Incipient sediment motion in vegetated open-channel flows predicted by critical flow velocity

Incipient sediment motion plays a key role in scouring and bed load transport. However, the incipient sediment motion in the vegetated open-channel flows has yet to be fully understood. This study aims to quantify the critical conditions of the sediment particle movement in the presence of emergent and submerged vegetation. A new formula of the critical flow velocity was proposed to predict the incipient sediment motion based on the force balance equation of a sediment particle and the assumption that the velocity distribution in the bed roughness boundary layer fits the logarithmic law. Analysis of the derived formula revealed that the critical flow velocity for incipient sediment motion decreases with the increase in vegetation density. The proposed formula agrees well with the experimental data in the literature, thereby implying that the critical flow velocity can effectively quantify the incipient sediment motion in the vegetated open channel flows.