Freeze-Up Ice Jam Formation in the River Bend, a Case Study on the Inner Mongolia Reach of Yellow River
Shui-Xia Zhao,
Wen-Jun Wang,
Xiao-Hong Shi,
Sheng-Nan Zhao,
Ying-Jie Wu,
Qiang Quan,
Chao Li,
Michal Szydlowski,
Wei Li,
Tomasz Kolerski
Affiliations
Shui-Xia Zhao
State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of Water Cycle in River Basin, Institute of Water Resources for Pastoral Area, Ministry of Water Resources, Hohhot 010020, China
Wen-Jun Wang
State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of Water Cycle in River Basin, Institute of Water Resources for Pastoral Area, Ministry of Water Resources, Hohhot 010020, China
Xiao-Hong Shi
College of Water Conservancy and Civil Engineering, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot 010018, China
Sheng-Nan Zhao
College of Water Conservancy and Civil Engineering, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot 010018, China
Ying-Jie Wu
State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of Water Cycle in River Basin, Institute of Water Resources for Pastoral Area, Ministry of Water Resources, Hohhot 010020, China
Qiang Quan
State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of Water Cycle in River Basin, Institute of Water Resources for Pastoral Area, Ministry of Water Resources, Hohhot 010020, China
Chao Li
College of Water Conservancy and Civil Engineering, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot 010018, China
Michal Szydlowski
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Gdańsk University of Technology, 80-233 Gdańsk, Poland
Wei Li
State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of Water Cycle in River Basin, Institute of Water Resources for Pastoral Area, Ministry of Water Resources, Hohhot 010020, China
Tomasz Kolerski
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Gdańsk University of Technology, 80-233 Gdańsk, Poland
Concern has been expressed regarding the impacts of climate change on river ice and ice jam formation in cold regions. Ice jams are easily initiated in bends and narrow channels and cause disasters. In this study, observations and remote sensing monitoring are used to study the freeze-up ice jam formation of bends. Sediment transport and freezing process of the river interact, influencing bed changes profile and sedimentary budget. River ice processes, channel evolution, ice hydro-thermodynamics, and ice jam accumulation are explored. The results show that the channel topography determines the river thalweg, and that the channel elevation interacts with the river ice through sediment transport. The channel shrinkage increases the probability of ice jam, and the sharp bend is prone to ice jam formation. Under the effect of secondary circulation flow in the bend and in the outer bank, the juxtaposed freeze-up and the hummocky ice cover occur in the same location, and frazil ice accumulates under the junction of the main channel and the shoals. Affected by the increase of the hydraulic slope and the velocity downstream, open water reaches develops downstream of the ice accumulation. An open water section is emerged upstream of the bend, due to the ice deposition, and partly cut-off supply of the frazil.
