A one‐dimensional process‐based approach to study reservoir sediment dynamics during management operations |
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| Authors: | Lucie Guertault Benoit Camenen André Paquier Christophe Peteuil |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA;2. Irstea, UR HHLY, Villeurbanne, France;3. Compagnie Nationale du Rh?ne, Lyon, France |
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| Abstract: | A comprehensive understanding of the dynamics of erosion and sedimentation in reservoirs under different management conditions is required to anticipate sedimentation issues and implement effective sediment management strategies. This paper describes a unique approach combining fluvial geomorphology tools and morphodynamic modeling for analyzing the sediment dynamics of an elongated hydropower reservoir subjected to management operations: the Génissiat Reservoir on the Rhône River. Functional sub‐reaches representative of the reservoir morphodynamics were delineated by adapting natural river segmentation methods to elongated reservoirs. The segmentation revealed the link between the spatial and temporal reservoir changes and the variability of longitudinal flow conditions during reservoir management operations. An innovative modeling strategy, incorporating the reservoir segmentation into two sediment transport codes, was implemented to simulate the dynamics of erosion and sedimentation at the reach scale during historic events. One code used a bedload approach, based on the Exner equation with a transport capacity formula, and the other used a suspended load approach based on the advection–dispersion equation. This strategy provided a fair quantification of the dynamics of erosion and sedimentation at the reach scale during different management operations. This study showed that the reservoir morphodynamics is controlled by bedload transport in upper reaches, graded suspended load transport of sand in middle reaches and suspended load transport of fine sediments in lower reaches. Eventually, it allowed a better understanding of the impact of dam management on sediment dynamics. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |
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| Keywords: | elongated reservoirs flushing operations one‐dimensional numerical modeling reaches delineation sediment transport |
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