Meteorological Aspects of Air Pollutant Dispersion LAPSE RATES AND STABILITY Effective dispersion of hility of the atmosy ft sense, dispersion is controlled by Prevailing in the atmosphere, of the atmosphere in tum depends on the rate of change of altitude. The relationship between the temperature und the Considering alr to be an ideal gas. The change of pressure in “be represented by the relation: ao 31) a + # is the altitude and p is the atmospheric density. 18 relation, popRT 132) int in the atmosphere where Ris the gas constant for air, and is the Substitution of Bq. (3.2) into (3.1) gives the general expression for with altitude: dp __ mg ae er 8.3) e case of isothermal atmosphere, ‘Eq. (3.3) could be integrated P=Puess| z ] ABAD RTSSseh a 4 a2 i; aE se oe = eeeeeris the grov spinedtially io at nd level (1.013 bars), The ab compreaniiy eertasing pressure with altitude, cnn yrieal ais, Sree aa Is such as air. Comparison of thi, ntint eens Sha Profile shows a slight quantitative discr : A better model for the atmos; iheri Which obeys the relation, ns Pemdence af pend Tis the polytropic atmasphere ' ne x2) va AB) uting Eg. (3,5) for pin Eq. (9.3) and differentiating, we get, aT on do R sa iq. (2.6) represents the variation of temperature with altitude for a polytropig the temperature decreases with altitude linearly witha slope of Tn 1) 2" a re with altitude is known as the lapse rate, e km, where the temperature decreases mental lapse rate is found to be about 6.5°C/1000 metres. in the equation for polytropic model, we have pe oe a1 i de}, 100metres oo & eae comes ty be 1.23, The lower atmosphere ends of abe Above the tropopause is the C 4 as a result of orone E ith the Jews region of the giratosphosethe isothermal model based on applicable. temperature profiles based on these models are represented in A always constant particularly in the environmental lapse rate, however, is not y a wre, a zone from the ground level up dr oposphere, ‘ al rate of 6.5 °C/1000 metres. This is due aaiderable vaciton fom ie ora tate of radiation emanating from it. On, because | iti from the ground, the environmental lapse. i | a apr ie ey pe i negative lapre rate, whore the‘Terporature ——» Fig. 3.1 Temperature-Altitude profiles in temperature with altitude is especially important in the vertical Sand can be explained by utilising the concept of an air parcel, alittle sphere of air. As the air parcel rises in the atmosphere, it goes decreasing pressure and expands to accommodate the decreasing ds, it does work on the surroundings. Since the process is usually transfer between the air parcel and the surrounding air. Hence, for process the first law of thermodynamics yields, -dW =dif : 8) ‘that the internal energy decreases thereby decreasing the temperature, “ of a rising, expanding air parcel is an important feature of Now the work done on the surroundings is equal to pdV and the ‘energy becomes equal to C',d7’, where C,,is the specific heat at constant g these in Eq. (3.8}, we get pd¥ +CydT =0 of 3.9) (3.9) may be written for unit mass of the nir parcel as, e pdv+C,dT =0 (3.10) the specific volume and C, isthe specifi hent por unit mass, For a mrt (C, +R)aP =vdp (LD “The variation of temperature with altitude can be written as a product of to — ar _dT dp (B12) dz” dp dz ge ‘Rearranging Eq, (3.11), we obtain A \as a dp 6,+R a ‘Substituting Eq. (3.13) and (3.3) into Eq, (41.12), we get aT ‘" - Garr (3.14) Noting that C, +R = C,, the specific heat at eonstant pressure per unit mass of air Parcel, we can write Eq. (3-14) as af ai a15h a ¢, es ‘The above expression gives the temperature lapse rate for dry parcel of air moving upwards adiabatically and is known as the dry adishatie lapse rate. When Eq. (3-15) is evaluated for dry air, the lapse rate is found to be — (| =-9.86°C/1000 metres oa is denoted by I, ia given by ee ar) , ele | 10C/1 km A316} we see that for the adiabatic case n = 7 = C,1C,, and esents of intr nthe aananrearisnparcl of air may cool until the ‘water vapour equals the saturation vapaurpressure of water. In circumstances, some of the water vapour will condense if sufficient nucleation sites nt and release the Intent heat. If} is the latent heat per gram of water, then the ‘of this heat