The power of the water undercutting
and eroding weak points in the river
The cause of meanders widening
on the outside bend
Abrasion/Corrasion
The scouring of the bed
and banks by the
sedimentary load carried
in the river
Combined with turbulent
waters and potholes in the
river bed may form
Attrition
The reduction in size of
sediment in the river through
collision with other particles
The cause of smoother pebbles
downstream
Corrosion
Most common in carbonate rocks, eg
limestone, it is the dissolving of the
rock into the water
Transportation
Bedload
Larger materials, eg. rocks, are
too heavy to be lifted so bounce
and 'skip' along the river bed
Suspended Load
Forms the bulk of sediment transportation
Fine muds and clay become suspended in
the turbulence of the water
Is the reason why bodies of
still water appear cloudy
where a river flows into them
Dissolved/Solution Load
The product of corrosion
Where the river runs over carbonate
rock the dissolved material becomes
dissolved in the river
Competence is the largest calibre of load a river can carry
Capacity is the largest amount of load a river can carry
Deposition
A river deposits, or drops, it's load when it runs out of energy
and can no longer carry it. This usually occurs where a river
moves into a slower moving, or stationery, body of water.
Due to the nature of deposition larger
boulders are dropped further upstream,
pebbles midstream, and dissolved or
light materials far out at sea or in lakes.