Dynamic Characteristics of Suspended Load and Bed Load Transport in Meltwater Runoff of Qiyi Glacier

[Objective] The transportation of sediment via glacial meltwater can not only reflect the glacial erosion and landform evolution, but also is one of the important sediment sources for the downstream river. Thus, understanding the suspended sediment and bedload dynamics in glacier meltwater runoff on...

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Main Authors: ZHAO Yi, WANG Ninglian, WU Songbai, ZHANG Quan, SHI Chenlie, ZHAO Mingjie
Format: Article
Language:zho
Published: Editorial Department of Journal of Soil and Water Conservation 2024-10-01
Series:Shuitu Baochi Xuebao
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Online Access:http://stbcxb.alljournal.com.cn/stbcxben/article/abstract/20240523
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author ZHAO Yi
WANG Ninglian
WU Songbai
ZHANG Quan
SHI Chenlie
ZHAO Mingjie
author_facet ZHAO Yi
WANG Ninglian
WU Songbai
ZHANG Quan
SHI Chenlie
ZHAO Mingjie
author_sort ZHAO Yi
collection DOAJ
description [Objective] The transportation of sediment via glacial meltwater can not only reflect the glacial erosion and landform evolution, but also is one of the important sediment sources for the downstream river. Thus, understanding the suspended sediment and bedload dynamics in glacier meltwater runoff on the Tibetan Plateau is significant for predicting glacier landform evolution and conducting downstream disaster prevention and mitigation efforts. [Methods] To achieve the goal, the variations of flow discharge, sediment concentration of suspended load, and bed load transport rate per unit width were monitored at the downstream channel of Qiyi Glacier in the Qilian Mountains from August 11 to 24, 2023. Based on the observed data, the relationship curves of flow discharge-water level, sediment concentration of suspended load-flow discharge, and unit bed load transport rate-flow shear stress were developed to obtain the variations of both water flow and sediment transport throughout the study period. [Results] The sediment concentration of suspended load and the bed load transport rate in the downstream channel of Qiyi Glacier are predominantly influenced by the variations in meltwater runoff, exhibiting pronounced daily fluctuations. The daily nadir of suspended sediment concentration is observed around 10:00, while the acme occurs around 16:00. The median particle size of the sediments is approximately 0.3 mm, indicating a fine-grained sediment composition. The variation trend of bed load transport rate versus time is almost the same to the suspended load, excepting at 05:00-09:00. During this period, there is no bed load in the channel since the flow shear stress is insufficient to mobilize and transport the bed load. Note that the median particle size of bed load is about 12 mm. The sediment transport in the downstream channel of Qiyi Glacier is primarily dominated by suspended sediment, and the daily sediment transport amount of bedload is much smaller than that of suspended sediment, accounting for only 1.73%~2.81% of the daily sediment transport amount of suspended sediment. Air temperature of glacier is a critical factor influencing the flow discharge of glacier meltwater, the sediment concentration of suspended load, and the transport rate of bed load. Moreover, as air temperature of glacier rises, both the flow discharge and suspended sediment concentration display linear increasing trends, while the bed load transport rate exhibits an exponential increase. [Conclusion] This implies that, in future climate change scenarios, where the flow discharge of glacier meltwater increases, the suspended and bed loads transport within the Qiyi Glacier meltwater will become more significant and deserve more attentions.