is given by, dQ =-imdea (a.a7) ‘mis the mass of dry air in the parcel and dw is the ratio of the amount of water ‘which is condensing to the mags of dry air. Adding this term to the right-hand side 48.9) and proceeding further. we get the lapse rate in a saturated condition: to as the E Ts water B 3 idz is negative for a rising parcel in which condensation is taking 4.18, is positive with the result that the temperature decrease is less than that for dry air. Also, since the saturation vapour very rapidly with temperature, the quantity ded: depends Therefore, the wet adiabatic lapse rate is not a constant,tic lapse rate is approximately of altitude. In warm tropical air the wet adiabal one-third of the dry adiabatic lapse rate. 434.2 Atmospheric Stability ts emitted into it depends to a large ‘The ability of the atmosphere to disperse the pollutan f ‘ sent on the degree of its stability. A comparison of the adiabatic lapse rate with the environmental lapse rate gives an tmosphere. Fig. 3.2 illustrates ‘idea of the stability of the al the temperature profiles for various cases of stability, When the environmental lapse rate “and the dry adiabatic lapse rate are exactly the same, a rising parcel of air will have the oc. ‘surroundings and would experience no : pressure, temperature and density of the "buoyant force, Such an atmosphere is said to be neutrally stable where displaced mass of air neither tends to return to its original position nor tends to continue its displacement. When the environmental lapse rate (-dT/dz),,, is greater than the dry adiabatic lapse ‘rate, F, the atmosphere is said to be superadiabutic. Hence, a rising parcel of air, cooling ‘atthe adiabatic rate, willbe warmer and less dense than the surrounding environment. As “a reaull, it becomes more buoyant and tends to continue its upward motion Since vertical ‘motion is enhanced by buoyancy, such an atmosphere is called unstable. In the unstable the air from different altitudes mixes thoroughly. This is very desirable from the point of view of preventing pollution, since the eMuents will be rapidly dispersed throughout the atmosphere. Temperature ——e re stability regions. (GALR: Super-ndiabatic lapse rate; DALR: Dry adiabatic Fig. $2 Atmosphe WALR; Wet adiabatic lapse rate; CS: Conditional stability) Inpse rate; On the other hand, when the environmental lapse rate is lesa than the dry adiabatic lapse rate, I, arising air parcel becomes cooler and more dense than its surroundings andae : = up Sey rapidly in the environment. , similar reasoning may be applied ppeability and stability may be defined with reference to a neutrally stable atmosphere re the environmental lapse rate is equal to the dry adiabatic lapse rate for dry or insaturated air, and wet adiabatic lapse rate for saturated air. Strictly speaking, however, eee ot billy arists ter than the dry adiabatic these two values. extreme case of a stable atmosphere, called an inversion, occurs when temperature Such a Inpse rate is known as the negative lapse rate. Under these ph is very stable and practically no mixing of pollutants takes ‘an inversion will result. Fig, 3.3 illustrates this condi- ‘the subsidence inversion. The subsidence is caused by air h has flowed out of the high pressure region.conduction eras ising corpora mixing. Consequently, a temperature inversion is set up | above the surface. Maleiried ue Werte one eect anced oe : 7 areas are if a Bo ea because denser, colder air nee pean eee ei nt al sunlight destroys the inversion as the Earth is warmed and the ne Sars by inversion is overturned by convective currents apron a combined radiation inversion and subsidence inversan is illustrated in Fig. ) subsidence inversion is potentiall i i i a Tatze uavallydissipaion quite rapidly tfer saarae sn nen Ternperatuta ——e s profile with subsidence and radiation inversions The third type of inversion, known as advective inversion, is formed when warm air Imoves over a cold surface or cold air. The inversion can be ground-based in the former case, or elevated in the latter case. An example of an elevated advective inversion occurs qehen = hill range forces a warm land breeze to flow at high levels and 8 cool sea breeze flows at low levels in the opposite