10: Movement of Sediment by Water Flows
- Page ID
- 4210
- 10.2: The Bed, the Flow, and the Load
- The aggregate of sediment particles being transported by a flow at a given time is called the load. The bed comprises all of the particles that at a given time are motionless and in direct contact with the substrate, and the load comprises all of the particles that are in motion in a given flow, whether or not they are in contact with the bed. That leaves the less certain definition of the flow: all the material, fluid and solid, that at a given time are in motion above the bed.
- 10.3: Transport Mode Versus Flow Intensity
- As with so many aspects of sediment transport, it is valuable to think in terms of regimes: distinctive ranges of the phenomenon, characterized by modes of particle movement that differ from other ranges. In this case, such regimes have been called transport stages. To develop a good framework for visualizing and assessing the results of experiments on transport stages, start by making a list of the variables that are likely to be important in determining the transport stage.