Physical model investigation of the transition of a debris flow from the aerial to the water phase

Laboratorium3D Sagl, Via Prada 6, 6710 Biasca, Switzerland

^* Corresponding author: christian.tognacca@laboratorium3d.ch

Abstract

In order to study the phenomena of debris flow motion and deposition at the transition between a channel and an underwater storage area, experiments were carried out on a physical model. The current situation and the planned works were reproduced in two idealised 1:100 scale models. The experiments show that the flows experience an abrupt transition into water with the creation of a water wave and enter the lake undergoing a decrease in front velocity, but without creating upstream stagnation or local deposits due to the sudden phase change. Instead, the debris flows move to the lower part of the model, where they are deposited in the horizontal plane and in the lower parts of the conoid. The construction of a retention basin in the lake does not decisively influence the dynamics of the transition between the aerial and underwater phases. The results of the physical modelling provide indispensable data for the validation of the 3D numerical codes currently being tested.