ABSTRACT
A part of hydraulic engineering is devoted to the so-called sediment transport science or sediment transport engineering or sediment transport technology. All these are nearly synonymous terms, describing the engineering science that (1) deals with the phenomena and processes taking place not only in fluvial systems (on which we concentrate in this chapter) but also on bare soil subjected to precipitation where sediments are generated, lakes or reservoirs and estuaries receiving river sediment-laden water and the coastal environment where sediments are finally deposited and transported alongshore, and (2) provides engineering solutions to alleviate adverse problems of erosion, sediment transport and deposition. Therefore, sediment transport phenomena or processes deal with the interrelationship between the sediment particles and the flowing or nearly stagnant water. Typical processes include (1) the impact of rainfall that drops on soil, soil grain detachment and erosion, (2) sediment entrainment by runoff and transportation, (3) channel aggradation/degradation and (4) sediment deposition. These processes are often described in brief or in a simplified way, as erosion, sediment movement or transport, deposition or sedimentation.
