Rivers and Floodplains Forms, Processes, and Sedimentary Record

by Bridge, John S.

• ISBN13: 9780632064892
• ISBN10: 0632064897
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-04-18
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Summary

Rivers and Floodplains is concerned with the origin, geometry, water flow, sediment transport, erosion and deposition associated with modern alluvial rivers and floodplains, how they vary in time and space, and how this information is used to interpret deposits of ancient rivers and floodplains. There is specific reference to the types and lifestyles of organisms associated with fluvial environments, human interactions with rivers and floodplains, associated environmental and engineering concerns, as well as the economic aspects of fluvial deposits, particularly the modeling of fluvial hydrocarbon reservoirs and aquifers. Methods of studying rivers and floodplains and their deposits are also discussed. Although basic principles are emphasized, many examples are detailed.Particular emphasis is placed on how an understanding of the nature of modern rivers and floodplains is required before any problems concerning rivers and floodplains, past or present, can be addressed rationally.Rivers and Floodplains is designed as a core text for senior undergraduate and graduate students studying modern or ancient fluvial environments, particularly in earth sciences, environmental sciences and physical geography, but also in civil and agricultural engineering. College teachers, researchers, and practising professionals will also find the book an invaluable reference. Presents a process-based approach, which is relevant to modern curricula. Discusses methods of studying rivers and floodplains and their deposits. Provides many detailed examples throughout the text. Emphasises the basic principles of this subject. As the first synthesis of this entire field, it will be a must-have for all students studying modern or ancient fluvial environments. Teachers, researchers and practising professionals will find this an invaluable reference tool.Rivers and Floodplains will also be of interest to geologists, geographers and engineers.

