scholarly journals Rossby number similarity of an atmospheric RANS model using limited-length-scale turbulence closures extended to unstable stratification

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 355-374
Author(s):  
Maarten Paul van der Laan ◽  
Mark Kelly ◽  
Rogier Floors ◽  
Alfredo Peña

Abstract. The design of wind turbines and wind farms can be improved by increasing the accuracy of the inflow models representing the atmospheric boundary layer. In this work we employ one-dimensional Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) simulations of the idealized atmospheric boundary layer (ABL), using turbulence closures with a length-scale limiter. These models can represent the mean effects of surface roughness, Coriolis force, limited ABL depth, and neutral and stable atmospheric conditions using four input parameters: the roughness length, the Coriolis parameter, a maximum turbulence length, and the geostrophic wind speed. We find a new model-based Rossby similarity, which reduces the four input parameters to two Rossby numbers with different length scales. In addition, we extend the limited-length-scale turbulence models to treat the mean effect of unstable stratification in steady-state simulations. The original and extended turbulence models are compared with historical measurements of meteorological quantities and profiles of the atmospheric boundary layer for different atmospheric stabilities.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maarten Paul van der Laan ◽  
Mark Kelly ◽  
Rogier Floors ◽  
Alfredo Peña

Abstract. The design of wind turbines and wind farms can be improved by increasing the accuracy of the inflow models representing the atmospheric boundary layer. In this work we employ one-dimensional Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulations of the idealized atmospheric boundary layer (ABL), using turbulence closures with a length scale limiter. These models can represent the mean effects of surface roughness, Coriolis force, limited ABL depth, and neutral and stable atmospheric conditions using four input parameters: the roughness length, the Coriolis parameter, a maximum turbulence length, and the geostrophic wind speed. We find a new model-based Rossby similarity, which reduces the four input parameters to two Rossby numbers with different length scales. In addition, we extend the limited length scale turbulence models to treat the mean effect of unstable stratification in steady-state simulations. The original and extended turbulence models are compared with historical measurements of meteorological quantities and profiles of the atmospheric boundary layer for different atmospheric stabilities.


2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 531-549 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanjay Kumar Mehta ◽  
Madineni Venkat Ratnam ◽  
Sukumarapillai V. Sunilkumar ◽  
Daggumati Narayana Rao ◽  
Boddapaty V. Krishna Murthy

Abstract. The diurnal variation of atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) height is studied using high-resolution radiosonde observations available at 3 h intervals for 3 days continuously from 34 intensive campaigns conducted during the period December 2010–March 2014 over a tropical station Gadanki (13.5° N, 79.2° E; 375 m), in the Indian monsoon region. The heights of the ABL during the different stages of its diurnal evolution, namely, the convective boundary layer (CBL), the stable boundary layer (SBL), and the residual layer (RL) are obtained to study the diurnal variabilities. A clear diurnal variation is observed in 9 campaigns out of the 34 campaigns. In 7 campaigns the SBL did not form in the entire day and in the remaining 18 campaigns the SBL formed intermittently. The SBL forms for 33–55 % of the time during nighttime and 9 and 25 % during the evening and morning hours, respectively. The mean SBL height is within 0.3 km above the surface which increases slightly just after midnight (02:00 IST) and remains almost constant until the morning. The mean CBL height is within 3.0 km above the surface, which generally increases from morning to evening. The mean RL height is within 2 km above the surface which generally decreases slowly as the night progresses. The diurnal variation of the ABL height over the Indian region is stronger during the pre-monsoon and weaker during winter season. The CBL is higher during the summer monsoon and lower during the winter season while the RL is higher during the winter season and lower during the summer season. During all the seasons, the ABL height peaks during the afternoon (∼ 14:00 IST) and remains elevated until evening (∼ 17:00 IST). The ABL suddenly collapses at 20:00 IST and increases slightly in the night. Interestingly, it is found that the low level clouds have an effect on the ABL height variability, but the deep convective clouds do not. The lifting condensation level (LCL) is generally found to occur below the ABL for the majority of the database and they are randomly related.


Energies ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 2071
Author(s):  
Brian Fiedler

The simplest model for an atmospheric boundary layer assumes a uniform steady wind over a certain depth, of order 1 km, with the forces of friction, pressure gradient and Coriolis in balance. A linear model is here employed for the adjustment of wind to this equilibrium, as the wake of a very wide wind farm. A length scale is predicted for the exponential adjustment to equilibrium. Calculation of this length scale is aided by knowledge of the angle for which the wind would normally cross the isobars in environmental conditions in the wake.


2017 ◽  
Vol 815 ◽  
pp. 223-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Bechlars ◽  
R. D. Sandberg

In order to improve the physical understanding of the development of turbulent structures, the compressible evolution equations for the first three invariants $P$, $Q$ and $R$ of the velocity gradient tensor have been derived. The mean evolution of characteristic turbulent structure types in the $QR$-space were studied and compared at different wall-normal locations of a compressible turbulent boundary layer. The evolution of these structure types is fundamental to the physics that needs to be captured by turbulence models. Significant variations of the mean evolution are found across the boundary layer. The key features of the changes of the mean trajectories in the invariant phase space are highlighted and the consequences of the changes are discussed. Further, the individual elements of the overall evolution are studied separately to identify the causes that lead to the evolution varying with the distance to the wall. Significant impact of the wall-normal location on the coupling between the pressure-Hessian tensor and the velocity gradient tensor was found. The highlighted features are crucial for the development of more universal future turbulence models.


2005 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 131-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lakshmi H. Kantha

Abstract Two-equation models are being increasingly used to model turbulence in geophysical flows. A salient aspect of these flows is the stable gravitational stratification, which implies that turbulent fluctuations can generate internal waves that drain energy from turbulent eddies. This energy is not available for mixing, and therefore this transfer of energy from turbulence to internal waves has strong implications to mixing in the atmospheric boundary layer and the oceanic mixed layer. How to parameterize energy leakage to internal waves in turbulence models has been the subject of many studies, most recently by Baumert and Peters. This comment is an attempt to critique their work and to explore alternative options.


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