Effect of subsurface water level on gully headcut retreat in tropical highlands of Ethiopia

Gully erosion is a major cause of soil loss and severe land degradation in sub-humid Ethiopia. The objective of this study was to investigate the role and the effect of subsurface water level change on gully headcut retreat, gully formation and expansion in high rainfall tropical regions in the Ethiopian highlands. During the rainy seasons of 2017–2019, the expansion rate of 16 fixed gullies was measured and subsurface water levels were measured by piezometers installed near gully heads. During the study period, headcut retreats ranged from 0.70 to 2.35 m, with a mean value of 1.49 ± 0.56 m year⁻¹, and average depth of the surface water level varied between 1.12 and 2.82 m, with a mean value of 2.62 m. Gully cross-section areas ranged from 2.90 to 20.90 m², with an average of 9.31 ± 4.80 m². Volumetric retreat of gully headcuts ranged from 4.49 to 40.55 m³ and averaged 13.34 ± 9.10 m³. Soil loss from individual gullies ranged from 5.79 to 52.31 t year⁻¹ and averaged 17.21 ± 11.74 t year⁻¹. The headcut retreat rate and sediment yield were closely related over the three study seasons. Elevated subsurface water levels facilitated the slumping of gully banks and heads, causing high sediment yield. When the soil was saturated, bank collapse and headcut retreat were favoured by the combination of elevated subsurface water and high rainfall. This study indicates that area exclosures are effective in controlling subsurface water level, thus reducing gully headcut retreat and associated soil loss.     

Effects of riverbed incision on the hydrology of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta

The hydrogeomorphology of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD) has been significantly altered by natural and anthropogenic drivers. In this study, the spatiotemporal changes of the flow regime were examined by analysing the long-term daily, monthly, annual and extreme discharges and water levels from 1980 to 2018, supported by further investigation of the long-term annual sediment load (from the 1960s to 2015), river bathymetric data (in 1998, 2014 and 2017) and daily salinity concentration (from the 1990s to 2015) using various statistical methods and a coupled numerical model. Then, the effects of riverbed incision on the hydrology were investigated. The results show that the dry season discharge (i.e., in March–June) of the Tien River increased by up to 23% from the predam period (1980–1992) to the postdam period (1993–2018) but that the dry season water level at My Thuan decreased by up to −46%. The annual mean and monthly water levels in June at Tan Chau and in January and June–October at My Thuan in the Tien River decreased statistically, even though the respective discharges increased significantly. These decreased water levels instead of the increased discharges were attributed to the accelerated riverbed incision upstream from My Thuan, which increased by more than three times, from a mean rate of −0.16 m/year (−16.7 Mm³/year) in 1998–2014 to −0.5 m/year (−52.5 Mm³/year) in 2014–2017. This accelerated riverbed incision was likely caused by the reduction in the sediment load of the VMD (from 166.7 Mt/year in the predam period to 57.6 Mt/year in the postdam period) and increase in sand mining (from 3.9 Mm³ in 2012 to 13.43 Mm³ in 2018). Collectively, the decreased dry season water level in the Tien River is likely one of the main causes of the enhanced salinity intrusion.     

Spatial and seasonal variability of sediment accumulation potential through controlled flooding of the beels located in the polders of the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna delta of Southwest Bangladesh

The Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) delta plain within Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable to relative sea level rise (RSLR) in the world especially under current anthropogenically modified (i.e., embanked) conditions. Tidal river management (TRM) as practiced in coastal regions of Bangladesh may provide an opportunity to combat RSLR by raising the land level through controlled sedimentation inside beels (depression within embanked polders) with re-opening of polders. To date, TRM has been applied to tide-dominated coastal regions, but the potential applicability of TRM for the beels within the polders of river-dominated and mixed flow (MF) regimes remains to be assessed. We apply a calibrated 2D numerical hydromorphodynamic model to quantify sediment deposition in a beel flooded through breaching of the polder dike under conditions of river-dominated, tide-dominated and MF regimes for different seasons and applying different regulation schemes for the flow into the beel. Simulation results show considerable seasonality in sediment deposition with largest deposition during the monsoon season. The potential of controlled flooding is highest in the tide-dominated region, where sediment accumulation can be up to 28 times higher than in the river-dominated region. Regulating flow into a beel increases trapping efficiency, but results in slightly lower total deposition than without regulation. We conclude that re-establishing flooding of the beel within the polder without regulating the flow into the beel through breaching of the polder dike is a promising strategy for the mixed and tide-dominated flow regions in the delta as the sediment accumulation can raise the land surface at a higher rate than RSLR and effective SLR (ESLR). In the more upstream river-dominated section of the delta, accumulation rates would be much lower, but the pressure of sea level rise on these areas is lower as well. Owing to the abundant availability of sediment, application of controlled flooding like TRM therefore provides an opportunity to counteract the impact of RSLR and ESLR by means of land raising, particularly along the tidal river reaches in the GBM delta.     