Author Biography

John Bridge is a Professor of Geological Sciences in the State University of New York at Binghamton, where he teaches and undertakes research in earth surface processes and sedimentology.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Overview of river systems	1	(16)
Geometry of river systems	1	(4)
Origin and evolution of river systems	5	(2)
Water supply	7	(5)
Sediment supply	12	(1)
Controls on geometry, flow, and sedimentary processes of river systems	13	(4)
Fundamentals of water flow	17	(27)
Parameters and units	17	(1)
Reference material	17	(1)
Definition of fluid motion	17	(1)
Forces acting on stationary and moving fluids	18	(7)
Fluid forces and equations of motion	25	(1)
Turbulent boundary layers in steady, uniform flows	26	(13)
Turbulent boundary layers in steady, non-uniform flows	39	(2)
Subcritical and supercritical flow	41	(1)
Unsteady flows	42	(2)
Fundamentals of sediment transport	44	(34)
Parameters and units	44	(1)
Drag on sediment grains	45	(1)
Settling of grains in fluids	46	(3)
Drag and lift on bed grains	49	(1)
The threshold of transport of cohesionless sediment	49	(2)
The threshold of transport of grains of mixed sizes, shapes, and densities	51	(3)
The threshold of transport of cohesive sediment (mud)	54	(1)
Bed load and suspended load	55	(2)
Effect of sediment transport on flow characteristics	57	(3)
Sediment transport rate (capacity)	60	(7)
Sorting and abrasion of grains during transport	67	(2)
Erosion and deposition	69	(7)
Dissolved load	76	(1)
Sediment gravity flows	76	(2)
Bed forms and sedimentary structures	78	(63)
Parameters and units	78	(1)
Bed states in cohesionless sediment	79	(1)
Ripples	79	(4)
Lower-stage plane beds	83	(3)
Dunes	86	(11)
Flow and sediment transport over ripples and dunes	97	(6)
Grain sorting during sediment transport over ripples and dunes	103	(1)
Cross stratification formed by ripples and dunes	104	(13)
Upper-stage plane beds	117	(1)
Planar lamination associated with upper-stage plane beds	118	(2)
Antidunes and chutes-and-pools	120	(5)
Cross stratification formed by antidunes and chutes-and-pools	125	(4)
Hydraulic criteria for the existence of equilibrium bed states	129	(2)
Theories for the origin and geometry of bed states	131	(8)
Erosional structures in cohesionless sediments	139	(1)
Bed forms and sedimentary structures in cohesive sediments (muds)	139	(2)
Alluvial channels and bars	141	(119)
Evolution of initially straight alluvial channels	141	(6)
Description and classification of the plan geometry of channels (channel patterns)	147	(6)
Controls of channel pattern	153	(9)
Geometry of alluvial channels at the bar-bend scale	162	(19)
Flow in alluvial channels at the bar-bend scale	181	(7)
Sediment transport in alluvial rivers at the bar scale	188	(4)
Bed configurations on bars	192	(1)
A model of equilibrium water flow, sediment transport, and bed topography in curved alluvial channels	193	(6)
Models of equilibrium water flow, sediment transport, and bed topography in braided rivers	199	(3)
Erosion and deposition at the channel and bar scale	202	(9)
Effect of vegetation on flow and sedimentary processes in rivers	211	(1)
River and floodplain engineering and restoration	211	(3)
Depositional models for channel and bar deposits	214	(46)
Floodplains	260	(36)
Geometry	260	(1)
Flow and sediment transport	261	(8)
Flood frequency and the nature of floodplain deposition	269	(1)
Nature of floodplain deposits	270	(9)
Soils	279	(17)
Along-valley variations in channels and floodplains	296	(14)
Long profiles of rivers and valleys	296	(1)
Effects of tectonism on along-valley variation of rivers and floodplains	297	(4)
Alluvial fans and deltas	301	(9)
Channel-belt movements across floodplains	310	(18)
Observations of the nature of avulsion	310	(3)
Avulsion and anastomosis	313	(1)
Effect of sedimentation rate on avulsion	314	(1)
Effects of base-level change on avulsion	315	(1)
Effect of climate change on avulsion	315	(1)
Effects of tectonism on avulsion	315	(1)
Theoretical models of avulsion	316	(8)
Effects of avulsions on erosion and deposition	324	(2)
Non-avulsive shift of channel belts across floodplains	326	(2)
Long-term, large-scale evolution of fluvial systems	328	(46)
Process-based models of alluvial stratigraphy	329	(10)
Long-term, large-scale erosion in rivers and floodplains	339	(4)
Stochastic models of alluvial stratigraphy	343	(4)
Effects of tectonics on long-term, large-scale fluvial deposition and erosion	347	(11)
Effect of climate change on long-term, large-scale fluvial deposition and erosion	358	(5)
Effect of relative base-level change on long-term, large-scale fluvial deposition and erosion	363	(4)
Case study of effect of sea-level rise, climate change and tectonism on the Holocene lower Mississippi Valley and Delta Plain	367	(2)
Case study of effect of tectonism, climate, and sea-level change on the Tertiary Siwaliks of northern Pakistan	369	(5)
Fossils in fluvial deposits	374	(16)
Preservation of terrestrial and aquatic organisms in fluvial deposits	374	(5)
Fossils in different fluvial sub-environments	379	(9)
Time and space resolution of fossils in fluvial deposits	388	(1)
Changes in fluvial fossils over time	388	(2)
Appendix 1 Methods of measuring water flow, sediment transport, bed topography, erosion, and deposition in rivers	390	(14)
Measurement of water flows	390	(5)
Measurement of sediment transport rate	395	(2)
Measurement of flow and sediment transport over bed forms	397	(1)
Measurement of bed form geometry and kinematics	397	(1)
Methods of sampling bed-surface sediment	398	(2)
Measurement of erosion and deposition	400	(1)
Sampling deposited sediment	401	(1)
Laboratory rivers and floodplains	402	(2)
Appendix 2 Methods of describing and interpreting sedimentary strata	404	(13)
Description of sediments and sedimentary rocks: data sources	404	(6)
Recognition of distinctive rock types: facies definition	410	(1)
Age determination	411	(1)
Stratigraphic correlation	412	(2)
Interpretation of origin of sedimentary deposits	414	(1)
Interpretation of different scales of strata	415	(1)
Depositional facies models	416	(1)
Interpretation of fluvial deposits from subsurface data	416	(1)
References cited	417	(70)
Index	487
Plate section faces p. 262