The flocculation state of mud in the lowermost freshwater reaches of the
Mississippi River: spatial distribution of sizes, seasonal changes, and
their impact on vertical concentration profiles
Abstract
We use in situ measurements of suspended mud to assess the flocculation
state of the lowermost freshwater reaches of the Mississippi River. The
goal of the study was to assess the flocculation state of the mud in the
absence of seawater, the spatial distribution of floc sizes within the
river, and to look for seasonal differences between summer and winter.
The data was also used to examine whether measured floc sizes could
explain observed vertical distributions of suspended sediment
concentration through a Rouse profile analysis. The surveys were
conducted at the same location during summer and winter at similar
discharges and suspended sediment concentrations, and in situ measures
of the size distribution of the mud over the longitudinal, transverse,
and vertical directions within the river were obtained using a specially
developed underwater imaging system. These novel observations show that
mud in the Mississippi is flocculated with median floc sizes ranging
from 50 to 200 microns depending on location and season. On average
flocs were found to be 40 microns larger during summer than in winter
and to slightly increase in size moving downriver from the Bonnet Carré
Spillway to Venice, LA. Floc size statistics varied little over the
depth or laterally across the river at a given station. Bulk settling
velocities calculated from size measurements matched values obtained
from a Rouse profile analysis at stations with sandy beds, but
underestimated settling velocities using the same equation parameters
for measurements made during winter over muddy beds.