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Friction Velocity (friction + velocity)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Earth and Environmental Science	63%

Selected Abstracts

Development of the saltation system under controlled environmental conditions

EARTH SURFACE PROCESSES AND LANDFORMS, Issue 8 2002
Samantha ArnoldArticle first published online: 24 JUN 200
Abstract The transport of sand by the wind occurs predominantly by the process of saltation. Following the entrainment of sand by an above threshold wind, the saltation system is regulated by the mutual interaction of the atmospheric boundary-layer, the sand cloud and the sand bed. Despite existing data on the spatial and temporal development of the sand transport system, very little is known about the development of the saltation system towards equilibrium. Results are presented from wind-tunnel experiments that were designed to address the simultaneous spatial and temporal development of the saltation system, with and without artificial sand feed. The development of the saltation system was monitored over a streamwise length of 8 m during a period of 3600 s. Mass flux data were measured simultaneously at 1 m intervals by the downwind deployment of seven Aarhus sand traps. Wind velocity data were collected throughout the experiments. The downwind spatial development of the saltation system is manifested by an overshoot in mass flux and friction velocity prior to declining towards a quasi-equilibrium. Mass flux overshoots at approximately 4 m downwind, in remarkable agreement with existing data of a comparable scale. Friction velocity overshoots at approximately 6 m downwind, a result not previously witnessed in saltation studies. The overshoot of mass flux prior to the overshoot in friction velocity is a spatial manifestation of the time lag between the entrainment of grains and the deceleration of the wind by the grains in transport. Temporally, the development of the saltation system is controlled by the availability of entrainable grains from the sand bed. Through time the saltation system develops from a transport-limited to a supply-limited system. The depletion of the sand bed through time limits the appropriateness of the assumption of ,equilibrium' for the universal prediction of mass flux. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

The effects of slope and slope position on local and upstream fluid threshold friction velocities

EARTH SURFACE PROCESSES AND LANDFORMS, Issue 12 2008
Ning Huang
Abstract In deserts, dunes are common aeolian landforms, and parallel ridges are common in cultivated land. A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model is used to simulate a stable wind blowing over slope beds of varying height and coupled with the slope-compensating fluid threshold friction velocity formula. The model accurately reproduced patterns of flow deceleration at the slope toe and stoss flow acceleration. Based on the CFD-based model, quantitative analyses of slope gradient and particle position on the initiation of particle movement are performed. Results indicate that the slope has a great influence on particle saltation in the windward slope, and the initiation of particle movement is particularly sensitive to particle position with respect to the slope. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Evaluation of the SWEEP model during high winds on the Columbia Plateau ,

EARTH SURFACE PROCESSES AND LANDFORMS, Issue 11 2009
G. Feng
Abstract A standalone version of the Wind Erosion Prediction System (WEPS) erosion submodel, the Single-event Wind Erosion Evaluation Program (SWEEP), was released in 2007. A limited number of studies exist that have evaluated SWEEP in simulating soil loss subject to different tillage systems under high winds. The objective of this study was to test SWEEP under contrasting tillage systems employed during the summer fallow phase of a winter wheat,summer fallow rotation within eastern Washington. Soil and PM10 (particulate matter ,10 µm in diameter) loss and soil and crop residue characteristics were measured in adjacent fields managed using conventional and undercutter tillage during summer fallow in 2005 and 2006. While differences in soil surface conditions resulted in measured differences in soil and PM10 loss between the tillage treatments, SWEEP failed to simulate any difference in soil or PM10 loss between conventional and undercutter tillage. In fact, the model simulated zero erosion for all high wind events observed over the two years. The reason for the lack of simulated erosion is complex owing to the number of parameters and interaction of these parameters on erosion processes. A possible reason might be overestimation of the threshold friction velocity in SWEEP since friction velocity must exceed the threshold to initiate erosion. Although many input parameters are involved in the estimation of threshold velocity, internal empirical coefficients and equations may affect the simulation. Calibration methods might be useful in adjusting the internal coefficients and empirical equations. Additionally, the lack of uncertainty analysis is an important gap in providing reliable output from this model. Published in 2009 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Measurement and data analysis methods for field-scale wind erosion studies and model validation,

