The Influence of Vertical Velocity Distribution on the Calculation of Suspended Sediment Concentration

Abstract

Based on the advection-diffusion equation of suspended sediment, a general formula of vertical distribution of suspended sediment concentration was derived by considering the influence of vertical velocity. The new formula was tested against over 3000 sets of field data and obtained a reasonable agreement. Comparing with the Rouse equation of concentration, the accuracy of the new formula increases significantly, and the shortcoming of the underestimation of the Rouse profile in practical application is revised. Through the analysis of the new formula with different vertical time-averaged velocity coefficients m , it was found that vertical velocity does have an impact on the accurate estimation of sediment concentration, and the extent of which is related to the value of sediment concentration. Utilizing the regression analysis, it was found the vertical time-averaged velocity coefficient m increases with the height above the bed.