direction. This is shown in Fig. 3.5. ~4 Fig. 3.4 Temperatu dvective inversion Fig. 8.5 FlevatAS menti ioned earliey : the atmosphere ig very an i an inversion the vertical mixing of air is practically nil as Currents. It is quite poas bl *, but this condition does not preclude horizontal motion of air Possible that strong winds may be encountered within an inversion, 3.2 WIND VELOCITY AND TURBULENCE Differential solar heati eating of the Earth’: dients, As a result, the stmcepis eee ments being always turbulent. TI by friction, which varies with sui produces pressure and temperature gra- rere is practically in continuous motion with air move- he motion of air near the surface of the Earth is retarded a : face roughness, The planetary boundary layer, in which friction ia significant, extends to about 1 km above Earth's surface, The wind velocity Profile within the layer is not only influenced by the surface roughness but also by the lime of the day, During the day, solar heating causes thermal turbulence or eddies and ee eddies set up convective currents so that turbulent mixing is increased. This results a more flat velocity profile in the day than that at night. Typical profiles during the day and the night are shown in Fig. 3.6. Thermal turbulence also depends on the thermal stability of the atmosphere. It is maximum on a clear sunny day in the afternoon and minimum at night or in the early morning. Ande above ground =—§ ——® Wine welecity §—§ ———— Fig. 8.6 Wind velocity profiles during day and night The second type of turbulence is the mechanical turbulence which is produced by shearing stress generated by air movernent over the Earth's surface — the greater the surface roughness, the greater the turbulence. The effect of terrain on the wind velocity profiles is shown in Fig, 3.7. For smooth aurfaces, the air velocity profile becomes very steep near the ground. For rougher surfaces such a5 those in urban areas more mechanical turbulence is generated and the velocity profile becomes less steep and reaches deeper into the atmosphere. The mean wind speed variation with altitude in the pla represented by a simple empirical power law auch as, ary boundary layer can beee 2f A319) 4 La where u is the wind speed at altitude z, w, is the wind speed at altitude z, and the ‘exponent 0: varies between 0.14 and 0.40 depending on the roughness of the ground surface (Fig. 3.7) as well as on the temperature stability of the atmosphere. If the environmental ipse rate is dry adiabatic and the terrain is fairly smooth, a is approximately 1/7. The nt o is observed to increase with increasing stability or with increasing surface . The recommended values of u for a range of conditions are given in Table 3.1. ictice, because of the appreciable change in wind speed with altitude, wind speed must be quoted with respect to the elevation at which it is measured. This reference for surface wind measurements is usually 10 meters, Urban ae Suburbs Level country Gradient wind 100 Grackant wind ] ~28 ies i 0.28, ra } eh onl “/ | uaz | are adel | / Wind welocty u (retard to a gradiont wind of 190.unitsy, ——s Fig, 3.7 Effect of terrain roughness on the wind velocity profile Table 3.1 Values of exponent in Eq. (3.19)* GH. Strom, in Air pollution, edited by A.C. Stern, Vol, 1, Srd Edition, (Academic Press New 1976Primarily acre turbulence is characterised by different sizes of eddies, These eddies are ™osphere, le for diluting and transporting the pollutants injected into the at er Fe o--7e- Fig. 3.5 Dilution and transportation of pollutants through turbulence process of dilution and transportation through turbulence is illustrated in Fig. 4.8. size of the eddy is larger than the size of plume or a ‘pull’, then the plume or the puff be transported down-wind by the eddy with little dilution as shown in Fig. 3.8. diffusion will ultimately dissipate the plume or the puff. If the eddy is smaller plume or the puff, the plume or the puff will disperse uniformly as the eddy fresh air at its boundary as shown in Fig. 3.8b. Fig. 3.8¢ shows a puff where the is of the size comparable to that of the puff. In such cases, the eddy will both distort disperse the puff. The atmosphere usually has a variety of eddy sizes, and these eddies