Spatial and temporal variation in particle size and particulate organic matter content in suspended particulate matter from peatland‐dominated catchments in Finland

Properties of suspended particulate matter play a vital role in transport processes, but information from boreal lowland river systems with high organic loads is limited. This study analysed data from 2 years of sampling at 30 locations in Finland (204 samples in total) using suspended particulate matter samplers to determine effective and absolute particle size and organic fractions. Mean d₅₀ value was 22 and 49 µm for absolute and effective particle size, respectively. The organic fraction content ranged from 2.1% to 36% (mean 9.6%), highlighting the importance of particle organic matter for suspended particulate matter flux in the region. The results indicated that the suspended particulate matter particle size distribution and load in the study region is dominated by composite particles. There were considerable spatial and temporal variations in transport of organic fractions, effective particle size and degree of aggregation (range 1.5–93%). Headwaters and, in particular, late summer and spring flood conditions with flow peaks produced the largest composite particles, whereas agriculture‐dominated sites produced smaller but more tightly compacted particles. Organic plant fibres appeared to play a vital role in floc formation in peat‐covered catchments, whereas in agriculture‐dominated catchments, land use‐derived aggregates dominated the composition. This study provides empirical evidence of the importance of effective particle size measurement in understanding the dynamics of suspended particulate matters in boreal lowland river systems. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Composite suspended sediment particles and flocculation in glacial meltwaters: preliminary evidence from Alpine and Himalayan basins

Research over the last decade has shown that the suspended sediment loads of many rivers are dominated by composite particles. These particles are also known as aggregates or flocs, and are commonly made up of constituent mineral particles, which evidence a wide range of grain sizes, and organic matter. The resulting in situ or effective particle size characteristics of fluvial suspended sediment exert a major control on all processes of entrainment, transport and deposition. The significance of composite suspended sediment particles in glacial meltwater streams has, however, not been established. Existing data on the particle size characteristics of suspended sediment in glacial meltwaters relate to the dispersed mineral fraction (absolute particle size), which, for certain size fractions, may bear little relationship to the effective or in situ distribution. Existing understanding of composite particle formation within freshwater environments would suggest that in‐stream flocculation processes do not take place in glacial meltwater systems because of the absence of organic binding agents. However, we report preliminary scanning electron microscopy data for one Alpine and two Himalayan glaciers that show composite particles are present in the suspended sediment load of the meltwater system. The genesis and structure of these composite particles and their constituent grain size characteristics are discussed. We present evidence for the existence of both aggregates, or composite particles whose features are largely inherited from source materials, and flocs, which represent composite particles produced by in‐stream flocculation processes. In the absence of organic materials, the latter may result solely from electrochemical flocculation in the meltwater sediment system. This type of floc formation has not been reported previously in the freshwater fluvial environment. Further work is needed to test the wider significance of these data and to investigate the effective particle size characteristics of suspended sediment associated with high concentration outburst events. Such events make a major contribution to suspended sediment fluxes in meltwater streams and may provide conditions that are conducive to composite particle formation by flocculation. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Turbidity and suspended solids variations downstream of a regulating reservoir

A controlled reservoir release from Llyn Celyn to the Afon Tryweryn, Wales, U.K., has been used to study suspended load and turbidity variations. Turbidity was monitored continuously at two sites and 235 suspended solids samples were obtained at these and three additional sites during the passage of the release wave. The results are compared with data for a natural tributary flood event. The reservoir release data relate to sediment source depletion and reflects changing sources along the channel. Close to the dam, fine organic matter dominates the seston which scanning electron microscopy revealed to be predominantly allochthonous organic matter, with algal fragments and inorganic diatom frustules, derived from the periphyton of the channel bed. Coulter Counter analysis showed the seston to be relatively coarse with a median particle-size of 20 μm. Within 3 km of the dam, however, minerogenic particles dominate the sediment load of which more than 90 per cent is finer than 10 μm. This represents the flushing of channel-bed accumulations derived from tributary sources. The relationships between suspended sediment concentration and turbidity during the release are characterized by a marked, anticlockwise hysteresis. This contrasts with the clockwise hysteresis for the tributary flood event, but the different relationships cannot be explained by particle-size variations alone; seston composition also appears to be an important control.     

