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For a constant-volume unit-width particle-laden gravity current with $M=Lh$, define the particle-fluid reference reduced gravity $g_0^{\prime }=g({\rho }_p-{\rho }_0)/{\rho }_0$, so the current has $g^{\prime }=g_0^{\prime }\varphi$. A constant front Froude number and absorbing-bed hindered settling give $\dot{L}=F\sqrt{g_0^{\prime }\varphi M/L}$ and $\dot{\varphi }=-(V_{s}L/M)\varphi (1-\varphi )$. Eliminating time and integrating gives the displayed runout length of a gravity current. For large runout and dilute initial concentration, $L_{\infty }^5\sim 25F^2{M}^3{g}_0^{\prime }({\varphi }_0+2{\varphi }_0^2/3+\cdots )/V_s^2$. This $g_0^{\prime }$ is buoyancy per unit particle fraction, not the initial current reduced gravity $g_0^{\prime }{\varphi }_0$.

A well-mixed particle-laden gravity current in a prismatic channel with $b(z)=C\sqrt{z}$ has volume $V=2C{h}^{3/2}L/3$. Negligible entrainment gives fixed $V$. Vertical particle deposition flux is $W_s\varphi b(h)L$, so $\dot{\varphi }=-3W_s\varphi /(2h)$. Close the front by $\dot{L}=F\sqrt{G\varphi h}$, where $G=g({\rho }_p-{\rho }_0)/{\rho }_0$. Eliminating time givesThe concentration tends to zero at a finite limiting runout length of a gravity current, although reaching that limit takes infinite time in this model.

A steady well-mixed dilute particle-laden gravity current above an absorbing porous bed loses carrier fluid at speed $W$ and particles at total downward speed $W+V$, where $V$ is their relative settling velocity magnitude. Volume conservation and the particle budget give $Q=Q_0-Wx$ and $\varphi =(Q/Q_0{)}^{V/W}$ for $W>0$. The momentum conservation equation is $(Q^2/h+g_0^{\prime }\varphi h^2/2{)}^{\prime }=-Wu$ if the withdrawn fluid carries its local horizontal velocity. Consequently $u{u}^{\prime }+g_0^{\prime }\varphi h^{\prime }+g_0^{\prime }h{\varphi }^{\prime }/2=0$. At $W=0$, $\varphi =e^{-Vx/Q_0}$ and the momentum flux is constant.

For identical suspended particles, reduced gravity is proportional to particle volume fraction. If particles settle through the bed at speed $v_s$ and are not resuspended, the downward particle deposition flux removes a buoyancy-equivalent amount $v_s{g}^{\prime }$ per unit bed area. The depth-integrated scalar mass conservation equation isFor a steady particle-laden gravity current, $B_x=-v_{s}B/(uh)$. If $v_s/u\ll 1$, with fixed positive $E$ and drag/slope coefficients, the locally adjusted leading solution of the momentum and volume equations is $u\sim {\beta }_{\ast }{B}^{1/3}$ and $h\sim h_0+E(x-x_0)$. The weak-settling attenuation of a sloping gravity current then givesand henceFor an inlet at $x_0=0$ this has the requested logarithmic form. If the inlet is genuinely at $x_0\ne 0$, the argument must contain $x-x_0$ in order to satisfy the specified inlet condition.

The speed factor must be the ${\beta }_{\ast }$ derived in the previous part. The printed $\beta$ omits the factor one-half multiplying $E\cos \theta$ and uses an undefined uppercase $C$ instead of the governing equation's $c$. Taking $C=c$ still leaves a nonzero leading momentum residual $-\frac{1}{2}E(B/u)\cos \theta$ for the printed speed; this discrepancy cannot be repaired by a correction of order $v_s/u$. With the given hydrostatic momentum equation, the logarithmic law is valid with ${\beta }_{\ast }$, not the printed speed factor.

A controlled local approximation also needs $v_s/(Eu)\ll 1$ if $E$ is allowed to become small. Indeed the exact volume balance is $h_x=E-h{u}_x/u$; under $u\sim {\beta }_{\ast }{B}^{1/3}$ its second term is $v_s/(3u)$. The neglected depth and acceleration corrections become significant as $B$ approaches zero.

For a steady no-source particle-laden gravity current, $B_x=-v_s{g}^{\prime }<0$. Simply entraining particle-free ambient fluid increases volume and dilutes particle volume fraction; it cannot create particle buoyancy flux.