the plumes and the puffs to meander and disperse in the wind direction. | Topographical Effects can modify the general pattern of wind speed and direction, One such Fig. ‘Usually, in the early morning hours the conditions alm and no pressure gradients exist (Fig. 3.92), but by afternoon the air over the ‘of the coast becomes warmer than that over the adjacent ocean. As a result, an ‘air movement from land to ocean and a low-level movement from ocean to landin caused, thus selting up a sea brecze which is stable over the soa, but which quickly pecomes unstable and turbulent over land (Fig, 3.9b). At night, more rapid cooling of the ‘air layer over the land causes the pressure gradient and the winds to reverse and this in furn sets up the land breeze (Fig. 3.9c). Due to such diurnal cycles, pollutant emissions sased within the inflow layer move inland during the day and return to the high up at night. This appears to be a significant contribution to the pollution problems of rge coastal cities where the concentrations inland are much higher than would ‘expected. d example of the wind system caused by topographic effects is the mountain- ind illustrated in Fig, 3.10. During the day, the air near the mountain slope warms ‘than air at the same altitude but farther from the mountain, ‘This causes a local gradient towards the mountain side and air is forced to flow up the mountain ‘Mountain breeze. With sunset the pressure gradient is reversed and the less air flowa downward into the valleys. A plume discharged from a chimney in a be confined within the valley because of the regularly changing wind patterns, unt concentrations can build up to dangerous levels under these conditions. a0 mb 990 mp 1000 mb —_— a ers 1000 mtFig. 9.10 Mountain-Valley wind system BEHAVIOUR ur of a plume emitted from an elevated source such as a tall stack depends on ‘of instability of the atmosphere and the prevailing wind turbulence. Typical 6 generally encountered, are shown in Fig. 3.11. A common type of plume Surtace inversion (tanning) Fig. S11 (Contd...)* conditions with light to moderate looping. It occurs under superadiabatic B on a hot summer afternoon when 2 thermal eddies are present. carry portions of the plume to the ground level for short time periods, causing surface concentration of pollutant near the stack. Alot inversion thamigation}Con Ring plume cay iy is essentially pectic eee skies both during day and night when the lapse and a major Part of the Sli lume shape is vertically symmetrical about the plume reachiy jutant ing the ground |, int concentration is carried downwind fairly far bef t palaces e fairly far before Fanning occurs ahaa ae wee is often associated with moderate to high wind speeds. Tesult of strong eared \ lume is dispersed in the presence of very light winds as a but not the horizontal ‘aco ‘The stable lapse rate suppresses the vertical : from thet of the ixing entirely. Ifthe density of the plume is not significantly in 9 flat, straight ee Senos: the plume travels parallel to the ground straight ribbo wind, and on occasions ph ‘ia Plumes in a stable layer may be eialetckgieal See downwind. For high stack, fanning is considered a favourable : condition because the plume does not contribute ta ground pollution. A The plume is oa observed at a height and in the early morning in all seasons. . lapel ee. of plume behaviour are observed under conditions of uniform lapee rate, hen the lapse rate changes from stable to unstable — a situation usually a@msing when an inversion is breaking up in early morning when the Sun comes up —a aia 88 fumigation takes place, Here a stable layer of air lies a short distance above ase point of the plume and an unstable air layer lige below the plume. This aoe ‘of air causes the pollutants to mix downward tow: ground in large lumps, fortunately this condition is usually of short duration lasting for about 30 ee poe mestion is favoured by clean skies and light winds, and is more common in ‘The conditions for the lofting plume are the inverse of those for fumigation; the lapse vate in the upper portion of the plume is unstable and that in the lower partion stable When the pollutants are emitted above the inversion layer, they are dispersed vigorously in