Effects of spillway types on debris flow trajectory and scour behind a sabo dam

Debris flows are one of the common natural hazards in mountainous areas. They often cause devastating damage to the lives and property of local people. The sabo dam construction along a debris flow valley is considered to be a useful method for hazard mitigation. Previous work has concentrated on the different types of sabo dams such as close-type sabo dam, open-type sabo dam. However, little attention has been paid to the spillway structure of sabo dam. In the paper, a new type of spillway structure with lateral contraction was proposed. Debris flow patterns under four different spillway structures were investigated. The projection theory was employed to predict trajectory of debris flow out from the spillway and to estimate the incident angle and terminal velocity before it plunged into the scour hole behind the sabo dam. The results indicated that the estimated data were in good agreement with the experimental ones. The discrepancy between the estimated and experimental values of main parameters remained below 21.82% (relative error). Additionally, the effects of debris flow scales under different spillway structures were considered to study the scour law. Although the debris flow pattern and scour law behind the sabo dam under different operating conditions was analyzed in this paper, further study on the scour mechanism and the maximum scour depth estimation based on scour theory is still required in the future.     

Characteristics of viscous debris flow in a drainage channel with an energy dissipation structure

A new type of drainage channel with an energy dissipation structure has been proposed based on previous engineering experiences and practical requirements for hazard mitigation in earthquakeaffected areas. Experimental studies were performed to determine the characteristics of viscous debris flow in a drainage channel of this type with a slope of 15%. The velocity and depth of the viscous debris flow were measured, processed, and subsequently used to characterize the viscous debris flow in the drainage channel. Observations of this experiment showed that the surface of the viscous debris flow in a smooth drainage channel was smoother than that of a similar debris flow passing through the energy dissipation section in a channel of the new type studied here. However, the flow patterns in the two types of channels were similar at other points. These experimental results show that the depth of the viscous debris flow downstream of the energy dissipation structure increased gradually with the length of the energy dissipation structure. In addition, in the smooth channel, the viscous debris-flow velocity downstream of the energy dissipation structure decreased gradually with the length of the energy dissipation structure. Furthermore, the viscous debris-flow depth and velocity were slightly affected by variations in the width of the energy dissipation structure when the channel slope was 15%. Finally, the energy dissipation ratio increased gradually as the length and width of the energy dissipation structure increased; the maximum energy dissipation ratio observed was 62.9% (where B = 0.6 m and L/w = 6.0).     

Characteristics of a drainage channel with staggered indented sills for controlling debris flows

The characteristics of a new type of drainage channel with staggered indented sills for controlling debris flows were studied. The intermediate fluid in the non-viscous debris flow exhibited a helical movement, whereas the fluid near the sidewall had a stop-start movement pattern; the viscous debris flow exhibited a stable structure between the indented sills. The experimental results indicate that the mean velocity of the debris flow increased with increasing channel gradients, and the debris flow velocity was slightly affected by the angle of the sills. The average velocity of the non-viscous debris flow increased in the range of(0.5–1.5) interval between the indented sills, whereas the average velocity of the viscous debris flow increased initially and then decreased in the range of(0.75–1.25) interval between the indented sills. The depth of the non-viscous debris flow tended to gradually increase as the channel gradients increased, whereas the depth of the viscous debris flow gradually decreased as the channel gradients increased. When the discharge of the debris flow was constant, the angle and the interval between the indented sills had a slight effect on the depth of the viscous debris flow, whereas the depth of the non-viscous debris flow exhibited a different trend, as the sill angles and intervals were varied.     

Development of a region-partitioning method for debris flow susceptibility mapping

Debris flow susceptibility mapping(DFSM) has been reported in many studies, however, the irrational use of the same conditioning factor system for DFSM in regional-scale has not been thoroughly resolved. In this paper, a region-partitioning method that is based on the topographic characteristics of watershed units was developed with the objective of establishing multiple conditioning factor systems for regional-scale DFSM. First, watershed units were selected as the mapping units and created throughout the entire research area. Four topographical factors, namely, elevation, slope, aspect and relative height difference, were selected as the basis for clustering watershed units. The k-means clustering analysis was used to cluster the watershed units according to their topographic characteristics to partition the study area into several parts. Then, the information gain ratio method was used to filter out superfluous factors to establish conditioning factor systems in each region for the subsequent debris flow susceptibility modeling. Last, a debris flow susceptibility map of the whole study area was acquired by merging the maps from all parts. DFSM of Yongji County in Jilin Province, China was selected as a case study, and the analytical hierarchy process method was used to conduct a comparative analysis to evaluate the performance of the region-partitioning method. The area under curve(AUC) values showed that the partitioning of the study area into two parts improved the prediction rate from 0.812 to 0.916. The results demonstrate that the region-partitioning method on the basis of topographic characteristics of watershed units can realize more reasonable regional-scale DFSM. Hence, the developed region-partitioning method can be used as a guide for regional-scale DFSM to mitigate the imminent debris flow risk.     

