Abstract Quasi-steady gravity currents propagating first on a horizontal and then up a sloping boundary are investigated by means of theoretical analysis and laboratory experiments. The bottom slope ranged from 0.18 to 1 and full- and partial-depth configurations were considered. The developed theoretical model, using the depth averaged momentum equation, provides new physical insight into the importance of the different forces that act on the current and accounts for the gravity component along the slope, whose effect increases with both the slope angle and the ratio of current depth to ambient fluid. The height of the current decreases linearly with up-slope distance and the spatial rate of decrease, expressed by the current shape parameter is determined from the theory, using the measured up slope distance at which the current stops. This current shape parameter is found to depend on the slope only and it is not dependent on the current to ambient fluid depths. It can then be used to calculate the current velocity and the up-slope distance reached by the current. It is shown that the front velocity of all performed experiments is predicted by the theory indicating that the theory remains valid up to a slope equal to 1.

中文翻译：

---

关于沿斜坡流动的准稳态重力流的动力学

摘要 通过理论分析和室内实验研究了先在水平面传播然后在倾斜边界上传播的准稳态重力流。底部坡度范围为 0.18 到 1，并考虑了全深度和部分深度配置。开发的理论模型使用深度平均动量方程，提供了对作用在电流上的不同力的重要性的新物理见解，并解释了沿斜坡的重力分量，其影响随着斜坡角度和比率的增加而增加。到周围流体的当前深度。电流的高度随着上坡距离线性下降，并且由电流形状参数表示的空间下降率是根据理论确定的，使用测量的上坡距离，在该处电流停止。发现该电流形状参数仅取决于斜率，而不取决于电流到周围流体的深度。然后可以使用它来计算当前速度和当前到达的上坡距离。结果表明，所有进行的实验的前沿速度都是由理论预测的，表明该理论在斜率等于 1 时仍然有效。