the upward direction since the top of the inversion layer acts as a barrier to the movement of pollutants towards the ground. Lofting is the most favourable plume types as far as “Lata level concentrations are concerned and is one of the major goals of tall-stack operation ‘The trapped plume occurs when the plume effluent is caught between two inversion ‘The diffusion of effluent is serevely restricted to the unstable layer between the wo stable regions, Trapping may also be associated with subsidence inversions lasting for “several days, where almost all emissions are trapped below the inversion layer thus creating one of the worst pollution situations, 3.3.1 Aerodynamic Effects of Structures and Terrain Deflection and disturbance of the wind field by a structure has a major influence on the distribution of pollutant from a stack on or clase to the structure. The flow around an jsclated building is characterised by the formation of a cavity behind the building and wake further downstream. A simplified and idealised representation for a sharp edged building is shown in Fig. 3.12. When the chimney stack is situated on or adjacent to the ‘building, the plume may be entrained in the characteristic flow pattern. An empirical rule- ‘of-thumb for such stacks is that the height of the stack should be at least two and a half ex the height of the surrounding building. If the stack height is much below this value, ne is trapped in the wake zone of the building (Fig. 3.13). Pollutants remain in the ‘because of very poor mixing between the cavity and the mainstream.plume. A plume emitting from a stack located in a deep valley can be d when the wind blows over a cliff as shown in Fig. 3.14. Fig, 3.14 Behaviour of the plume in « valley: com Im of the valley, ANO*? #5 “downwash” occurs unless the stack extends well above the Fig. 8.15 Downwash of pollutants in the separated region 4 ition behind a cylinder or a chimney will also result in downwash of the pollut- ‘trapped in the separated regions of flow. If the velocity of the plume through the is about equal to or less than the wind velocity, the plume may not rise above the t level and may even be carried downward on the back-side of the stack (Fig. 3.15). ehaviour of the plume in the presence of aerodynamic disturbances is difficult to te and most of the design information is obtained through wind tunnel testing. OF AIR POLLUTANTS tants emitted into the atmosphere are mixed thoroughly with the surrounding air diluted by atmospheric dispersion. This dispersion is primarily due to turbulent diffusion air flow. Turbulent diffusion problem has been investigated by many workers but theories proposed are only approximate. However, on the basis of the available eal information it is possible to predict quantitatively the average concentration of it downwind from the emission source. The quantitative information is essential g control measures so that the ambient air quality standards could be The mathematical models also have the advantage of prescribing the release its of a pollutant from a particular source on the basis of the acceptable recipient level he most comprehensive approach to transport theory is based on the eddy diffusion known as the ‘K-theory’ developed by Tuylor®, Richardson‘ and Roberts’, which in nm involves the use of the concept of mixing length. concentration of a species A at different points in space, when motion and chemical fg are present, can be expressed by the continuity equation: apy at ‘the mass concentration of species A, j, is the absolute velocity of A relative coordinate axes, and r, is the rate of production of A by chemical reaction. Eq. +¥ pada = hq A320)Ja © Palda-4) AB.21) a multicomponent mixture consisting of n species is defined as 2 Dea a | p 12}, p is the total mass concentration of the mixture, Veda=¥-pada-V-pad 3.23) for V-pyd4 in By. (3.20), we have «3. 