Estimating turbidity and total suspended matter in the Adour River plume (South Bay of Biscay) using MODIS 250-m imagery

The Basque coastal waters (South Bay of Biscay) are directly influenced by the Adour River freshwater plume. The Adour outflow leads to important variations of suspended matter concentrations and turbidity, which in turn may affect biological productivity and water quality. This study aims at both developing specific algorithms and testing the efficiency of atmospherically corrected MODIS-Aqua 250-m surface reflectance product (MYD09) to map total suspended matter concentrations and turbidity within the Adour coastal region. First, regional empirical algorithms based on in-situ data were tested to retrieve the concentration of total suspended matter and turbidity from the remote sensing reflectance. Then, the respective sensitivity of MODIS surface reflectance bands 1 and 2 for water quality application was investigated as well as the quality of atmospheric corrections. Finally, selected algorithms were applied to the MYD09 product. The resulting 250-m resolution maps were then compared to 1000-m maps produced by IFREMER and comparisons between satellite measurements and in-situ sampling points were performed. Results show that MODIS-Aqua band 1 (620–670 nm) is appropriate for predicting turbidity and total suspended matter concentrations using polynomial regression models, whilst band 2 is unadapted. Comparison between total suspended matter concentration 250-m resolution maps and mineral suspended matter 1000-m maps (generated by IFREMER) produced consistent results. A high correlation was obtained between turbidity measured in-situ and turbidity retrieved from MODIS-Aqua satellite data.     

Response of nephelometric turbidity to hydrodynamic particle size of fine suspended sediment

Turbidity is used as a surrogate for suspended sediment concentration (SSC), and as a regulatory tool for indicating land use disturbance and environmental protection. Turbidity relates linearly to suspended material, however, can show non-linear responses to particulate organic matter (POM), concomitant with changes in particle size distribution (PSD). In the paper the influence of ultra-fine particulate matter (UFPM) on specific turbidity and its association with POM in suspended sediment are shown for alpine rivers in the Southern Alps of New Zealand. The approach was two-fold: a field-based investigation of the relations between SSC, POM, and turbidity sampled during event flow; and experimental work on hydrodynamic particle size effects on SSC, POM, PSD, and turbidity. Specific turbidity changes over event flow and are sensitive to increasing proportional amounts of sand, UFPM, and POM in suspension. Furthermore, the UFPM is the size fraction (<6 μm) where POM increases. The implications of the current study are that the slopes of turbidity-SSC relations are undesirable in locations that may be dominated by cyclic release of POM or distinct pulses of fine-grained material. At locations where the turbidity-SSC slopes approximate 2, the POM proportion is usually <10% of the total suspended load. However, when turbidity-SSC slopes are <1 this is likely caused by high amounts of side-scatter from UFPM concomitant with higher proportions of POM. Thus, the use of turbidity as a proxy for determining SSC may have serious consequences for the measurement of representative suspended sediment data, particularly in locations where POM may be a significant contributor to overall suspended load.     

Evaluation of a simple,inexpensive, in situ sampler for measuring time‐weighted average concentrations of suspended sediment in rivers and streams

The accurate measurement of suspended sediment (<200 μm) in aquatic environments is essential to understand and effectively manage changes to sediment, nutrient, and contaminant concentrations on both temporal and spatial scales. Commonly used sampling techniques for suspended sediment either lack the ability to accurately measure sediment concentration (e.g., passive sediment samplers) or are too expensive to deploy in sufficient number to provide landscape‐scale information (e.g., automated discrete samplers). Here, we evaluate a time‐integrated suspended sediment sampling technique, the pumped active suspended sediment (PASS) sampler, which collects a sample that can be used for the accurate measurement of time‐weighted average (TWA) suspended sediment concentration and sediment particle size distribution. The sampler was evaluated against an established passive time‐integrated suspended sediment sampling technique (i.e., Phillips sampler) and the standard discrete sampling method (i.e., manual discrete sampling). The PASS sampler collected a sample representative of TWA suspended sediment concentration and particle size distribution of a control sediment under laboratory conditions. Field application of the PASS sampler showed that it collected a representative TWA suspended sediment concentration and particle size distribution during high flow events in an urban stream. The particle size distribution of sediment collected by the PASS and Phillips samplers were comparable and the TWA suspended sediment concentration of the samples collected using the PASS and discrete sampling techniques agreed well, differing by only 4% and 6% for two different high flow events. We should note that the current configuration of the PASS sampler does not provide a flow‐weighted measurement and, therefore, is not suitable for the determination of sediment loads. The PASS sampler is a simple, inexpensive, and robust in situ sampling technique for the accurate measurement of TWA suspended sediment concentration and particle size distribution.     