A steady increase can occur if sediment resuspension or bed erosion adds more suspended particle buoyancy than settling removes, if a tributary or lateral particle source supplies a positive flux, or if the buoyancy per unit particle amount increases through a change of the surrounding fluid's density. Changes of particle properties or another buoyancy source can also alter the flux, but they go beyond the fixed-particle, fixed-reference model. In a model with a source $S_B$,Thus the buoyancy production in a particle-laden current requires $S_B>v_s{g}^{\prime }$ in a steady current. In an unsteady current, $B_x$ can be positive even without external addition: local depletion has ${\partial }_t(g^{\prime }h)<-v_s{g}^{\prime }$, so more buoyancy leaves a section than enters it while stored particles are being released. An instantaneous spatial flux increase is not by itself proof of particle production.

Take the current to be dilute, vertically well mixed and Boussinesq approximation, with constant channel width $w$, a horizontal absorbing bed, negligible ambient fluid entrainment, negligible bed friction, and no resuspension. The shallow-water approximation neglects vertical inertia and gives hydrostatic pressure. Particle loss alters reduced gravity but does not alter the leading-order carrier-fluid volume or inertia; otherwise additional mass and momentum terms would be necessary. The current occupies depth $h(x,t)$, has depth-uniform speed $u(x,t)$, and has particle volume fraction $c(x,t)$, with $g^{\prime }=g_{o}c$ and constant $g_o>0$.

Volume conservation of a short channel segment gives $h_t+(uh{)}_x=0$. Its suspended particle amount per unit bed area is $hc$, and the downward particle deposition flux is $v_{s}c$. Thus $(hc{)}_t+(uhc{)}_x=-v_{s}c$, which becomes $(h{g}^{\prime }{)}_t+(uh{g}^{\prime }{)}_x=-v_s{g}^{\prime }$ on multiplying by $g_o$.

At vertical coordinate $y$ above the bed, excess hydrostatic pressure divided by reference mass density is $g^{\prime }(h-y)$. Integrating across the depth gives the depth-integrated force flux $g^{\prime }{h}^2/2$. The horizontal momentum per unit bed area is $hu$ and the advected kinematic momentum flux is $h{u}^2$. The resulting variable-buoyancy shallow water equations areThe derivative of the pressure term acts on both $h$ and $g^{\prime }$; treating reduced gravity as horizontally constant while particles settle would lose part of the force.

For a steady interior, let $q=Q/w=uh>0$ denote volume flux per unit width. Then the particle balance is a first-order linear differential equation,Here $g_0^{\prime }=g^{\prime }(0)>0$, $v_s\ge 0$ is constant, and deposited particles are not returned to the current. In particular the decay length is $q/v_s=Q/(w{v}_s)$ for $v_s>0$, and the cancellation of depth follows from $uh=q$: dilution and transit time compensate in the deposition balance.

The steady momentum equation also givesThe inlet depth selects $K=q^2/h_0+g_0^{\prime }{h}_0^2/2$. Depth and speed at every downstream position are determined by the continuous positive root of a polynomial inThis implicit expression also makes clear why the inlet condition is needed: there are generally two possible positive depths.

The depth branches of a steady depositing gravity current are distinguished by the Froude number ${\mathrm{Fr}}^2=q^2/(g^{\prime }{h}^3)$. Differentiating the momentum invariant, and using the exponential decay of reduced gravity, givesFor $v_s>0$, supercritical flow has $\mathrm{Fr}>1$ and decreasing depth, with $h\to q^2/K$ and $u\to K/q$ as $x\to \infty$. Subcritical flow has $\mathrm{Fr}<1$ and increasing depth, with $h\sim \sqrt{2K/g^{\prime }(x)}\propto e^{v_{s}x/(2q)}$. This indefinitely deepening branch eventually violates the assumed shallow or confined-channel geometry. Hence the depth does not universally decrease: that conclusion needs a supercritical inlet.

For fixed $g^{\prime }>0$, $q^2/h+g^{\prime }{h}^2/2$ has its unique minimum at $h_c=(q^2/g^{\prime }{)}^{1/3}$, with $K_c=3q^{4/3}(g^{\prime }{)}^{1/3}/2$. The two positive roots when $K>K_c$ lie below and above $h_c$. Since $K_c$ decreases downstream while $K$ is constant, an initially strict branch remains separate from the other branch and cannot cross a critical point. A critical inlet with $v_s>0$ has no finite depth derivative: at $\mathrm{Fr}=1$ the first differentiated equation would equate zero to a positive value. It requires a singular entrance adjustment or physics beyond this steady model. If $v_s=0$, both reduced gravity and the continuous depth branch are constant. These steady solutions describe the supplied current interior, not a moving finite-release front.

For two particle populations, write $g^{\prime }=g_1^{\prime }+g_2^{\prime }$ and $g_i^{\prime }=g_{0i}{c}_i$, allowing different constant particle-density conversion factors. The bidisperse particle-laden gravity current equations areFor the steady case,Thus the depth is obtained from the same cubic polynomial invariant with the sum of the two exponentially decreasing reduced gravity contributions.

