Evolution of the Relationship between Runoff and Sediment Transport during Flood Event in the Chabagou Watershed of the Loess Plateau

Qiannan Yang, Haidong Gao (), Yong Han, Zhanbin Li and Kexin Lu
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Qiannan Yang: State Key Laboratory of Eco-Hydraulics in Northwest Arid Region of China, Xi’an University of Technology, Xi’an 710048, China
Haidong Gao: State Key Laboratory of Eco-Hydraulics in Northwest Arid Region of China, Xi’an University of Technology, Xi’an 710048, China
Yong Han: State Key Laboratory of Eco-Hydraulics in Northwest Arid Region of China, Xi’an University of Technology, Xi’an 710048, China
Zhanbin Li: State Key Laboratory of Eco-Hydraulics in Northwest Arid Region of China, Xi’an University of Technology, Xi’an 710048, China
Kexin Lu: State Key Laboratory of Eco-Hydraulics in Northwest Arid Region of China, Xi’an University of Technology, Xi’an 710048, China

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 18, 1-14

Abstract: Research on flood events is one of the most important parts to study runoff and sediment transport in the typical watershed on the Loess Plateau. Based on 101 floods in Period I (PD-I, 1970 to 1990) and Period II (PD-II, 2006 to 2018), and combined with rainfall data, the study indicated the evolution of runoff and sediment transport characteristics during flood events in the Chabagou watershed, and reveal its influencing factors in both periods. Results showed: (1) Sediment yield (SY) increased linearly with runoff amount (RA), and the increasing rate of SY in PD-II was around 20% of PD-I, the relationship between peak flow (PF) and sediment concentration (SC) was the power function, and the SC in PD-II was lower than that in PD-I under the same PF. (2) SY was more sensitive to P (precipitation) of the flood event than rainfall intensity (RI), and the sensitivity of RA and SY to P in PD-II was greater than that in PD-I. The sediment delivery modulus (SDM) with rainfall erosivity (RE) was also linear, and the increasing rate of SDM in PD-II was 27% of PD-I. (3) The better improvement of the underlying surface not only raised the threshold of RA and corresponded with peak SC, but also shortened the duration of high sediment concentration and lowered the sediment transportation capacity by contrasting the flood processes.

Keywords: flood event; runoff and sediment; erosion dynamics; conservation measures; the Loess Plateau (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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