Author(s)

T.B. Moodie

Abstract

A gravity current consists of the flow of one fluid within another when this flow takes place because of relatively small differences in density between the fluids, Middleton [l]. A turbidity current is a gravity current where the density difference is produced principally by solid particles suspended in the current by fluid turbulence although compositional differences may also contribute. Turbidity currents enter into a vast array of geophysical and engineering applications and their theoretical description has been based principally upon the hydrostatic (hydraulic) assumptions that lead to classical shallow-water theory with some additions to account for the presence of particles. Here we will examine the origins and manifestations of nonhydraulic effects in models of turbidity currents.

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