Simulation of river flow in Britain under climate change: Baseline performance and future seasonal changes

Climate change is likely to manifest in river flow changes across the globe, which could have wide-ranging consequences for society and the natural environment. A number of previous studies used the UK Climate Projections 2009 (UKCP09) to investigate the potential impacts on river flows in Britain, but these projections were recently updated by the release of UKCP18, thus there is a need to update flow studies. Here, the UKCP18 Regional (12 km) projections are applied using a national-scale grid-based hydrological model, to investigate potential future changes in seasonal mean river flows across Great Britain. Analysis of hydrological model performance using baseline climate model data (1980–2010) shows relatively good agreement with use of observation-based data, particularly after application of a monthly precipitation bias-correction. Analysis of seasonal mean flow changes for two future time-slices (2020–2050 and 2050–2080) suggests large decreases in summer flows across the country (median −45% by 2050–2080), but possible increases in winter flows (median 9% by 2050–2080), especially in the north and west. Information on the potential range of flow changes using the latest projections is necessary to develop appropriate adaptation strategies, and comparisons with previous projections can help update existing plans, although such comparisons are often not straightforward.     

Roughness effect on the correction factor of surface velocity for rill flows

Flow velocity is one of the most important hydrodynamic variables for both channelized (rill and gullies) and interrill erosive phenomena. The dye tracer technique to measure surface flow velocity V_s is based on the measurement of the travel time of a tracer needed to cover a known distance. The measured V_s must be corrected to obtain the mean flow velocity V using a factor α_v = V/V_s which is generally empirically deduced. The V_s measurement can be influenced by the method applied to time the travel of the dye-tracer and α_v can vary in different flow conditions. Experiments were performed by a fixed bed small flume simulating a rill channel for two roughness conditions (sieved soil, gravel). The comparison between a chronometer-based (CB) and video-based (VB) technique to measure V_s was carried out. For each slope-discharge combination, 20 measurements of V_s, characterized by a sample mean V_m, were carried out. For both techniques, the frequency distributions of V_s/V_m resulted independent of slope and discharge. For a given technique, all measurements resulted normally distributed, with a mean equal to one, and featured by a low variability. Therefore, V_m was considered representative of surface flow velocity. Regardless of roughness, the V_m values obtained by the two techniques were very close and characterized by a good measurement precision. The developed analysis on α_v highlighted that it is not correlated with Reynolds number for turbulent flow regime. Moreover, α_v is correlated neither with the Froude number nor with channel slope. However, the analysis of the empirical frequency distributions of the correction factor demonstrated a slope effect. For each technique (CB, VB)-roughness (soil, gravel) combination, a constant correction factor was statistically representative even if resulted in less accurate V estimations compared to those yielded by the slope-specific correction factor.     

喀喇昆仑山西北部冰川运动速度地形控制特征

为了探讨地形和海拔对冰川季节和年平均运动速度的影响程度,利用2013-2018年GoLive数据与ASTER GDEM V2数据对喀喇昆仑山西北部3 389条冰川的地形（坡度、坡向、海拔）和冰川运动速度进行了综合分析。结果表明：冰川表面运动速度在物质平衡线处（3 970~4 770 m）达到最快,是冰川积极维持物质平衡的一种体现。坡度平缓地区在不同海拔下的冰川运动速度有明显的差别,但是不同坡度地区的冰川运动速度随海拔变化的趋势基本一致,均呈现先增大后减小。北坡冰川运动速度较平稳,南坡和西南坡的冰川运动速度（均为0.25 m·d^-1）最快并且变化幅度较大,最小值与最大值相差近4倍。冰川运动速度不是呈现单一的季节性变化,同时还会受到地形的控制。低海拔区域冰川运动速度在消融期（3-6月）较快,中海拔区域在消融前（11月至次年2月）较快。     

