ABE/ENSCI(/NREM) 533: EROSION & SEDIMENT TRANSPORT
Fall 2015
Dr. Pete Moore | 232 Science II | pmoore@iastate.edu | 294-7201
Course description (modified for 2015+)
Soil erosion processes, soil loss models and their application to conservation planning, sediment
properties, initiation of sediment motion and over land flow, flow in alluvial channels and theory of
sediment transport, channel stability, reservoir sedimentation, wind erosion, BMPs for controlling erosion.
Prerequisites: hydrology, hydraulics or fluid mechanics; integral calculus
Course Resources (accessed electronically)
Garcia, M., 2008, Sedimentation Engineering, ASCE manual No. 110. (excerpts)
Dingman, S.L., 2009, Fluvial Hydraulics, Oxford. (excerpts)
Additional research papers and articles as assigned.
Course grading
4 problem sets – 20% @ 5% each
4 lab reports – 60% @15% each
Participation – 5%
final exam – 15%
Student Learning Objectives:
1. Develop a conceptual understanding of a “sediment cascade” and the effects of human and natural
landscape change on sediment pathways and budgets.
2. Understand the physical principles governing the detachment, transport, storage and deposition of
sediments in modern landscape.
3. Be able to use, interpret and critically evaluate selected methods and software packages for
estimating erosion and sediment transport rates.
4. Recognize on-site opportunities for and methods of soil conservation and sediment mitigation.
Course Expectations:
To succeed in this course, expect to spend at least 5 hours per week outside of class reading and completing
reports or assignments. Careful reading is essential to productive discussion, and all class members must
come prepared to participate.
Classroom Environment
Safety Emphasis: Students in ABE classes work with systems that, if misused, can be extremely hazardous.
Therefore developing an attitude of safety is crucial to all engineering and technology professionals.
Instructors may take an array of actions when students fail to complete required safety training (for
example, by coming late to class and missing a safety briefing) or to adhere to procedures. These include
but are not limited to (1) only allowing the student to observe the lab; (2) only allowing the student to
observe the lab, and deducting points from the associated lab report; (3) suspending the student from all
lab activities until the student has successfully completed the required safety portion of the lab (this may
mean attending another lab section where the student can arrive on time); (4) dismissing students – and
particularly repeat violators of safety policy – from the course.
Academic Misconduct: The class will follow Iowa State University’s policy on academic dishonesty.
Anyone suspected of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Students Office.
Note that there ISU identifies several forms of academic dishonesty including: A student uses or attempts to
use unauthorized information in the taking of an exam; submits as his or her own work, themes, reports,
drawings, laboratory notes, computer programs, or other products prepared by another person; or
knowingly assists another student in such acts of plagiarism. Students found guilty of academic
dishonesty in this class face suspension, conduct probation, or reprimand.
Disability Accommodation Policy: Iowa State University is committed to assuring that all educational
activities are free from discrimination and harassment based on disability status. All students requesting
accommodations are required to meet with staff in Student Disability Resources (SDR) to establish
eligibility. A Student Academic Accommodation Request (SAAR) form will be provided to eligible students.
The provision of reasonable accommodations in this course will be arranged after timely delivery of the
SAAR form to the instructor. Students are encouraged to deliver completed SAAR forms as early in the
semester as possible. SDR, a unit in the Dean of Students Office, is located in room 1076, Student Services
Building or online at www.dso.iastate.edu/dr/. Contact SDR by e-mail at disabilityresources@iastate.edu
or by phone at 515-294-7220 for additional information.
Dead Week: For each Fall and Spring semester, the last full week of classes before final examinations is
designated as Dead Week. The intent of Dead Week is to establish a one-week period of substantial and
predictable study time for undergraduate students. During the Dead Week period, regular lectures are
expected to continue, including the introduction of new content, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.
The restrictions established by this Dead Week policy are:
 Due dates for mandatory graded submissions of any kind that fall within Dead Week must be listed
on the syllabus provided at the start of the course.
 Mandatory final examinations may not be given during the Dead Week period except for laboratory
courses or courses that meet weekly and for which there is no contact during the normal final
examination week.