22) rie g 4 pet Yat eat= ra B24) transfer involving molecular diffusion, the masa flux j, is given by Fick's da = —pDay Van 4 (3.28) the mass fraction of species A and D,,,is the mass diffusity of Ain the mixture. density mixture ¥V-g= 0, and Eq, (3.24) can be simplified to ha 45-¥p4=V-(Da¥pal>n (3.36) Ta A 3.27) the atmospheric laws are turbulent, the instantaneous fluid velocities u, v and } random variables of space and time. Therefore, we can write u=i+u', +r, w= %+w'-a, Fand W are the time averaged values, and w’ v’ and w’ are the ‘components. These fluctuating components together with molecular diffusion for mixing of pollutants with air. In contrast to molecular diffusion, the by turbulent fluctuations is called turbulent or eddy diffusion. Since the ‘are random fluctuations of space and the pollutant concentrations undom variables in space and time.RKO can again define ee ofp, ns a function of space and time is not possible and, hence, we ue wes ‘in terms of some mean and a fluctuating component p',, where 2, the ji iis a, 'S An ensemble average. Substituting for p, = + pi, together with the cays ponents in Eq. (3.27) and taking an average over an infinite ensemble of P, and time-averaging for velocity components, we have at oe oy de “Heat ru?) 2 4f Setwonde 2(-coinns 2cwoa]o (a) fase ction rate is a suitably ensemble-averaged value. This term depends on tion of various species, which participate in the formation of a particular “The correlation terms ~(w’p),—(v'p's) and —{w’p4} are known as the dispersion terms. Eq. (3.28) can not be solved in its present form because it the unknown concentration and the three Reynolds dispersion terms which n. These terms provide an illustration of the closure problem of turbu- of the closure problem that an Eulerian description of turbulent diffusion nit exact solution even for the mean concentration. the problem is to relate {w'p',}, (v'p's} and (w'p'y} to (p4}. One of the most com- ds to do co is the phenomenological approach involving the mixing-length “We ean express the Reynolds dispersion terms 514 ~a'py)= K,, Mea) +p) = Ky ae : (3.29) wiper. “al ] ~~ Ky K,, are the eddy diffusivities. In addition, Eq, (3.28) can be simplified by 0 ‘the diffusion terms with those of eddy diffusion. Monin and Yaglom® ‘that eddy diffusion is 10° — 10* times greater than molecular diffusion and that . purposes molecular diffusion can be neglected relative to turbulent diffusion. tion is implicit in many air pollution models. Thus, Day AA) tu)Day ett < -{0'Pa) a{Pa) y Day aes «—(w'pa) ions and substituting Eq. (3.29) into Eq. (3.28), we get ae al) ar, 2a) 2, pee Je (3.30) arred to as the atmospheric dispersion equation and has been the and experimental investigations of pollutant dispersion in Atmospheric Dispersion Equation be simplified for certain cases of practical interest. The simplest case - ob). 0, We algo assume the pollutants to be chemically inert, and constants throughout space (stationary homogeneous turbulence), ons, Eq. (3.30) reduces ta, wba) gp Fla), Fa) x Hoa) 331 a =F 2 Oye =e 3.31) mean wind velocity, ‘case of interest in applying Eq. (3.31) to actual atmospheric processes is that tion of pollutants emitted from a continuous point source. Often the ae the a-direction by the wind is dominant over turbulent diffusion is, zips) (Pa) aoe ng the above assumption in Eq. (3.31), we have 2 a e mis), oe +i, tl 8.92) he solution to Eq. (3.32) must satisfy the following boundary conditions: asx, y,2 40‘ {Pa\(x, Kal Tea re ya ea0 3. a 0, for #=0, x, y>0 i J J(e-a) dvs - Qfor all x>0 i aes dis the source strength : oo that there is no pollutant diffusion through the ground fo eee, 1 iy condition expresses the conservation of the component at all i . In other wards, the rate at which the pollutant passes through any is downwind from the source must be constant and must equal the emission rate the source. ‘or a continuous poi c i atyi ry ions (1), Fe point source at the origin satisfying boundary conditions (1), (2) and (4), Roberts® gives the following solution: (alle ¥2)= (3.33) Eq, (3.33) is applicable for x= [+2 At the ground surface (z = 0), if there is no diffusion of pollutant into the surface (boundary condition 3) and if all of it is reflected, then the souree strength @ is dispersed im the upper half space (z > 0} rather than in both the upper (2 > 0) and lower (z< 0) half spaces. Then Eq. (3.33) can be modified ta give: @ zs | Palle J #)=— bg (3.34) (oa Baa Hy Ku Ka )| -AS.34) Some of the assumptions made to obtain the above solutions are too restrictive and as result, Eqs. (3.33) and (3.34) do