The work of a river involves three main processes: erosion, transportation and deposition. At any one time the dominant process operating within the river depends on the amount fo energy avaliable.<\/p>\n
Erosion – the processes
\nRivers tend to erode in one of two directions: downwards and sideways. The terms for this are vertical and lateral erosion. As a river gets further down its course vertical erosion becomes less important and lateral erosion takes over.<\/p>\n
Abrasion
\nThe scraping, scouring and rubbing action of materials carried along by a river (load). Rivers carry rock fragments in the flow of the water or drag them along the bed, and in doing so wear away the banks and bed of the river channel.<\/p>\n
Hydraulic action
\nThis is caused by the sheer power of moving water. It is the movement of loose unconsolidated material due to the frictional drag of the moving water on sediment lying on the channel bed.<\/p>\n
Corrosion
\nThis is most active on rocks that contain carbonates, such as limestone and chalk. The minerals in the rock are dissolved by weak acids in the river water and carried away in solution.<\/p>\n
Attrition
\nThis is the reduction in the size of fragments and particles within a river due to the processes describe above. The fragements strike one another as well as the river bed. They therefore become smoother, smaller and more rounded as they move along the river channel. <\/p>\n
Three videos on erosion by rivers –
\nhttp:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/learningzone\/clips\/rivers-erosion-and-hydraulic-action\/401.html
\nhttp:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/learningzone\/clips\/rivers-weathering-erosion-and-corrasion\/400.html
\nhttp:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/learningzone\/clips\/the-river-conwy-erosion-and-deposition\/3237.html<\/p>\n
Below are some useful and interesting weblinks:
\nhttp:\/\/www.juicygeography.co.uk\/downloads\/flash\/erosion.swf
\nhttp:\/\/cgz.e2bn.net\/e2bn\/leas\/c99\/schools\/cgz\/accounts\/staff\/rchambers\/GeoBytes\/GCSE%20Revision\/Hot%20Potatoes%20GCSE%20Quizzes\/Rivers.Glossary\/rivers_erosion_dragdrop.htm
\nTransport
\nRiver energy not used for erosion and is not lost through friction can be used to transport a river’s load. A river obtains its load from two main sources:
\n\u00b7 Material that has been washed, or has fallen, into the river from the valley sides
\n\u00b7 Material that has been eroded by the river itself from the bed or banks<\/p>\n
A river transports its load in four main ways (see diagram below)
\n\u00b7 Traction\u2013 large stones and boulders are rolled along the river bed by water moving downstream. This mainly happens during periods of high discharge and consequently high energy levels
\n\u00b7 Saltation\u2013 small stones bounce or leap-frog along the channel bed. This process is associated with relatively high energy conditions. Small particles may be thrust up from
\nthe bed of the river only to fall back to the bottom again further downstream. As these particles land they in turn dislodge other particles upwards, causing more such bouncing movement to take place
\n\u00b7 Suspension\u2013 very small particles of sand and silt are carried along by the flow of the river. Such material is not only carried but it is also picked up, mainly through the
\nturbulence that exists within the river. Suspension normally contributes the largest proportion of sediment to the load of the rover. The suspended load is the main cause of the brown appearance of many rivers and streams
\n\u00b7 Solution\u2013 dissolved minerals are transported with the mass of moving water<\/p>\n
Below are some useful and interesting weblinks:
\nhttp:\/\/www.juicygeography.co.uk\/downloads\/flash\/erosion.swf
\nhttp:\/\/cgz.e2bn.net\/e2bn\/leas\/c99\/schools\/cgz\/accounts\/staff\/rchambers\/GeoBytes\/GCSE%20Revision\/Hot%20Potatoes%20GCSE%20Quizzes\/Rivers.Glossary\/river_processes_dragdrop.htm
\nPicture
\nDeposition
\nA river deposits when there is a decrease in its level of energy, it is no longer competent to transprt its load, Deposition usually occurs when:
\n\u00b7 There is a reduction in the gradient of the river, for example when it enters a lake
\n\u00b7 The discharge is reduced, such as during and after a dry spell of weather
\n\u00b7 There is shallow water, for example on the inside of a meander
\n\u00b7 There is an increase in the size of the load
\n\u00b7 The river floods and overtops its banks, resulting in a reduced velocity on the floodplain outside the main channel<\/p>\n
In general, the largest fragments are the first to be deposited, followed by successively smaller particles, although the finest particels may never be deposited. This pattern of depostion is reflected in the sediments found along the course of a river. The channel of upland rivers are often filled with large boulders. Gravels, sands and siults can be carried further and are often depoisted further downstream. Sands and silts are deposited on the flat floodplains either side of the river in its lower course.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"