Harassment and Discrimination: Iowa State University strives to maintain our campus as a place of work
and study for faculty, staff, and students that is free of all forms of prohibited discrimination and
harassment based upon race, ethnicity, sex (including sexual assault), pregnancy, color, religion, national
origin, physical or mental disability, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic
information, or status as a U.S. veteran. Any student who has concerns about such behavior should contact
{course instructor}, the Associate Chair of Teaching (Professor Raj Raman, rajraman@iastate.edu,
515.294.0465), Student Assistance at 515.294.1020 or email dso-sas@iastate.edu, or the Office of Equal
Opportunity and Compliance at 515.294.7612.
Religious Accommodation: If an academic requirement of this class conflicts with your religious practices
and/or observances, you may request reasonable accommodations. Your request must be in writing, and
your instructor or supervisor will review the request. You or your instructor may also seek assistance from
the Dean of Students Office or the Office of Equal Opportunity and Compliance.
Contact Information: If you are experiencing, or have experienced, a problem with any of the above
issues, email academicissues@iastate.edu.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
week
1
(8/2527)
2
(9/1-3)
Day
Class
Topic
Lab
Comp: Intro to computing tools: Matlab and
Whitebox GAT
Fluid properties; conservation laws; fluid
constitutive properties
Field: tour of a sediment cascade: Richardson
Branch, Boone County
Class
Lab
3
(9/810)
Class
Lab
4
(9/1517)
5
(9/2224)
6
(9/2910/1)
7
(10/68)
Class
Lab
Class
Lab
Class
Course philosophy; sediment cascade
introduction: the big picture
Soil properties and characterization relevant to
erosion; rainfall and runoff
Field: overland flow and soil erosion, Worle Creek
watershed
Fluid forces on particles; intro to critical shear
stress; detachment and transport processes
Comp: plot-scale soil loss
Sheet and rill erosion; excess shear-stress;
stream-power
Comp: process-based soil loss
Wind erosion; soil erosion model comparison
Lab
Class
Lab
8
Class
(10/1315)
Lab
9
Class
(10/2022)
Lab
10
Class
(10/2729)
Lab
11
Class
(11/35)
Lab
12
Class
(11/10-
Assignment
Amundson et al., 2015
Owens, 2005
Matlab primer
Dingman, ch.4 (p. 137-158)
PS1 (RB watershed)
Bryan, 2000
PS2 (Worle site map)
Garcia ch.2 (p. 24-44)
Leonard & Richard, 2004
Clark & Wynn, 2007
LR1: site assessment
Wagner, 2013
skim Garcia, ch. 17
Comp: soil loss, cont’d.
Gullies; erosion control principles and structures
Field: Hickory Grove gullies
Gully mitigation
skim NEH TS14P
Bergonse and Reis, 2011
Wells et al., 2009
LR2: soil loss model
Alonso et al., 2002
Intro to
Sediment delivery to channels & storage
Walling, 1983
Parsons et al., 2006
Trimble & Crosson, 2000
Stream restoration webinar
Open-channel hydraulics; Saint-Venant equation
skim Garcia ch. 6
Field: bedforms and channel units
Fluvial geomorphology; Lane’s balance; channel
evolution
Comp: LR3 work time
Shields criteria & incipient motion; bedload
transport relationships
PS3
Trimble, 2010
Garcia ch. 2 (p. 44-99)
12)
Lab
13
Class
(11/1719)
Lab
14
Class
(12/13)
Lab
15
Class
(12/810)
Lab
16
(12/1517)
Comp: Present LR3 gully mitigation designs
Runoff routing; flow duration; hydraulic
geometry
LR3: gully mitigation
Dingman p. 50-93
Field: Channel hydraulics and sediment sampling
PS4: bedload transport
Sediment transport; composite and partitioned
sediment rating curves
Wilcock et al., 2009 (p. 1-37)
Computer: 1D flow simulation
Storage timescales; reservoir sedimentation
Computer: complete LR4
Take-home final exam
DUE FRIDAY 12/18, 9:30 AM
Garcia ch. 12
LR4: sediment transport