Question

In a curved channel, what causes the asymmetry in the full flow speed profile?

Answer 1

In a channel with bed topography that does not vary in the downstream direction, a secondary circulation composed of outward flow at the surface and inward flow near the bottom extends across the entire width. If the curvature is constant, the cross?stream velocity component near the bed and the pattern of boundary shear stress can be estimated by assuming fluid accelerations to be small. Unfortunately, this procedure cannot be used in analyzing the flow through natural river meanders, or through channels with downstream constant bottom topography but with rapidly changing curvature. In these latter cases, effects arising from bed? and bank?induced momentum changes must be accounted for. Evidence for a substantial topographically induced alteration in the cross?stream flow pattern relative to that for the analogous constant bottom topography case is provided through new analyses of several sets of laboratory and field data. Shoaling over the point bar in the upstream part of the bend is shown to force the high?velocity core of the flow toward the pool. This is accomplished by a convective acceleration?caused decrease in the cross?stream water surface slope and a resulting dominance of the vertically averaged centrifugal force. The primary effect is a velocity component toward the outside or concave bank throughout the flow depth over the upstream, shallow part of the point bar and an outward component of boundary shear stress in this region. The channel curvature?induced inward component of boundary shear stress consequently is confined to 20 or 30% of the channel width at the pool. Outward transfer of momentum over the point bar, as manifested by a rapid crossing of the high?velocity core from the inside bank to the outside one, contributes to an enhanced decrease in boundary shear stress along the convex side of the stream as the top of the bar is approached. Forces arising from topographically induced spatial accelerations are of the same order of magnitude as the downstream boundary shear stress and water surface slope force components, so they must be modeled as zero?order, not first? or second?order, effects.