An Experimental Study on Erosion and Deposition of Sediments with Biofilm

Microbial biofilm layer could grow on bed surfaces and affect the normal sediment properties following polluting of water resources. However, limited research is done to measure the effects of biofilm in the long run. The objective of this study was to investigate the erosion-deposition phenomena considering factors such as sediment concentration, flow velocity and bed surface along the flume length. So, a three- part flume was designed; a narrow part and a wide part to show erosion and deposition, respectively and a transition part to connect these two parts. Experiments for various time periods of biofilm growth were managed to measure the required parameters inside the flume. Finally, the results for various positions were analyzed. For longer time series of biofilm growth, less values of erosion were measured.