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publishDate 2024-10-01
publisher Editorial Department of Journal of Soil and Water Conservation
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series Shuitu Baochi Xuebao
spelling doaj-art-d3a2aa04f712452fb454b6b858da17912025-08-20T02:39:31ZzhoEditorial Department of Journal of Soil and Water ConservationShuitu Baochi Xuebao1009-22422024-10-0138523624310.13870/j.cnki.stbcxb.2024.05.0391009-2242-(2024)05-0236-08Dynamic Characteristics of Suspended Load and Bed Load Transport in Meltwater Runoff of Qiyi GlacierZHAO Yi0WANG Ninglian1WU Songbai2ZHANG Quan3SHI Chenlie4ZHAO Mingjie5Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Earth Surface System and Environmental Carrying Capacity, Xi’an 710127, ChinaShaanxi Key Laboratory of Earth Surface System and Environmental Carrying Capacity, Xi’an 710127, ChinaShaanxi Key Laboratory of Earth Surface System and Environmental Carrying Capacity, Xi’an 710127, ChinaShaanxi Key Laboratory of Earth Surface System and Environmental Carrying Capacity, Xi’an 710127, ChinaShaanxi Key Laboratory of Earth Surface System and Environmental Carrying Capacity, Xi’an 710127, ChinaShaanxi Key Laboratory of Earth Surface System and Environmental Carrying Capacity, Xi’an 710127, China[Objective] The transportation of sediment via glacial meltwater can not only reflect the glacial erosion and landform evolution, but also is one of the important sediment sources for the downstream river. Thus, understanding the suspended sediment and bedload dynamics in glacier meltwater runoff on the Tibetan Plateau is significant for predicting glacier landform evolution and conducting downstream disaster prevention and mitigation efforts. [Methods] To achieve the goal, the variations of flow discharge, sediment concentration of suspended load, and bed load transport rate per unit width were monitored at the downstream channel of Qiyi Glacier in the Qilian Mountains from August 11 to 24, 2023. Based on the observed data, the relationship curves of flow discharge-water level, sediment concentration of suspended load-flow discharge, and unit bed load transport rate-flow shear stress were developed to obtain the variations of both water flow and sediment transport throughout the study period. [Results] The sediment concentration of suspended load and the bed load transport rate in the downstream channel of Qiyi Glacier are predominantly influenced by the variations in meltwater runoff, exhibiting pronounced daily fluctuations. The daily nadir of suspended sediment concentration is observed around 10:00, while the acme occurs around 16:00. The median particle size of the sediments is approximately 0.3 mm, indicating a fine-grained sediment composition. The variation trend of bed load transport rate versus time is almost the same to the suspended load, excepting at 05:00-09:00. During this period, there is no bed load in the channel since the flow shear stress is insufficient to mobilize and transport the bed load. Note that the median particle size of bed load is about 12 mm. The sediment transport in the downstream channel of Qiyi Glacier is primarily dominated by suspended sediment, and the daily sediment transport amount of bedload is much smaller than that of suspended sediment, accounting for only 1.73%~2.81% of the daily sediment transport amount of suspended sediment. Air temperature of glacier is a critical factor influencing the flow discharge of glacier meltwater, the sediment concentration of suspended load, and the transport rate of bed load. Moreover, as air temperature of glacier rises, both the flow discharge and suspended sediment concentration display linear increasing trends, while the bed load transport rate exhibits an exponential increase. [Conclusion] This implies that, in future climate change scenarios, where the flow discharge of glacier meltwater increases, the suspended and bed loads transport within the Qiyi Glacier meltwater will become more significant and deserve more attentions.http://stbcxb.alljournal.com.cn/stbcxben/article/abstract/20240523glacial meltwater runoffbed loadsuspended loadsediment transportclimate change
spellingShingle ZHAO Yi
WANG Ninglian
WU Songbai
ZHANG Quan
SHI Chenlie
ZHAO Mingjie
Dynamic Characteristics of Suspended Load and Bed Load Transport in Meltwater Runoff of Qiyi Glacier
Shuitu Baochi Xuebao
glacial meltwater runoff
bed load
suspended load
sediment transport
climate change
title Dynamic Characteristics of Suspended Load and Bed Load Transport in Meltwater Runoff of Qiyi Glacier
title_full Dynamic Characteristics of Suspended Load and Bed Load Transport in Meltwater Runoff of Qiyi Glacier
title_fullStr Dynamic Characteristics of Suspended Load and Bed Load Transport in Meltwater Runoff of Qiyi Glacier
title_full_unstemmed Dynamic Characteristics of Suspended Load and Bed Load Transport in Meltwater Runoff of Qiyi Glacier
title_short Dynamic Characteristics of Suspended Load and Bed Load Transport in Meltwater Runoff of Qiyi Glacier
title_sort dynamic characteristics of suspended load and bed load transport in meltwater runoff of qiyi glacier
topic glacial meltwater runoff
bed load
suspended load
sediment transport
climate change
url http://stbcxb.alljournal.com.cn/stbcxben/article/abstract/20240523
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AT wangninglian dynamiccharacteristicsofsuspendedloadandbedloadtransportinmeltwaterrunoffofqiyiglacier
AT wusongbai dynamiccharacteristicsofsuspendedloadandbedloadtransportinmeltwaterrunoffofqiyiglacier
AT zhangquan dynamiccharacteristicsofsuspendedloadandbedloadtransportinmeltwaterrunoffofqiyiglacier
AT shichenlie dynamiccharacteristicsofsuspendedloadandbedloadtransportinmeltwaterrunoffofqiyiglacier
AT zhaomingjie dynamiccharacteristicsofsuspendedloadandbedloadtransportinmeltwaterrunoffofqiyiglacier