The local deposit consists of the two particle deposition fluxes $v_1{c}_1$ and $v_2{c}_2$. For a positive total deposition rate, the bidisperse gravity-current deposition fraction by particle volume isIf the particles have a common material density, this is also their local mass fraction. If they have common $g_o$, it can be written in the source's buoyancy notation asFor unequal $g_{0i}$ replace each $g_{i0}^{\prime }$ by $g_{i0}^{\prime }/g_{0i}$. The exponent sign matters: with both populations present and $v_1>v_2>0$, the faster-settling population has decreasing local deposit fraction downstream, since $f_1^{\prime }=(v_2-v_1)f_1(1-f_1)/q<0$. Equal positive settling speeds give a constant fraction. A nonsettling population contributes no deposit; if the entire local deposition rate is zero the deposit fraction is undefined.

If “fraction of particles” means number fraction rather than particle-volume or mass fraction, let $a_i$ be a single particle's volume in population $i$. The correct weights are then $v_i{c}_i/a_i$, soSettling speeds alone do not determine $a_i$ without particle properties and a drag law. Finally, if the intended deposit is cumulative over the bed from $0$ to $x$, rather than local at $x$, integrating particle deposition flux gives the species volumes per unit channel width $D_i(x)=q{c}_{i0}(1-e^{-v_{i}x/q})$. The cumulative particle-volume fraction isFor both $v_i>0$, its limit at infinity is the incoming particle-volume fraction, whereas its limit as $x\downarrow 0$ is the local deposition fraction at the inlet. Local sorting and the cumulative inventory are different observables.

When ${\hat{W}}_1={\hat{W}}_2=\hat{W}$, both concentrations acquire the same decay factor. The total reduced gravity consequently obeysEliminating time with the front equation givesIntegration from the initial state yieldswhereThe particle-laden gravity current reaches its runout length of a gravity current when $g^{\prime }$ vanishes. Since $\hat{W}<0$,Thus $C=5\mathrm{Fr}$ for the stated front condition; the common normalization $\mathrm{Fr}=1$ gives $C=5$.

A uniform-depth particle-laden gravity current in fixed triangular cross section has conserved volume proportional to $h^{2}X$. A gravity-current front condition and absorbing-boundary particle deposition flux give $\dot{X}=\mathrm{Fr}\sqrt{G\varphi h}$ and $\dot{\varphi }=-2w(\varphi )\varphi /h$. The box describes late-time bulk evolution; it does not resolve the nose or immediate dam-break flow.

Sediment resuspension transfers deposited bed particles into a particle suspension. It can supply particle buoyancy flux to a particle-laden gravity current if erosion or upward mixing exceeds settling losses. Ambient fluid without particles dilutes concentration without supplying particle mass.

In a mixed particle-laden gravity current, a size class with settling speed $w$ has concentration $c(w,t)=c_0(w)e^{-wJ(t)}$. The shared reduced gravity is $g^{\prime }(J)=\int g_0(w)c_0(w)e^{-wJ}dw$, and $d{R}^4/dJ=4\mathrm{Fr}(\mathcal{V}/\pi {)}^{3/2}\sqrt{g^{\prime }(J)}$. Finite runout therefore requires ${\int }_0^{\infty }\sqrt{g^{\prime }(J)}dJ<\infty$. A positive minimum settling speed guarantees this; a distribution with arbitrarily small settling speeds need not. For $g_0{c}_0(w)\sim C{w}^p$ at zero, with $p>-1$, the integral converges precisely when $p>1$.

A dilute, vertically mixed particle-laden gravity current with no fluid entrainment, bed erosion or carrier-fluid leakage obeys volume conservation $q=uh=\text{constant}$. With downward settling velocity magnitude $v_s$, an absorbing bed gives $qd{g}^{\prime }/dx=-v_s{g}^{\prime }$. The variable-buoyancy shallow water equations conserve the kinematic momentum flux including hydrostatic pressure,These equations describe a steady interior supplied continuously from upstream, not the moving nose of a finite-volume release. The depth follows one of the depth branches of a steady depositing gravity current.

In a channel with width $2\lambda xz$ at height $z$, a well-mixed particle-laden gravity current of depth $h$ occupies area $\lambda x{h}^2$. Its volume conservation, momentum and particle deposition flux balances givewhere the reduced gravity is $g^{\prime }=d\varphi$. The $h/3$ coefficient is the cross-section-weighted mean of $h-z$ in the hydrostatic pressure force. The characteristic curves have speeds $u$ and $u\pm \sqrt{g^{\prime }h/2}$.