新资深大断裂变质带特征、成因及活动演化

在前人研究成果和野外调查基础上,对新资深大断裂变质带特征进行系统总结,从宏观构造、显微构造与组构、岩石矿物学、年代学和地球化学等多学科角度综合研究,分析了新资断裂带各类岩石组构成因,并建立了其活动演化期次。新资深大断裂变质带构造岩主要包括定向组构系列岩石和块状系列岩石,主要是由早期的韧性变形变质作用阶段和晚期的脆性破碎作用阶段先后作用形成。越城岭岩体西侧规模巨大的花岗片麻岩带应属新资深大断裂变质带的一部分,属早期活动的产物,其原岩为越城岭岩体,为断裂变质和动力热流变质作用形成。韧性剪切系列岩石按变形变质强度可分为高温高压韧性剪切带和中温高压韧性剪切带,表明韧性剪切作用具有多期性。新资断裂带活动演化主要经历了四个阶段,始于加里东期,至喜山期均有活动,现在的新资断裂带是经过多个阶段不同类型变质作用由东向西不断迁移和相互叠加的结果。     

北京西郊玉泉山地区岩溶水强径流路径地球物理分析

为研究北京西郊玉泉山地区岩溶水径流路径,需查明区内地层结构和断裂构造发育情况,故在玉泉山周边地区开展了综合地球物理勘查工作。完成1∶25000面积性重力测量3670点,在重力数据解释推断成果基础上,有针对性地布设可控源音频大地电磁测深(CSAMT)剖面测量5.1 km及微动测深点4个。综合研究了基岩起伏形态和构造展布特征,新解释推断了10条可能存在的断裂构造。结合区域水文地质资料,对主要断裂的水文地质意义进行了分析,形成了玉泉山地区岩溶水强径流路径新的认识,部分成果与最新的同位素水化学研究成果一致。本研究为玉泉山泉恢复确定合理的回灌方案提供了地球物理依据。     

泥石流对桥墩冲击力的试验研究

泥石流冲毁桥墩是桥梁在遭受泥石流冲击时的常见破坏形式。为了研究泥石流对桥墩的冲击力大小,通过调整黏土、沙、石子、水的不同含量,配置不同流变特性、不同密度的泥石流,使用所配置的原料在泥石流槽内对两种形状（圆形、方形）的桥墩缩尺模型进行冲击,综合考察了流变特性、流速、桥墩形状以及冲击力的关系。试验表明：试验配置的泥石流原料流变特性差异明显,且可以用简单的选择流变仪测得,用牛顿流体或宾汉体描述。泥石流的流速可用曼宁公式求得,而公式中的糙率系数与泥石流黏度满足幂函数关系。相同工况下,不同形状桥墩所受的冲击力差异明显,方形桥墩阻力系数普遍大于圆形桥墩。使用非牛顿流体雷诺数（Re）可以综合反映流变特性和流速,因此,圆墩的阻力系数可表达为Re的函数,而方墩则没有明显关系。为方便工程应用,可根据黏性泥石流、稀性泥石流对圆墩的阻力系数分别为2.3、0.9,对方墩分别为2.6、1.9进行选用。     

坡度对碎屑流冲击立式拦挡墙力学特征的影响

由坡度和挡墙倾角的改变造成碎屑流冲击力学模型的改变是目前被忽略的问题。在碎屑流冲击倾式拦挡墙物理试验的基础上,利用离散元数值计算方法研究了坡度对碎屑流冲击立式拦挡墙（墙面与地面的夹角为90°）力学特征的影响,依据死区颗粒堆积特征,流动层颗粒冲击特征以及二者的相互作用特征提出了两种新力学模型：由倾斜冲击挡墙向坡面堆积转变的力学模型和考虑流动层对死区冲切摩擦作用的水平直接冲击力学模型。对不同冲击力学模型进行了验证分析,结果表明：坡度和挡墙倾角改变了死区的堆积特征从而改变了流动层的冲击方向和冲击力大小。当坡度小于40°时,碎屑流流动层首先沿死区上覆面倾斜冲击挡墙,在最大冲击力作用时刻,流动在坡面层状堆积,最大法向冲击合力可按静土压力公式估算。随着坡度的增大,在最大冲击力时刻,流动层颗粒直接冲击挡墙,但由于死区颗粒对流动层颗粒具有摩擦缓冲减速作用,大幅降低了流动层对挡墙的直接冲击力。此时死区对挡墙的作用力主要包括3个部分：流动层沿坡面冲击死区,由死区传递至挡墙的冲击力、流动层对死区的冲切摩擦力以及死区自重的静土压力。死区对挡墙作用力占最大法向冲击合力的比例增大至90%左右。当坡度由40°增大到50°时,在最大法向冲击合力作用时刻,流动层对死区的冲切摩擦力占最大冲击力的比例由15%增大到49%,流动层与死区之间的摩擦系数由滚动摩擦系数转变为静摩擦系数。提出的流动层对死区的冲切摩擦力为碎屑流冲击刚性挡墙力学计算模型提供了新的研究思路。