Effects of continuous flow centrifugation on measurements of trace elements in river water: intrinsic contamination and particle fragmentation

Continuous flow centrifugation (CFC) is a well‐established technique used in natural surface water studies to collect large amounts of suspended solids, thus allowing a broad spectrum of measurements. However, a potential contamination or changes in the particle size distribution during the centrifugation may restrain the use of CFC effluents for element analysis in the colloidal and dissolved fractions. In this paper we evaluate the possibility of using the effluent of a Westfalia centrifuge (type KA2‐06‐075, 9700 rpm) for such analysis. This evaluation is based on two laboratory experiments with deionized and tap water and two field experiments in rivers. Elemental concentration changes across the CFC were assessed from the CFC influent and effluent after a filtration at 0·45 µm. Significant increases were found, mainly in the field experiments at a high suspended solids level and a slightly acid pH. A hypothesis was made on the origin of these increases as a superposition of a centrifuge intrinsic contamination and a particle fragmentation effect. A numerical model based on elemental concentration measurements (inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry) gave a particle fragmentation level of 0·55% (mass percentage of particles broken up into smaller fragments during centrifugation). In another experiment, a direct particle counting (single particle counter) shows an excess of particles smaller than 500 nm in the CFC effluent, corresponding to a fragmentation level of 0·11%. In consequence, the use of CFC effluent for element analysis is possible in low‐turbidity river or lake waters, but should be carefully considered in waters with high suspended matter contents. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Bacteria—particle interactions in turbid estuarine environments

A study of the distribution of bacteria in relation to particle concentration and type was conducted over a spring-neap tidal cycle in the Tamar Estuary, southwest England. Three groups of bacteria were recognized: free-living; those attached to permanently suspended particles; and those attached to particles which undergo tidally controlled resuspension and sedimentation. The total activity and the activity of all three groups of bacteria increase in the turbidity maximum region. The bacteria associated with the permanently suspended particles, which have a larger mean size and organic carbon content than those in the resuspended sediments, contribute the major part of this increased activity. This is a significant finding as it had been previously thought that the increase in bacterial activity at the turbidity maximum was due to bacteria attached to resuspended sediments. However, resuspension still plays an important role because the increase in bacterial activity is consistently coincident with the turbidity maximum.     

Analysis of Space and Time Variations in the Suspended Matter Distribution in Kaliningrad Bay of the Baltic Sea

The distribution of suspension, its composition, and particle size characteristics are studied in Kaliningrad Bay. Zoning of the bay according to the water turbidity is made. The main factors controlling the formation and space and time variations in the suspended matter are determined.     

A practical model to describe temporal variations in total suspended solids concentrations in highway runoff

Techniques to predict temporal variations in concentrations and loads of suspended solids from highway runoff are required to estimate impacts on receiving water ecology and to inform the design of interception/treatment devices. A recent UK study included the collection of rainfall, highway runoff rates and sediment load and quality data from six different sites where motorway runoff drained directly into a receiving watercourse. This data set is used to critically evaluate a previously-published model (Kim et al. 2005) aimed at predicting temporal variations in runoff quality. The comparisons, based on discrete samples collected during 21 storm events, suggest that a simplification of the model, requiring just two parameters, provides a robust estimate of temporal variations in total suspended solids (TSS). Generic parameter values are provided, and the model’s application is illustrated. The model captures first flush effects well, but the identified generic parameters fail to fullypredict the variation in absolute TSS values that are observed in practice.     

Assessing Organic Carbon and Suspended Matter Runoff in the Yenisei Basin

The concentrations of organic matter that enters the aquatic environment in dissolved form, organic matter fractions adsorbed on suspended mineral particles, and the total concentration of suspended matter in the Yenisei water were studied using rapid optical methods. Spectral characteristics of light attenuation and absorption by river water and its filtrates were analyzed in summer. Total discharges of organic carbon and suspended matter by the river were evaluated.     

