Hydrodynamically-Driven Deposition of Mud in River Systems

Dunne, K.B.J.; Nittrouer, J. A.; Abolfazli, E.; Osborn, R.; Strom, K. B.

doi:10.1029/2023GL107174

Hydrodynamically-Driven Deposition of Mud in River Systems

Title

Hydrodynamically-Driven Deposition of Mud in River Systems

Author

Dunne, K.B.J. (TU Delft Rivers, Ports, Waterways and Dredging Engineering)
Nittrouer, J. A. (Texas Tech University)
Abolfazli, E. (Virginia Tech College of Engineering)
Osborn, R. (Virginia Tech College of Engineering)
Strom, K. B. (Virginia Tech College of Engineering)

Date

2024

Abstract

The riverine transport and deposition of mud is the primary agent of landscape construction and evolution in many fluvial and coastal environments. Previous efforts exploring this process have raised uncertainty regarding the effects of hydrodynamic and chemical controls on the transport and deposition of mud, and thus the constructions of muddy coastal and upstream environments. As such, direct measurements are necessary to constrain the deposition of mud by river systems. Here, we combine laboratory evidence and a field investigation in the Mississippi River delta to explore the controls on the riverine transport and deposition of mud. We show that the flocculation of mud, with floc diameters greater than 10 μm, in freshwater is a ubiquitous phenomenon, causing the sedimentation of mud to be driven by changes in local hydrodynamics, and thus providing an explanation for how river systems construct landscapes through the deposition of mud in both coastal and upstream environments.

Subject

flocs
mud
mud deposition
mud transport
sedimentation

To reference this document use:

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:66eeabab-cfa4-48bf-98c5-a7bf6dc0021b

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GL107174

ISSN

0094-8276

Source

Geophysical Research Letters, 51 (4)

Part of collection

Institutional Repository