This book is an introduction to the physical processes of cohesive sediment in the marine environment. It focuses on highly dynamic systems, such as estuaries and coastal seas. Processes on the continental shelf are also discussed and attention is given to the effects of chemistry, biology and gas.The process descriptions are based on hydrodynamic and soil mechanic principles, which integrate at the soil-water interface. This approach is substantiated through a classification scheme of sediment occurrences in which distinction is made between cohesive and granular material. Emphasis is also placed on the important interactions between turbulent flow and cohesive sediment suspensions, and on the impact of flow-induced forces on the stability of the seabed. An overview of literature on cohesive sediment dynamics is presented and a number of new developments are highlighted, in particular in relation to floc formation, settling and sedimentation, consolidation, bed failure and liquefaction and erosion of the bed. Moreover, it presents a summary on methods and techniques to measure the various sediment properties necessary to quantify the various parameters in the physical-mathematical model descriptions. A number of examples and case studies have been included.

Cohesive sediment, or mud, is encountered in most water bodies throughout the world. Often mud is a valuable resource, synonymous with fertile land, enriching the natural environment and used as an important building material. Yet mud also hinders navigation and consequently, dredging operations have been carried out since ancient times to safeguard navigation. Unfortunately, many mud deposits are now contaminated, endangering the eco-system and increasing the costs of dredging operations. The transport and fate of mud in the environment are still poorly understood and the need for basic research remains. This text contains the proceedings of the INTERCOH-2000 conference on progress in cohesive sediment research. It was the sixth in a series of conferences initially started by Professor Ashish Mehta in 1984 as a "Workshop on Cohesive Sediment Dynamics with Special Reference to the Processes in Estuaries". During these conferences the character of the first workshop has always been maintained, that is, small scale and dedicated to the physical and engineering aspects of cohesive sediments, without parallel sessions, but with ample time for discussions during and after the presentations, and followed by a book of proceedings containing thoroughly reviewed papers. INTERCOH-2000 was integrated with the final workshop of the COSINUS project. This project was carried out as a part of the European MAST-3 programme, and almost all European cohesive sediment workers were involved. INTERCOH-2000 focused on the behaviour and modelling of concentrated benthic suspensions, i.e. high-concentrated near-bed suspensions of cohesive sediment. Special attention was paid to: sediment - turbulence interaction; flocculation and settling velocity; high-concentrated mud suspensions; processes in the bed - consolidation; processes on the bed - erosion; field observations on mud dynamics; instrumentation; and numerical modelling.

This volume is the product of the International Conference on Cohesive Sediment Transport (INTERCOH 2003) held at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, U.S.A., during October 1-4, 2003. The topics included in this monograph range from basic research on cohesive sediment dynamics to practical applications. Also included with this book is a database that contains all experimental results as well as a comparison of numerical simulation results supported by the COSINUS project.* Provides fundamental knowledge of the dynamics of cohesive sediments* Presents practical applications of new finds on sedimentary processes* Includes valuable ready-for-use data

Fine Sediment in Open Water is mainly written for professional engineers working in estuaries and coastal systems. It provides the basis for a fundamental understanding of the physical, biological and chemical processes governing the transport and fate of fine sediment in open water and explains how this understanding can steer engineering studies with numerical models. This is a unique treatment of processes at a variety of spatial and temporal scales, from the micro-scale (colloid scale) to system-wide scales, and from intra-tidal time periods to decades.Beginning with the processes governing the transport and fate of fine sediment in shallow open water, the first eight chapters are dedicated to the hydrodynamic, soil mechanics and biological processes which determine fine sediment concentrations in the water column, in/on the bed and the exchange of sediment between bed and water column. The next two chapters treat the net fluxes of fine sediment as a function of asymmetries in forcing and sediment properties. These fundamental processes form the basis for the subsequent chapters on modeling in which the governing equations are presented, and tools are provided to aggregate and parameterize the various processes elaborated in the first eight chapters. Further, any numerical model study should be based on a conceptual model, as illustrated in the final five chapters, which provide examples of numerical modeling studies on the transport and fate of fine sediment in a coastal sea, an estuary, a tidal river, a lake, and around and within a harbor basin.Related Link(s)

Sediment Transport Processes and their Modelling Applications is a book which covers a wide range of topics. The effective management of many aquatic environments, requires a detailed understanding of sediment dynamics. This has both environmental and economic implications, especially where there is any anthropogenic involvement. Numerical models are often the tool used for predicting the transport and fate of sediment movement in these situations, as they can estimate the various spatial and temporal fluxes. However, the physical sedimentary processes can vary quite considerably depending upon whether the local sediments are fully cohesive, non-cohesive, or a mixture of both types. For this reason for more than half a century, scientists, engineers, hydrologists and mathematicians have all been continuing to conduct research into the many aspects which influence sediment transport. These issues range from processes such as scour, erosion and deposition, to how sediment process observations can be applied in sediment transport modelling frameworks. This book reports the findings from recent research in applied sediment transport which has been conducted in a wide range of aquatic environments. The research was carried out by researchers who specialise in the transport of sediments and related issues.

Users Guide to Ecohydraulic Modelling and Experimentation has been compiled by the interdisciplinary team of expert ecologists, geomorphologists, sedimentologists, hydraulicists and engineers involved in HYDRALAB IV, the European Integrated Infrastructure Initiative on hydraulic experimentation which forms part of the European Community‘s Seventh F