Stream exports of coarse matter and phosphorus following wildfire in NE Victoria,Australia

The temporal change in total phosphorus (TP) export from two burnt upland catchments is reported. Following wildfire in January 2003, two burnt forested headwater catchments (136 and 244 ha) in the East Kiewa valley, Victoria, were instrumented to measure discharge, turbidity and to collect stream water samples. In addition, samplers were positioned in the stream bed at the outlet of each catchment to continuously sample material transported along the bed of the stream. Approximately, every 2 weeks, the material collected by the stream bed samplers was weighed and sub‐sampled. The percentage of coarse (>1 and < 5 mm in diameter) mineral (including soil aggregates) and organic matter was determined and then analysed for TP. Between the first and third years after fire, sampled coarse matter and associated TP loads decreased by an average of 53% and 62%, respectively. Over the 3‐year study, the amount of coarse matter exported during winter/spring decreased considerably, whereas export rates during summer/autumn remained relatively constant. Coarse matter exports were estimated to be approaching pre‐fire levels after 3–4 years. Results on total suspended solids (TSS) TP and total dissolved phosphorus (TDP) from a parallel study are incorporated to explore TP partitioning. TP exported with TSS dominated the total TP export loads, with coarse matter TP and TDP each contributing approximately 10% over the study period. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Odra River Load of Heavy Metals at Hohenwutzen during the Flood in 1997

The Odra river flood of 1997 was a rare hydrological as well as an interesting sedimentological event. At Hohenwutzen (Lower Odra River) we observed the suspended particulate matter transport and the temporal development of water and solidsπ pollution with heavy metals and As. While the suspended particulate matter concentration decreased the trace element concentrations increased during the flood by fractionation of particles and solution processes. Because of a successive flooding of differently contaminated sedimentary sources and polluted regions the contents of heavy metals developed irregularly. Their median particulate concentrations did not exceed the values of older samples taken under mean discharge conditions between 1989 and 1995. The dissolved amounts correspond to those of the Elbe river in 1990. During the flood the dissolved share of all analyzed total element contents increased. The total loads increased 4fold (Cr) to 17fold (Cd).     

Use of turbidometry to characterize suspended sediment and phosphorus fluxes in the Lake Tahoe basin,California, USA

The efficacy of in‐stream nephelometric turbidometry as a surrogate for total suspended solids (TSS) and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations was evaluated for use in low turbidity (<50 NTU) subalpine watersheds at Lake Tahoe, California–Nevada, USA. Continuous turbidity records for the 1999, 2000 and 2001 snowmelt seasons and data from water quality samples (1982–2000) were examined to determine watershed sediment delivery dynamics. Strong correlations were found between turbidity and both TSS and TP concentration. The strong correlation indicates that turbidity can serve as a good surrogate for direct measurement in these watersheds. The watersheds displayed clockwise hysteresis: sediment flushing and depletion, on daily, seasonal and decadal time‐scales. The hysteresis curves had strong concave shapes, indicating a sensitive response to peak flow. A pronounced seasonal trend was observed for the ratio of suspended sediment concentration (SSC)/discharge over time, indicating early season flushing of available sediment. Significant linear relationships (p < 0·05) were found for 12 of 17 years. Comparison of annual sediment rating curve coefficients indicated smaller coefficients during high sediment loading years and in the years following. The smaller coefficients are evidence of sediment depletion during high flow years. The effect of hysteresis on monitoring methods was illustrated by comparing turbidity estimates of TSS load with sediment rating curve estimates of SSC. After accounting for differences in SSC/TSS methods of analysis, daily loads calculated with turbidity methods were 58–98% of rating curve estimates for the spring snowmelt seasons of 1999–2001. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Composite suspended sediment particles in river systems: their incidence,dynamics and physical characteristics