EARTH SURFACE PROCESSES AND LANDFORMS, Issue 11 2003
Ted M. Zobeck
Abstract Accurate and reliable methods of measuring windblown sediment are needed to con,rm, validate, and improve erosion models, assess the intensity of aeolian processes and related damage, determine the source of pollutants, and for other applications. This paper outlines important principles to consider in conducting ,eld-scale wind erosion studies and proposes strategies of ,eld data collection for use in model validation and development. Detailed discussions include consideration of ,eld characteristics, sediment sampling, and meteorological stations. The ,eld shape used in ,eld-scale wind erosion research is generally a matter of preference and in many studies may not have practical signi,cance. Maintaining a clear non-erodible boundary is necessary to accurately determine erosion fetch distance. A ,eld length of about 300 m may be needed in many situations to approach transport capacity for saltation ,ux in bare agricultural ,elds. Field surface conditions affect the wind pro,le and other processes such as sediment emission, transport, and deposition and soil erodibility. Knowledge of the temporal variation in surface conditions is necessary to understand aeolian processes. Temporal soil properties that impact aeolian processes include surface roughness, dry aggregate size distribution, dry aggregate stability, and crust characteristics. Use of a portable 2 tall anemometer tower should be considered to quantify variability of friction velocity and aerodynamic roughness caused by surface conditions in ,eld-scale studies. The types of samplers used for sampling aeolian sediment will vary depending upon the type of sediment to be measured. The Big Spring Number Eight (BSNE) and Modi,ed Wilson and Cooke (MWAC) samplers appear to be the most popular for ,eld studies of saltation. Suspension ,ux may be measured with commercially available instruments after modi,cations are made to ensure isokinetic conditions at high wind speeds. Meteorological measurements should include wind speed and direction, air temperature, solar radiation, relative humidity, rain amount, soil temperature and moisture. Careful consideration of the climatic, sediment, and soil surface characteristics observed in future ,eld-scale wind erosion studies will ensure maximum use of the data collected. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Development of the saltation system under controlled environmental conditions

The growth respiration component in eddy CO2 flux from a Quercus ilex mediterranean forest

GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY, Issue 9 2004
S. Rambal
Abstract Ecosystem respiration, arising from soil decomposition as well as from plant maintenance and growth, has been shown to be the most important component of carbon exchange in most terrestrial ecosystems. The goal of this study was to estimate the growth component of whole-ecosystem respiration in a Mediterranean evergreen oak (Quercus ilex) forest over the course of 3 years. Ecosystem respiration (Reco) was determined from night-time carbon dioxide flux (Fc) using eddy correlation when friction velocity (u*) was greater than 0.35 m s,1 We postulated that growth respiration could be evaluated as a residual after removing modeled base Reco from whole-ecosystem Reco during periods when growth was most likely occurring. We observed that the model deviated from the night-time Fc -based Reco during the period from early February to early July with the largest discrepancies occurring at the end of May, coinciding with budburst when active aboveground growth and radial growth increment are greatest. The highest growth respiration rates were observed in 2001 with daily fluxes reaching up to 4 g C m,2. The cumulative growth respiration for the entire growth period gave total carbon losses of 170, 208, and 142 g C m,2 for 1999, 2001, and 2002, respectively. Biochemical analysis of soluble carbohydrates, starch, cellulose, hemicellulose, proteins, lignin, and lipids for leaves and stems allowed calculation of the total construction costs of the different growth components, which yielded values of 154, 200, and 150 g C for 3 years, respectively, corresponding well to estimated growth respiration. Estimates of both leaf and stem growth showed very large interannual variation, although average growth respiration coefficients and average yield of growth processes were fairly constant over the 3 years and close to literature values. The time course of the growth respiration may be explained by the growth pattern of leaves and stems and by cambial activity. This approach has potential applications for interpreting the effects of climate variation, disturbances, and management practices on growth and ecosystem respiration. [source]

Carbon dioxide exchange of a Russian boreal forest after disturbance by wind throw

GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY, Issue 3 2002
Alexander Knohl
Abstract The exchange of carbon dioxide (CO2) between the atmosphere and a forest after disturbance by wind throw in the western Russian taiga was investigated between July and October 1998 using the eddy covariance technique. The research area was a regenerating forest (400 m × 1000 m), in which all trees of the preceding generation were uplifted during a storm in 1996. All deadwood had remained on site after the storm and had not been extracted for commercial purposes. Because of the heterogeneity of the terrain, several micrometeorological quality tests were applied. In addition to the eddy covariance measurements, carbon pools of decaying wood in a chronosequence of three different wind throw areas were analysed and the decay rate of coarse woody debris was derived. During daytime, the average CO2 uptake flux was ,3 µmol m,2s,1, whereas during night-time characterised by a well-mixed atmosphere the rates of release were typically about 6 µmol m,2s,1. Suppression of turbulent fluxes was only observed under conditions with very low friction velocity (u* , 0.08 ms,1). On average, 164 mmol CO2 m,2d,1 was released from the wind throw to the atmosphere, giving a total of 14.9 mol CO2 m,2 (180 g CO2 m,2) released during the 3-month study period. The chronosequence of dead woody debris on three different wind throw areas suggested exponential decay with a decay coefficient of ,0.04 yr,1. From the magnitude of the carbon pools and the decay rate, it is estimated that the decomposition of coarse woody debris accounted for about a third of the total ecosystem respiration at the measurement site. Hence, coarse woody debris had a long-term influence on the net ecosystem exchange of this wind throw area. From the analysis performed in this work, a conclusion is drawn that it is necessary to include into flux networks the ecosystems that are subject to natural disturbances and that have been widely omitted into considerations of the global carbon budget. The half-life time of about 17 years for deadwood in the wind throw suggests a fairly long storage of carbon in the ecosystem, and indicates a very different long-term carbon budget for naturally disturbed vs. commercially managed forests. [source]