Characteristics of debris flow impact on a double-row slit dam

To accurately predict impact loads can ensure the safe operation of debris flow control projects. The instantaneous impact process is usually considered in the calculation of the debris flow impact force; however, the redistribution of an impact load after structural regulation is unclear. In this study we deduced the theoretical calculation of a debris flow impact on a double-row slit dam, and carried out a verification experiment on the debris flow impact.The calculation model considers the in...     

Hybrid simulation of the initiation and runout characteristics of a catastrophic debris flow

On 13 August 2010, a catastrophic debris flow with a volume of 1.17 million m³ occurred in Xiaojiagou Ravine near Yingxiu town of Wenchuan county in Sichuan Province, China. The main source material was the landslide deposits retained in the ravine during the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake. This paper describes a two-dimensional hybrid numerical method that simulates the entire process of the debris flow from initiation to transportation and finally to deposition. The study area is discretized into a grid of square zones. A two dimensional finite difference method is then applied to simulate the rainfall-runoff and debris flow runout processes. The analysis is divided into three steps; namely, rainfall-runoff simulation, mixing water and solid materials, and debris flow runout simulation. The rainfall-runoff simulation is firstly conducted to obtain the cumulative runoff near the location of main source material and at the outlet of the first branch. The water and solid materials are then mixed to create an inflow hydrograph for the debris flow runout simulation. The occurrence time and volume of the debris flow can be estimated in this step. Finally the runout process of the debris flow is simulated. When the yield stress is high, it controls the deposition zone. When the yield stress is medium or low, both yield stress and viscosity influence the deposition zone. The flow velocity is largely influenced by the viscosity. The estimated yield stress by the equation, τ _y = ρghsin θ, and the estimated viscosity by the equation established by Bisantino et al. (2010) provide good estimates of the area of the debris flow fan and the distribution of deposition depth.     

Effect of rainfall on a colluvial landslide in a debris flow valley

A colluvial landslide in a debris flow valley is a typical phenomena and is easily influenced by rainfall. The direct destructiveness of this kind of landslide is small, however, if failure occurs the resulting blocking of the channel may lead to a series of magnified secondary hazards. For this reason it is important to investigate the potential response of this type of landslide to rainfall. In the present paper, the Goulingping landslide, one of the colluvial landslides in the Goulingping valley in the middle of the Bailong River catchment in Gansu Province, China, was chosen for the study. Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT), Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS), together with traditional monitoring methods, were used to monitor changes in water content and the deformation of the landslide caused by rainfall. ERT was used to detect changes in soil water content induced by rainfall. The most significant findings were as follows:(1) the water content in the centralupper part (0~41 m) of the landslide was greater than in the central-front part (41~84 m) and (2) there was a relatively high resistivity zone at depth within the sliding zone. The deformation characteristics at the surface of the landslide were monitored by TLS and the results revealed that rainstorms caused three types of deformation and failure: (1) gully erosion at the slope surface; (2) shallow sliding failure; (3) and slope foot erosion. Subsequent monitoring of continuous changes in pore-water pressure, soil pressure and displacement (using traditional methods) indicated that long duration light rainfall (average 2.22 mm/d) caused the entire landslide to enter a state of creeping deformation at the beginning of the rainy season. Shear-induced dilation occurred for the fast sliding (30.09 mm/d) during the critical failure sub-phase (EF). Pore-water pressure in the sliding zone was affected by rainfall. In addition, the sliding L1 parts of the landslide exerted a discontinuous pressure on the L2 part. Through the monitoring and analysis, we conclude that this kind of landslide may have large deformation at the beginning and the late of the rainy season.     

