Sediment-discharge vector in a turbulent flow above an eroded bottom

The problem of determination of sediment discharge by a turbulent flow of a fluid above an eroded surface of an arbitrary relief with a finite slope of the bottom is considered. The surface of the bottom separates a stationary granular medium (sand) from a moving two-phase mixture of a fluid and solid particles. The medium is set into motion under the action of shear stress of the fluid. The medium obeys Coulomb's friction law for a granular medium and Prandtl's law of turbulent friction of the fluid. As a result of solving the boundary-value problem for the motion of a two-phase mixture of a fluid and solid particles, a generic formula for sediment discharges is derived. The sediment-discharge vector is expressed through the vector of shear stress on the bottom, the vector of the slope of the bottom, and the distribution function of the solid particles in the bottom layer for an arbitrary relief of the bottom with a finite slope. It is shown that the sediment discharge depends weakly on the detailed distribution of particles in the bottom layer. Conditions of failure of the bottom surface are obtained. The sediment-discharge formula allows one to derive a closed system of equations that determines the process of bottom erosion in the river or channel bed.