Competence of Rivers To Transport Coarse Bedload Material

Abstract

Research Article| July 01, 1975 Competence of Rivers To Transport Coarse Bedload Material VICTOR R. BAKER; VICTOR R. BAKER 1Department of Geological Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar DALE F. RITTER DALE F. RITTER 2Department of Geology, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois 62901 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information VICTOR R. BAKER 1Department of Geological Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712 DALE F. RITTER 2Department of Geology, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois 62901 Publisher: Geological Society of America First Online: 01 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2674 Print ISSN: 0016-7606 Geological Society of America GSA Bulletin (1975) 86 (7): 975–978. https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(1975)86<975:CORTTC>2.0.CO;2 Article history First Online: 01 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation VICTOR R. BAKER, DALE F. RITTER; Competence of Rivers To Transport Coarse Bedload Material. GSA Bulletin 1975;; 86 (7): 975–978. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(1975)86<975:CORTTC>2.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGSA Bulletin Search Advanced Search Abstract Shear-stress analyses provide easily determined estimates of the competence of rivers to transport coarse bedload material. Relevant data from diverse geological and engineering reports are integrated, and a good correlation between competent particle size and shear stress results when data points are derived in a uniform way.Because flow mechanics differ in contrasting fluvial environments, the shear stresses needed to entrain large sediment may diverge considerably from values based on theoretical grounds. In shallow rivers, entrainment may occur at lower shear stresses than predicted by the Shields theory because hydrodynamic lift and bank caving provide additional transporting force. In very deep flows, the shear stresses needed to initiate particle movement are greater than theoretical values. Potential use of the empirical relationship between particle size and shear stress is limited by the following considerations: (1) random nature of turbulent life forces, (2) problems in interpreting the significance of the sedimentary deposit, (3) sediment finer than 5 cm in diameter is not considered, and (4) the analysis ignores special considerations of sediment packing, shape, and grain-size distributions. This content is PDF only. Please click on the PDF icon to access. First Page Preview Close Modal You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.