoclines exist in the vertical profile of suspended sediment conentration (SSC ) for a long time and its positive contributions to the water column stability are 17 times larger than tha of maximum salinity gradient observed in our previous study. The water column is stratified and the fresh water front which exists in spring tide is lifted as a salt wedge in neap tide.The dynamics of the fine sediment is so important in the extremely turbid estuary that the estuarine classification does not fit in with the field data when the scheme of the estuarine classification proposed by Schultz and Simons (1957) is applied in the Jiaoiang Estuary.

Modeling streamflow and sediment using SWAT in Ethiopian Highlands

The coincidence of intensive rainfall events at the beginning of the rainy season and unprotected soil conditions after extreme dry spells expose the Ethiopian Highlands to severe soil erosion.Soil and water conservation measures(SWC)have been applied to counteract land degradation in the endangered areas,but SWC efficiency may vary related to the heterogeneity of the landscape.The Soil and Water Assessment Tool(SWAT)model was used to model hydrology and sediment dynamics of a 53.7 km^(2)watershed,located in the Lake Tana basin,Ethiopia.Spatially distributed stone bund impacts were applied in the model through modification of the surface runoff ratio and adjustment of a support practice factor simulating the trapped amounts of water and sediment at the SWC structure and watershed level.The resulting Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency(NSE)for daily streamflow simulation was 0.56 for the calibration and 0.48 for the validation period,suggesting satisfactory model performance.In contrast,the daily sediment simulation resulted in unsatisfactory model performance,with the NSE value of 0.07 for the calibration and–1.76 for the validation period and this could be as a result of high intensity and short duration rainfall events in the watershed.Meanwhile,insufficient sediment yield prediction may result to some extent from daily based data processing,whereas the driving runoff events and thus sediment loads occur on sub-daily time scales,probably linked with abrupt gully breaks and development.The calibrated model indicated 21.08 Mg/hm^(2)average annual sediment yield,which is far beyond potential soil regeneration rate.Despite the given limits of model calibration,SWAT may support the scaling up and out of experimentally proven SWC interventions to encourage sustainable agriculture in the Ethiopian Highlands.

Three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics （volume of fluid） modelling coupled with a stochastic discrete phase model for the performance analysis of an invert trap experimentally validated using field sewer solids

Invert traps are used to trap sewer solids flowing into a sewer drainage system, The performance of the invert trap in an open rectangular channel was experimentally and numerically analysed using field sewer solids collected from a sewer drain. Experiments showed that the free water surface rises over the central opening （slot） of the invert trap, which reduces the velocity near the slot and allows more sediment to be trapped in comparison with the case for the fixed-lid model （assuming closed conduit flow with a shear-free top wall） used by earlier investigators. This phenomenon cannot be modelled using a closed conduit model as no extra space is provided for the fluctuation of the water surface, whereas this space is provided in the volume of fluid （VOF） model in the form of air space in ANSYS Fluent 14.0 software. Additionally, the zero atmospheric pressure at the free water surface cannot be modelled in a fixed-lid model. In the present study, experimental trap efflciencies of the invert trap using field sewer solids were fairly validated using a three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics model （VOF model） coupled with a stochastic discrete phase model. The flow field （i.e., velocities） predicted by the VOF model were compared with experimental velocities obtained employing particle image velocimetry. The water surface profile above the invert trap predicted by the VOF model was found to be in good agreement with the experimentally measured profile. The present study thus showed that the VOF model can be used with the stochastic discrete phase model to well predict the performance of invert traps.