EXPERIMENTS OF INFLUENCE OF DISCHARGE PROCESS ON CHANNEL PATTERN

Key words: 
• discharge process /
• channel pattern /
• flood duration

Abstract: Based on experimental data and theory, by means of simplified discharge durations in a small flume, the influence of discharge process on channel morphology and channel pattern was analyzed in this paper. It was concluded that on the same original channel, different discharge and channel conditions would end with different river morphology, including thalwegs and radius of bends. Different discharge process resulted in two kinds of change: tiny change in the process of "big-small-big" and distinct change in the process of "small-big-small". Flood discharge duration was verified to be the main cause in the discharge process. Proper discharge process will change the morphologies of river, even can led to channel pattern transformation. The influences based on the relationship between the flow and the channel itself, including slope and riverbed constitution. Although not be a main cause, original channel morphology may influence its final channel pattern. Neglecting the influence of channel itself will hamper the understanding of channel patterns.