Most of the existing data on the effective particle size characteristics of fluvial suspended sediment derive from instantaneous sampling methods that may not be representative of the overall suspended sediment loads. This presents difficulties when there is a need to incorporate effective particle size data into numerical models of floodplain sedimentation and sediment‐associated contaminant transfer. We have used a field‐based water elutriation apparatus (WEA) to assemble a large (36 flood) database on the time‐integrated nature of the effective and absolute particle size characteristics of suspended sediment in four subcatchments of the River Exe basin of southwest England. These catchments encompass a wide range of terrains and fluvial environments that are broadly representative of much of the UK and temperate, low relief northwest Europe. The WEA provides important data on the physical characteristics of composite particles that are not attainable using other methods. This dataset has allowed, for the first time, detailed interbasin comparisons of the time‐integrated particle size characteristics of suspended sediment and reliable estimates of the contribution of five effective size classes to the mean annual suspended sediment load of the study catchments. The suspended sediment load of each river is dominated by composite rather than primary particles, with, for example, almost 60% (by mass) of the sediment load of the River Exe at Thorverton transported as composite particles > 16 µm in size. All the effective size classes contain significant clay components. A key outcome of this study is the recognition that each catchment has a distinctive time‐integrated effective particle size signature. In addition, the time‐integrated effective particle size characteristics of the suspended loads in each of the catchments display much greater spatial variability than the equivalent absolute particle size distributions. This indicates that the processes producing composite particles vary significantly between these catchments, and this has important implications for our understanding of the dynamics of suspended sediment properties. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Determination of suspended particulate matter concentration from turbidity measurements: particle size effects and calibration procedures

Measurements of suspended particulate matter concentration and turbidity point towards the possibility of a site‐specific algorithm (SPM), relating SPM to nephelometric turbidity units (NTU). In this paper regression models are presented that account for changes in the relationship of SPM and NTU as a result of changes in particle properties. The models have been developed by the use of daily measurements of SPM concentration and a continuous record of turbidity for the period from June 1996 to February 2001 in the River Elbe, a major river in the eastern part of Germany. The effect of changes in the particle properties with increasing water discharge was taken into account by varying the slope of a linear regression equation according to a logistic function. Water discharge, Q, was defined to be the only variable of this function—as an adequate substitute of the parameter bottom shear stress, which cannot be measured directly. Measurements of flow velocity in the River Elbe show that bottom shear stress is related almost linearly to water discharge up to bankful discharges. Regression models with slopes varying continuously with hydraulic parameters may account for the effects resulting from changes of particle characteristics and thus may have some advantages compared with models with a constant slope or models calibrated for different seasons. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

TEMPORAL AND SPATIAL DYNAMICS OF DIFFERENT PARTICLE SIZE OF SUSPENDED SEDIMENT IN THE LIU RIVER CATCHMENTS,CHINA

1 INTRODUCTION The particle size of sediment eroded from basins can provide basic information about erosion processes (Meyer et al., 1980), which can be divided into sheet wash sediment processes on hill slopes and fluvial sediment processes in rivers. In…     

Weak numerical comparability of ISO-7027-compliant nephelometers. Ramifications for turbidity measurement applications

Nephelometric turbidity, a measure of light scattering by particles suspended in water, is commonly used for indicating water clarity or suspended particulate matter (SPM) concentration. Different turbidity sensors have long been known to respond differently to the same suspensions. Design standards have been introduced to improve comparability of turbidity sensors, notably the ISO-7027 standard adopted by a number of manufacturers. We compared six ISO-7027-compliant nephelometers in river silt, kaolinite (layer clay) and algae-laden pond water, with rigorous tank experiments over a wide (100-fold) concentration range. The responses of four different field-type (in situ) and two cuvette instruments, all calibrated to the same freshly made formazin standards, were very strongly linearly correlated, but ranged about twofold in magnitude. Apparently, even sensors meeting the same design standard (ISO-7027) cannot be relied on to output numerically similar formazin nephelometric unit (FNU) values. This weak numerical comparability highlights the futility of treating turbidity as an absolute quantity, for example in environmental standards or studies of fine SPM effects on aquatic life. Indeed, reporting of turbidity in informal units such as FNU is best avoided. Turbidity records should be converted, by site-specific calibrations, to quantities of ultimate interest such as SPM concentration or total phosphorus. For performance monitoring of field nephelometers, we advocate routine site-specific calibration, not to formazin, but to the light beam attenuation coefficient (beam-c; units: m⁻¹). Beam-c is a proper (SI) physical quantity that can be precisely measured by beam transmissometry, as in our experiments, and is accurately convertible to visual clarity.