Erosion and sediment transport

Sediment monitoring technology

Suspended load Automatic sampling

system
Bed load Passive acoustic sensor
system
Particle bound sediment flux Global
project
Jim Bogen
Section for Sediment and Erosion
Norwegian Water Resources and
Energy Directorate jbo@nve.no

Monitoring station for suspended sediment

transport in rivers

Automatic sampler
Water gauge

Water discharge
measurements

Settling tank

Sampling tube

Turbulent reach

ISCO Automatic sampler

model 6700

High Mountain catchments

Atna Rondane mountains
Sediment rating curve of river Atna indicate
an availability controlled sediment regime.
Data from 1987 - 2001
SSC g/l

Water discharge m3/s

River Atna: Unstable river channels cause

long term changes in sediment transport

Gs tonnes/yr
4000

13 200 t

Q max.m 3/s
140

3500

120

3000

100

2500
2000
1500

80
60

1000

40

500

20

19

8
19 7
8
19 8
8
19 9
9
19 0
9
19 1
9
19 2
9
19 3
9
19 4
9
19 5
9
19 6
9
19 7
9
19 8
9
20 9
0
20 0
0
20 1
0
20 2
0
20 3
04

Sperleelvi, Jostedalen, 14 august 1979

Sediment yield of Norwegian rivers

Suspended yield

Bed load measurements using

passive acoustic sensors
- Field and lab investigations
Jim Bogen & Knut M. Men
Presentation at the International bed load surrogate monitoring Workshop,,
St Anthony falls laboratory, Minnesota, USA,11-14 april 2007

Helley Smith sampler in hydraulic lift.

Measurements in river Suldal , Norway

Need of sediment data for:

Bed load data for planning of
sandtraps and sedimentation
basins
Environmental impact of
downstream changes in water
discharge and sediment load

Gb = k*Gs
Intake

k=0.67-1.0

Alternative sensor plate geometry

vlow

vhigh

Acoustic sensor developed to study

sediment flux in oil

Average acoustic
response

New consept bed load in rivers

1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0

Average acoustic signal

10

15

20

No. of particles concurrently on

sensor
200000
150000
100000
50000
0
0.25- 0.5-1 1-2
0.5

2-4

4-8

Grain size (mm)

8-16

The acoustic sensor was installed in 1999 Bayelva in

Svalbard in the high Arctic

Max and mean acoustic amplitudes Bayelva,

27 June to 5. July 2003
Max follows the mean:
continuous particle flow
Max deviates from the
mean: incipient movement

Maximum and mean acoustic amplitudes river

Bayelva 20 June 2003
Water discharge fluctuations caused by
ice damming:

12000

18

bed load move on ice covered bed

16
10000

Acoustic signal

8000

12
10

6000

Icing
8

Permafrost
4000

6
4

2000
2
0
12:50

0
13:50

14:50

Acoustic maximum

15:50
Acoustic average

16:50
Water discharge

17:50

Water discharge (m3/s)

14

Bed load transport on ice in

river Bayelva

Test flume

Conveyor belt for sediment feeding

Transparent Glass
Steel plate
Acoustic sensor

Test flume

Sedimentary basin

Valve

Circulation pump

Filter basket

Sediment flux: 0-3 kg/s

Water discharge: 0-300 l/s
Flume length: ~3 m

Sediment flux of major rivers draining to

the Arctic Ocean

lb
ar
Ic
d
el
an
d
N
R
us
si
a

E
d

Sv
a

an

nl

re
e

an

la

sk

ad

200
150
100
50
0

Sediment load*10

t yr -1

Se dime nt flux

A small number of rivers deliver a

large share of the sediment flux
Alaska/ Yukon
Canada/Mackenzie
Greenland/East Greenland rivers
Russia/ Ob, Lena, Yenisey, Indigirka,
Pechora, Severnaya Dvina
Total

25

major rivers

20
15

404*106

t/yr

10
5
0
1. kvt.

235*106 t/yr

Particle
Particle bound
bound matter
matter
Adsorbed to
surface

Incorporated
in lattice

Fertilisers
P, N
Metals Fe, Pb, Hg, Au
Pesticides, bacterias
Radioactive matter Cs137

Method: The chemical composition of overbank sediment from

floodplains and deltas is analysed. Cs137, Pb210 or C14 is
used for dating

Sampling of floodplain, Norway

Sampling of floodplains
offered a method to sample
large regions

Pb

Samples for analyses of particle bound elements

Pechora
PCB transport: 1 kg/year

Severnaya Dvina
PCB transport: 6 kg/year

Moscow State University

(MSU)

Cooperation NVE-NGU-MSU

China have completed their sampling programme

(10 million km2 covered by 529 sampling locations)

River Yangtze

The Geochemical Distribution of Cu in China

Cu

Cu

( RGNR, GRN cells )

( EGMON, GRN cells)

ppm
200

ppm
89

50

50

40

40

30

30

28

28

26

26

24

24

22

22

20

20

17

17

15

15

12

12
10

10
1

250 500 750km

250 500 750km

500km

RGNR

> 6 million samples

EGMON

529 samples

Content of DDT in the upper sample (N=529)

DDT
ppm
235
50
25
20
15
10
5
-8
0

250 500 750km

0

500km

Distribution of platina in overbank

sediments in China, 590 samples

Samples for analyses of particle bound elements

Pechora
PCB transport: 1 kg/year

Severnaya Dvina
PCB transport: 6 kg/year

Moscow State University

(MSU)

Cooperation NVE-NGU-MSU

CLIMATE CHANGE
Permafrost melting produces an
increase in sediment flux including
polluted sediments

NVE 2008