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Stochastic flocculation of cohesive sediment: Analysis of floc mobility within the floc size spectrum
Civil and Environmental Engineering, Berkeley Water Center, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA
A stochastic Lagrangian model is proposed to describe flocculation of suspended cohesive sediment flocs. This model takes into account the floc population in a parametric fashion, and predicts the time evolution of an individual floc by a sequence of stochastic aggregation and breakup events. Upon calibration on experimental data, the model was used to investigate floc mobility within the population size spectrum, bringing to light dynamical aspects not otherwise detectable with deterministic models. Our analysis showed that floc size fluctuations correlated with the population size distribution and breakup probability, and that size-dependent burst events repeated intermittently in time. Further analysis showed the effect of the floc population distribution on individual floc size transition and equilibrium, and the effect of using either a constant or variable floc capacity dimension to describe floc geometry.
Received 11 April 2007; accepted 31 October 2007; published 26 January 2008.
Citation: (2008), Stochastic flocculation of cohesive sediment: Analysis of floc mobility within the floc size spectrum, Water Resour. Res., 44, W01433, doi:10.1029/2007WR006109.
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