Modeling sediment concentration in debris flow by Tsallis entropy

Vijay P. Singh and Huijuan Cui

Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, 2015, vol. 420, issue C, 49-58

Abstract: Debris flow is a natural hazard that occurs in landscapes having high slopes, such as mountainous areas. It can be so powerful that it destroys whatever comes in its way, that is, it can kill people and animals; decimate roads, bridges, railway tracks, homes and other property; and fill reservoirs. Owing to its frequent occurrence, it is receiving considerable attention these days. Of fundamental importance in debris flow modeling is the determination of concentration of debris (or sediment) in the flow. The usual approach to determining debris flow concentration is either empirical or hydraulic. Both approaches are deterministic and therefore say nothing about the uncertainty associated with the sediment concentration in the flow. This paper proposes to model debris flow concentration using the Tsallis entropy theory. Verification of the entropy-based distribution of debris flow concentration using the data and equations reported in the literature shows that the Tsallis entropy-proposed model is capable of mimicking the field observed concentration and has potential for practical application.

Keywords: Hazard flow concentration; Entropy; Lagrange multipliers; Mountainous regions; Sediment concentration; Sediment particles (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:phsmap:v:420:y:2015:i:c:p:49-58

DOI: 10.1016/j.physa.2014.10.075

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