Mechanism of downcutting erosion of debris flow over a movable bed

The phenomenon of debris flow is intermediate between mass movement and solid transport. Flows can be sudden, severe and destructive. Understanding debris flow erosion processes is the key to providing geomorphic explanations, but progress has been limited because the physical-mechanical properties, movement laws and erosion characteristics are different from those of sediment-laden flow. Using infinite slope theory, this research examines the process and mechanism of downcutting erosion over a moveable bed in a viscous debris flow gully. It focuses specifically on the scour depth and the critical slope for viscous debris flow,and formulas for both calculations are presented.Both scour depth and the critical conditions of downcutting erosion are related to debris flow properties(sand volume concentration and flow depth) and gully properties(longitudinal slope,viscous and internal friction angle of gully materials,and coefficient of kinetic friction). In addition, a series of flume experiments was carried out to characterize the scouring process of debris flows with different properties. The calculated values agreed well with the experimental data. These theoretical formulas are reasonable, and using infinite slope theory to analyze down cutting erosion from viscous debris flow is feasible.     

Experimental study on the viscoelastic behaviors of debris flow slurry

The rheological properties of most liquid in nature are between liquids and solids,including both elastic changes and viscosity changes,that is socalled "viscoelastic".Dynamic oscillatory test was used to quantitatively study the distinct viscoelastic behaviors of debris flow slurry in the shear stress conditions for the first time in this study.The debris flow slurry samples were from Jiangjiagou Ravine,Yunnan Province,China.The experimental results were found that at the low and middle stages of shearing,when the angular velocity ω<72.46 s-1,the loss modulus(G") was greater than the storage modulus(G’),i.e.G">G’.At the late stage of shearing,when the angular velocity ω≧72.46 s-1,the storage modulus was greater than or equal to the loss modulus,i.e.G’≧G",tanδ≦1(where phase-shift angleδ=G"/G’),and the debris flow slurry was in a gel state.Therefore,the progress of this experimental study further reveals the mechanism of hyperconcentrated debris flows with a high velocity on low-gradient ravines.     

An empirical formula for suspended sediment delivery ratio of main river after confluence of debris flow

In order to calculate the suspended sediment discharge of the flood debris flows into the main river,a small scale flume test was designed to simulate the process of confluence of Jiangjia Ravine and Xiangjiang River in Yunnan province,China.By test observation and data analysis,suspended sediment discharge of Debris flow after its entry into the main river was found to have a close relation with the bulk density,the confluence angle of the Debris flow and the main river,the ratio between per unit width discharge of Debris flow and main river.Based on the measured and simulated results,and statistical analysis,an empirical formula was proposed for the suspended SDR(Sediment Delivery Ratio) of the main river after the confluence of Debris flow.Compared with the observed results of Debris flow in 2009,the error between the data calculated by the empirical formula and the monitored data is only about 10%.     

On the criteria to create a susceptibility map to debris flow at a regional scale using Flow-R

Studies on susceptibility to debris flows at regional scale(100-1000 km~2) are important for the protection and management of mountain areas. To reach this objective, routing models, mainly based on land topography, can be used to predict susceptible areas rapidly while necessitating few input data. In this research, Flow-R model is implemented to create the susceptibility map for the debris flow of the Vizze Valley(BZ, North-Eastern Italy; 134 km~2). The analysis considers the model application at local scale for three sub-catchments and then it explores the model upscaling at the regional scale by verifying two methods to generate the source areas of debris-flow initiation. Using data of an extreme event occurred in the Vizze Valley(4 August 2012) and historical information, the modeling verification highlights that the propagation parameters are relatively simple to set in order to obtain correct runout distances. A double DTM filtering-using a threshold for the upslope contributing area(0.1 km~2) and a threshold for the terrain-slope angle(15°)-provides a satisfactory prediction of source areas and susceptibility map within the geological conditions of the Vizze Valley.     

Deposition pattern of stony and muddy debris flow at the confluence area

Debris flow fan affects the river profile and landscape evolution.The propagation of multiple debris flows along a river can cause inundation and breaching risk,which can be exemplified by the Min River after the Wenchuan earthquake,Sichuan province,China.In this work,large flume tests were conducted to examine the interactions between debris flows and water current with the fan geometry,momentum,runout distance,deposited width,the relative water level upstream and dominated stress.The results reveal that stony flow commonly travels at a high speed and forms a long rectangle shape fan,while the muddy flow generally travels at a low speed and forms a fan-shaped depositional area.The stony flow can block a river even when the momentum is close to the water current;the muddy flow can block a river when the momentum is lower than that of water current.In case of complete river damming,the relative water level upstream indicates that the inundation risk from the muddy flow damming river would be higher than the inundation risk of stony flow.The diversion ratio of muddy flow decreases as damming ratio.Comparison of dimensionless numbers reveals that stony flow is dominated by grain collision stress combined with turbulent mixing stress,while the muddy flow is dominated by viscous shear stress over friction stress.The fan geometry,damming ratio,diversion ratio,and the dominated stress all together indicate that stony flow strongly interacts with water current while the muddy flow does not.The results can be helpful for understanding the physical interactions between water current and various debris flows,and debris flow dynamics at the channel confluence area.     

