Numerical Simulation of Sediment Transport to Investigate Riverbed Changes Considering the Effect of Dam Construction (Case Study: Saqqez River)

Articles in Press

Authors

1 Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Kurdistan, Iran

2 Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Kurdistan, Sanandaj, Kurdistan, Iran

3 Department of Civil Engineering, Campus of Bijar, University of Kurdistan, Sanandaj, Iran

10.22034/ceej.2025.64073.2390

Abstract

The study of sediment transport phenomena in rivers is critically important. Human interventions, such as the construction of hydraulic structures across river cross-sections, disrupt the natural sediment transport cycle. The presence of an upstream dam results in the accumulation of sediment materials behind the dam wall, significantly reducing the suspended sediment load in the river. This study aims to investigate changes in parameters such as sediment concentration in the flow and variations in the gravel riverbed due to the upstream dam. Additionally, the study examines the impact of temperature changes and the accumulation of floating debris upstream of bridge piers on the riverbed. This research employs the HEC-RAS hydrodynamic model for quasi-unsteady daily flow and utilizes Yang's total sediment load equation. The results demonstrate that the construction of an upstream dam leads to increased erosion in cross-sections that previously experienced sediment deposition in the absence of the dam. The peak flow sediment discharge entering the study area for the no-dam and dam scenarios was 30640.83 tons/day and 9964.063 tons/day, respectively, indicating a 67.48% reduction in sediment discharge due to the upstream dam. The outgoing sediment discharge from the study area was 12333.93 tons/day without the dam and 7,723.62 tons/day with the dam, showing a reduction of approximately 59.75% and 22.48% compared to the upstream sediment discharge.

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Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 22 January 2025

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