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Meandering and braiding of rivers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 April 2006

Jørgen Fredsøe
Jørgen Fredsøe
Affiliation:
Institute of Hydrodynamics and Hydraulic Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, DK 2800 Lyngby/Copenhagen
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Abstract

The origin of meandering and braiding of alluvial rivers is re-analysed in terms of stability theory. The flow is described by a two-dimensional model, and the transportation of sediment is separated into bed-load transport and transport of suspended sediment, by use of the improved knowledge of sediment transport mechanisms achieved in recent years. The paper explains why it is important to distinguish between the sediment transported as bed load and that in suspension.

The analysis is able to predict whether a river remains stable or tends to meander or braid.

The results of the stability analysis are compared with laboratory experiments and data from natural rivers, and the agreement is satisfactory.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Fluid Mechanics , Volume 84 , Issue 4 , 27 February 1978 , pp. 609 - 624
Copyright
© 1978 Cambridge University Press

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