Specific rainfall characteristics vary among regions and their erosion potential must be known for the planning of agricultural and civil engineering activities. For Rio Grande (RS, Brazil), the erosivity and relationships with the precipitation and rainfall coefficient, rainfall hydrologic patterns and return period were determined based on rainfall data of 23 years. For each erosive rainfall the segments of the rainfall chart with the same intensity were separated together and the data registered in worksheets. The mean monthly and annual rainfall erosivity, the EI30 index in the International System of Units and the rainfall patterns were estimated using software Chuveros. The mean monthly values of precipitation and erosivity index were expressed as percentage of the mean annual values of these variables, resulting in the curve of accumulated distribution of precipitation and erosivity index in function of time. The rainfall coefficient (Rc) was calculated. Pearson correlations and linear regressions between the erosivity index EI30 and the mean annual values of precipitation and rainfall coefficient were calculated. The rainfall return period was calculated for 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 years. The mean annual value of EI30 was 5135 MJ mm ha-1 h-1, which is to be used as "R" Factor in the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) for Rio Grande and surrounding regions with similar climatic conditions. The regression equations for EI30 and precipitation and rainfall coefficient were not significant. Regarding the total rainfalls studied, it was found that 32.6 % of the rainfalls and 99.3 % of the rain volume were erosive. From the total number of erosive rainfalls, 45.6 % had an advanced hydrologic pattern, 25.6 % an intermediary and 28.7 % a delayed pattern, while for the total volume of erosive rainfalls, 47.8 % had an advanced hydrologic pattern, 28.0 % an intermediary and 24.2 % a delayed pattern. In terms of annual erosivity, 49.1 % corresponded to rainfalls with an advanced, 28.9 % an intermediary and 22.1 % to a delayed pattern. The method of extreme distribution type I was adequate to obtain intensity-duration-frequency curves. Rainfall return periods can be calculated by the equations using the values of the parameters found, or by the graphs of intensity-duration-frequency.
erosivity; rainfall coefficient; hydrological patterns; return period