Modelling night-time ecosystem respiration by a constrained source optimization method

GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY, Issue 2 2002
Chun-Ta Lai
Abstract One of the main challenges to quantifying ecosystem carbon budgets is properly quantifying the magnitude of night-time ecosystem respiration. Inverse Lagrangian dispersion analysis provides a promising approach to addressing such a problem when measured mean CO2 concentration profiles and nocturnal velocity statistics are available. An inverse method, termed ,Constrained Source Optimization' or CSO, which couples a localized near-field theory (LNF) of turbulent dispersion to respiratory sources, is developed to estimate seasonal and annual components of ecosystem respiration. A key advantage to the proposed method is that the effects of variable leaf area density on flow statistics are explicitly resolved via higher-order closure principles. In CSO, the source distribution was computed after optimizing key physiological parameters to recover the measured mean concentration profile in a least-square fashion. The proposed method was field-tested using 1 year of 30-min mean CO2 concentration and CO2 flux measurements collected within a 17-year-old (in 1999) even-aged loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) stand in central North Carolina. Eddy-covariance flux measurements conditioned on large friction velocity, leaf-level porometry and forest-floor respiration chamber measurements were used to assess the performance of the CSO model. The CSO approach produced reasonable estimates of ecosystem respiration, which permits estimation of ecosystem gross primary production when combined with daytime net ecosystem exchange (NEE) measurements. We employed the CSO approach in modelling annual respiration of above-ground plant components (c. 214 g C m,2 year,1) and forest floor (c. 989 g C m,2 year,1) for estimating gross primary production (c. 1800 g C m,2 year,1) with a NEE of c. 605 g C m,2 year,1 for this pine forest ecosystem. We conclude that the CSO approach can utilise routine CO2 concentration profile measurements to corroborate forest carbon balance estimates from eddy-covariance NEE and chamber-based component flux measurements. [source]

Large eddy simulation of turbulent concentric annular channel flows

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL METHODS IN FLUIDS, Issue 12 2004
Nan-Sheng Liu
Abstract Fully developed turbulent concentric annular channel flow has been investigated numerically by use of large eddy simulation (LES) technique coupled with a localized one-equation dynamic subgrid-scale (SGS) model. The objective of this study is to deal with the behaviour of turbulent flow near the inner and outer walls of the concentric annular channel and to examine the effectiveness of LES technique for predicting the turbulent flow influenced by the transverse curvature effect. The computations are performed for the Reynolds number Re,=180, 395 and 640, based on an averaged friction velocity and the annular channel width with the inner and outer cylinder radius being Ri=1 and Ro=2. To validate the present approach, calculated results for turbulent pipe flow and concentric annular channel flow are compared with available experimental data and direct numerical simulation results, which confirms that the present approach can be used to study turbulent concentric annular channel flow satisfactorily. To elucidate turbulence characteristics in the concentric annular channel, some typical quantities, including the resolved velocity, turbulence intensity, turbulent eddy viscosity, SGS kinetic energy, SGS dissipation rate, Reynolds stress budgets, and turbulence structures based on the velocity fluctuations, are analysed. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Flow separation and rotor formation beneath two-dimensional trapped lee waves

THE QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY, Issue 620 2006
S. B. Vosper
Abstract Numerical simulations of trapped lee waves generated in flow over a two-dimensional ridge are presented. It is shown that for sufficiently large amplitude waves flow separation occurs beneath the wave crests when a no-slip lower boundary condition is applied. The occurrence of separation corresponds to rotor motion, or recirculation, under the wave crests. The dependence of the wave-induced horizontal flow perturbations near the ground on the wave amplitude, wavelength and surface roughness is examined. It is shown that the normalized critical wave amplitude, above which rotors form, is a function of the ratio of the lee-wave horizontal wavelength to the surface roughness length. This normalized wave amplitude is defined as the ratio of the lee-wave pressure amplitude within the boundary layer, to the square of the friction velocity. Linearized turbulent equations for motion beneath the wave crests are considered and numerical solutions to the linear problem are compared with results from the simulations. When the waves are of sufficiently small amplitude that flow separation does not occur, the linear flow perturbations are shown to agree closely with the results from the simulations. It is also shown that linear theory provides a useful prediction of the occurrence of rotor formation. © Crown copyright, 2006. [source]