Study on the rainfall and aftershock threshold for debris flow of post-earthquake

Due to the special condition of provenance and disaster environment after "5·12" Earthquake, the probability and conditions of the occurrence of gully debris flow change greatly after the event, which make it difficult to prevent disaster effectively. In this study the hydrological model of ground water table in loose sediment is established. According to infinite slope theory, the safety factor of deposits is defined as the ratio of resistance force to driving force. The starting condition of post-earthquake gully debris flow is clearly studied by analyzing the effects of rainfall intensity, seismic strength, slope gradient and mechanical properties on the balance of accumulation body. Then the formulas of rainfall and aftershock threshold for starting of gully debris flow are proposed, and an example is given to illustrate the effect of rainfall, aftershocks and their coupling action on a debris flow. The result shows the critical rainfall intensity decreases as the lateral seismic acceleration and channel gradient increases, while the critical intensity linearly increases as the friction angle increases.     

Experimental study on the energy dissipation characteristics of debris flow deceleration baffles

Debris flow can cause serious damages to roads, bridges, buildings and other infrastructures.Arranging several rows of deceleration baffles in the significant influence on the mobility and deposition characteristic of debris flow. The deposit amount first increased then decreased when the flow density rises,flow path can reduce the flow velocity and ensure better protection of life and property. In debris flow prevention projects, deceleration baffles can effectively reduce the erosion of the debris flow and prolong the running time of the drainage channel.This study investigated the degree to which a 6 m long flume and three rows of deceleration baffles reduce the debris flow velocity and affect the energy dissipation characteristics. The influential variables include channel slope, debris flow density, and spacing between baffle rows. The experimental results demonstrated that the typical flow pattern was a sudden increase in flow depth and vertical proliferation when debris flow flows through the baffles. Strong turbulence between debris flow and baffles can contribute to energy dissipation and decrease the kinematic velocity considerably. The results showed that the reduction ratio of velocity increased with the increase in debris flow density,channel slope and spacing between rows. Tests phenomena also indicated that debris flow density hasand the deposit amount of debris flow density of 1500kg/m~3 reached the maximum when the experimental flume slope is 12°.     

Numerical simulation on a tremendous debris flow caused by Typhoon Morakot in the Jiaopu Stream,Taiwan

In August 2009,Typhoon Morakot brought a large amount of rainfall with both high intensity and long duration to a vast area of Taiwan.Unfortunately,this resulted in a catastrophic landslide in Hsiaolin Village,Taiwan.Meanwhile,large amounts of landslides were formed in the Jiaopu Stream watershed near the southeast part of the Hsiaolin Village.The Hsiaolin Village access road（Provincial Highway No.21 and Bridge No.8） was completely destroyed by the landslide and consequent debris flow.The major scope of this study is to apply a debris flow model to simulate the disaster caused by the debris flow that occurred in the Jiaopu Stream during Typhoon Morakot.According to the interviews with local residents,this study applied the destruction time of Bridge No.8 and Chen＇s house to verify the numerical debris flow model.By the spatial rainfall distributions information,the numerical simulations of the debris flow are conducted in two stages.In the first stage（before the landslide-dam failure）,the elevation of the debris flow and the corresponding potential damages toward residential properties were investigated.In the second stage（after the landslidedam failure）,comparisons of simulation results between the longitudinal and cross profiles of the Jiaopu Stream were performed using topographic maps and satellite imagery.In summary,applications of the adopted numerical debris flow model have shown positive impact on supporting better understanding of the occurrence and movement of debris flow processes.     

Comparison of different sampling strategies for debris flow susceptibility mapping: A case study using the centroids of the scarp area,flowing area and accumulation area of debris flow watersheds

The quality of debris flow susceptibility mapping varies with sampling strategies. This paper aims at comparing three sampling strategies and determining the optimal one to sample the debris flow watersheds. The three sampling strategies studied were the centroid of the scarp area(COSA), the centroid of the flowing area(COFA), and the centroid of the accumulation area(COAA) of debris flow watersheds. An inventory consisting of 150 debris flow watersheds and 12 conditioning factors were prepared for research. Firstly, the information gain ratio(IGR) method was used to analyze the predictive ability of the conditioning factors. Subsequently, 12 conditioning factors were involved in the modeling of artificial neural network(ANN), random forest(RF) and support vector machine(SVM). Then, the receiver operating characteristic curves(ROC) and the area under curves(AUC) were used to evaluate the model performance. Finally, a scoring system was used to score the quality of the debris flow susceptibility maps. Samples obtained from the accumulation area have the strongest predictive ability and can make the models achieve the best performance. The AUC values corresponding to the best model performance on the validation dataset were 0.861, 0.804 and 0.856 for SVM, ANN and RF respectively. The sampling strategy of the centroid of the scarp area is optimal with the highest quality of debris flow susceptibility maps having scores of 373470, 393241 and 362485 for SVM, ANN and RF respectively.     

The siltation of debris flow behind check dam in the midstream of Bailong River

Siltation gradient and siltation length are important parameters for designing gravity check dams for debris flows, which directly affect the accuracy of estimates of interception capacity. At present, siltation gradient calculations are based primarily on empirical values, and range from 0.4 to 0.95 times the channel slope coefficient. The middle reaches of the Bailong River are one of the four areas in China that are most severely affected by debris flow hazards. Gravity dams are widely employed in this mountainous area. However, field studies of their capacity are lacking. In this paper, the operations of check dams were investigated. Based on field investigation results and theoretical analysis, calculations for siltation gradient, siltation length, and dam storage capacity are established. The impact of debris flow density, channel slope, and particle size weight percentages are discussed. The calculations show that the theoretical values for siltation gradient are consistent with measured values with 83.6% accuracy; and theoretical values of siltation length are consistent with measured values with 91.6% accuracy. The results of this research are an important reference for optimal height and spacing of dams, estimation of dam storage capacity, and disaster prevention.     

Entrainment effects and the dynamical evolution of debris avalanche/flow on substrate materials

A pair of flumes with variable inclinations were employed to investigate the entrainment mechanics and dynamical evolution of a debris avalanche/flow. A fixed quantity of solid and water mixture was released from a constant elevation and accelerated along a higher chute to impact substrate materials with different water contents and particle size distributions in the lower chute. Two high-speed cameras, pore and earth pressure detecting devices, were placed in the substrate materials where severe scouring occurs in order to collect multiple measurements of dynamical and mechanical parameters. The entrainment dynamics were verified by geometrical analysis and quasi-static simulation. The results show that wet and fine materials that are placed in the lower chute with steeper slopes are easily entrained during debris flow initiation, the pattern of which can be described by Coulomb friction and the Mohr-Coulomb law. Elaborate measurements of dynamical parameters enable the results of an elementary computational framework to predict the time-dependent scouring depth ht, which provides insight into rapidly determining debris flow propagation. Finally, the post-entrainment dynamics were studied. The results indicate that the propagation and the amplification of debris flows along erodible beds are dominated by the velocity and the solid volume fraction of the mixed substrate, and the coarse particle group of the substrate is a key feature affected by momentum changes.     

Effectiveness analysis of the prediction of regional debris flow susceptibility in post-earthquake and drought site

Debris-flow disasters occurred frequently after the Mw 8.0 Wenchuan earthquake on 12 May 2008 in Sichuan Province, China. Based on historical accounts of debris-flow disaster events, it found that debris flow occurrence is closely related to the impact of earthquakes and droughts, because earthquakedrought activities can increase the loose solid materials, which can transform into debris flows under the effect of rainstorms. Based on the analysis of historical earthquake activity(frequency, magnitude and location), drought indexes and the trend of climate change(amount of rainfall), a prediction method was established, and the regional debris flow susceptibility was predicted. Furthermore, in a debris flow-susceptible site, effective warning and monitoring are essential not only from an economicpoint of view but are also considered as a frontline approach to alleviate hazards. The advantages of the prediction and early monitoring include(1) the acquired results being sent to the central government for policy making;(2) lives and property in mountainous areas can be protected, such as the 570 residents in the Aizi valley, who evacuated successfully before debris flows in 2012;(3) guiding the government to identify the areas of disasters and the preparation for disaster prevention and mitigation, such as predicting disasters in high-risk areas in the period 2012-2017, helping the government to recognize the development trend of disasters;(4) the quantitative prediction of regional debris-flow susceptibility, such as after the Wenchuan earthquake, can promote scientific and sustainable development and socioeconomic planning in earthquake-struck areas.