not permit accurate prediction of downwi nd concentrations fa the atmosphere. One of the assumptions is the homogeneity of turbulence, but it is a Jmown fact that atmospheric turbulence is inhomogeneous, especially in the vertical @irection. Also, the wind velocity is not constant but varies with height above the ground. Equation (3.30) shows thet the eddy diffusivities K.., K,, and K,, are functions of x. ¥ and z, respectively. However, when these coefficients are allowed to vary with position, the ‘analytical solution of Eq. (3.0) becomes difficult. ‘Now considering Eq. (3.30) and assuming that and also thatAGB) A farther simplification of Eq. (3.36) is necessary ta obtain closed-form solutions that the vertical structure of the atmosphere. This is achieved by assuming an Source geometry in the crosswind direction. In this case is constant in the #4). 0, with this assumption, Ba. (338) reduces wate) a

0 flos)e-2mehe =Q, for all. x >0 is the line source strength in g/m-s. tical structure of the atmosphere can be approximated by power law expressions vertical profiles of velocity (Eq. 3.19) and turbulent diffusivity A’: and K, are the values of @ and K,, at a fixed reference height 2,. The salution orr=a-n+2>0is, (pa}x. 2) = -25) i ] =[-455] A838)n+ 1 : r and 2,, is taken tn be unity, The gamma function Ms) is given by, Tea)= fete” dx 7 j tah. ‘constant shear stress layer the eddy diffusivity K,, may be assumed to vary ly with hei height (n = 1), and the use of momentum transfer analogy (K,, = Ky! Rives A840) K,, = hue Taking 2, = 1, and comparing Eq. (3.40) with Eq. (3.37), we have Peet. Ky = hus ABAD) — is Von Karman’s constant (k » 0.40) and ts is the friction velocity. The frict velocity uw. may be determined from the equation given pe Leta? ae ag ue 6 Gq ow Ry -18 = where R, = Rossby mamber= 2, dq is the geostrophic wind speed, f is the Coriolis parameter and z, is the aeradynamic roughness. ‘The velocity iz, in Eq. (3.38) can be obtained from the logarithmic Law: Gli fz aim iio 21) mee) é "The values of z, derived from wind profiles range from 0.01 to 1 metre, respectively for ys ‘surfaces ranging from open fields to forest or city areas. For constant wind velocity, Z=im,(a=0) and « linear variation of K,, with height ine 1), solution has been given by Calder” which is in agroement with the observations: toa)ve)= Se] ee eae Using these equations, we can predict the concentration downwind of a line source situated at ground level in terms of simply estimated meteorological quantities. aA2 ‘The Gaussian Plume Mod! ‘The present tendency is te interpret dispersion data in terms of the Gaussian model. The standard deviations are related to the eddy diffusivities through the equations, oi a hae ot = et oof45) Substituting the above equations inte Eqs. (3.33) and (3.34), we ntPalle. yee eel 47) {ha)la..2)- 8 y S16 Cross section of a continuous point source showing Gaussian concentration pro- files in the y and = directions 6, and 6, are referred to as spreading coefficients, since they measure of the’ plume i in the y and z directions, respectively as it blows downwind. Eqs. (3.46) and (4.47), we can immediately recognise that {p, )iz/@ is the probability Y function of two Gaussian-distributed variables y and z with standard deviations @,, This gives rise to the binormal bell-shaped curve whose lateral and vertical s arising from Eq, (3.46) are shown in Fig. (3.16) n to Elevated Sources with Reflection pollutants are emitted into the atmosphere from elevated sources such as chimney so that the ground level expression represented by Eq. (3.47) must be modified to for this. Consider a continuous point source located at x = y = 0, and at a height f. A description of the pollutant concentration could be facilitated by assuming ‘all the pollutants are reflected when they hit the ground by establishing an image ree af equal strength at x =y = 0 and z = -H. In this method, known as the method of ‘the solutions of both the real and image sources are added together as illustrated 3.17. Y hha aeperlgenamar ieiedetenep nt siih 2) in the onal field downwind of the elevated point source is given by:ABABY re-H Fig. 5.17 Biffect of ground reflection for 0 camtinuous point source at height « =H (3-48) consists of three terms representing (1) the centerline concentration a8 ihexion of downwind distance, (2) the lateral spread relative to the centerline value, and ‘the vertical spread relative to the centerline value. Fig. 3.18 illustrates the combina- ‘of these three terms in the Gaussian plume equation. For H = 0, Eq. (3.48) reduces to an ; waren] wae (SH) oe (52) Representation ofthe centerline concentration term and lateral and vertical terms1 equation are frequently used to analyse Three common forms obtained from the specific situations. (a) Ground Level Concentrations In this case 2 © 0, and the Eq. (3.48) reduce to f " 2) i ie uz 1 A | e) (pa)ix. >, 0.) iad ol ala, | ied ala.) | AS. In the above equation, the factor 2 does not appear in the denominator oe cient term. It gets cancelled when the two vertical expenential terms are com! (b) Ground Level Centreline Concentrations In this case 2 = 0 and y = 0. The first term in the exponential becomes zerv, and Eq. (3.49) becomes, 2 pe Sal) | {pa }(x. 0, 0,7) = HEE} tal, A350) Equation (3.50) is used to estimate the ground level concentrations expected at any distance downwind of an elevated source. Tn case when the emission source is also at the ground level, i.e., H = 0, Eq. (3.50) further simplifies to (oa)(x, 0,0, 0)=—@ ma, 0,i1 Eq. (3.51) represents the maximum ground level concentration expected at any distance downwind from an. emission swurce, which is at the ground level, (¢) Maximum Ground Level Concentrations from an Elevated Source ‘The maximum ground level concentration can be obtained starting from Eq. (3.50), If the spreading coefficients a, and 0, are expressed ax a, = Ax? 13.51) and @, = Bx? where A, 3 and p are constants, then the value of < p,> in Eq. (3.50) can be maximised by substituting for o, and o, and setting Sa) 9 ‘Upon simplification of the resulting expression yields =2 Ht a eee ABD) From Eq, (3.52),This ives the downwind position at which Sentration occurs. Substituting for he maximum ground level centreline eon H/.[ in Eq. (3.50) we get {Pr )onas (2-0, 0, 1) =— 22 Se pe nueH* o, aa slearly shows why the pollutants are emitted into the atmosphere through Effect of inversion Layer When an inversion layer at z = 1 is imposed, the steady concentration distribution for < L is given by Bierly and Hewson" as: (a) (a 9.2 HL) = 52 0 0, Hf eieme iI (3.54) as, } | Ee) | Since the series coverages rapidly, only the first few pairs of terms (n = 0, +1, +2) need be considered in Eq. (3.54). Infinite Line Source An infinite line source can often be represented by a series of industries located along a river or by a road along which pollutants are continually emitted by heavy traffic; it is thus spatially extended, and the direction of the wind with respect to the geometry of the source will influence the downwind concentration of pollutants, When the wind direction is normal to the line of emission (y}, the ground level concentration downwind (x) of a source emitting at a height HM is given by, 2 (pa(e.¥. 0,42) = me es of (2) (3.55) See ane, per unit distance, If the source is also at the ground level -—_ (Pa)(, ¥, 0,0) = Yon A856) Notice that y does not appear in the above equations eee im the y-direction at a given downwind distance 2) nn? the concentration is uniformEstimation of a, anda, ats in the _ have been shown to be rel liffusion © of downwind distance x The ¥ y- and ns from the tions. Based on experimental masquill!! and Gifford’? have de ined a ‘lume from a knowledge of the atmos A through F, were suggested and ic atak: f wind and solar radiation. spond to measurements made at ‘own from appropriate weather be calculated from the pherie stability. Six c these are shown in Tab a The values of the wind speed shown in a height of 10 metres. When the stability category is kn . 9, and @, values for any downwind distance x can fu ms candi equations: ~ (3.57) o, = Bx? 3.58) where the values of A, Band pare given in Table 3.3", Table 3.2 Key 10 stability categories (ref. 13) A: Extremely unstable, B: Modera nstabl sl ib . tel i = peer ee Iv le, C: Slightly unstable, D: Neutral conditions T, E: T The neutr: ‘be assumed for overcast conditi uri y or ‘al class D should ed fo = ions during day hi or night Table 3.3 Fitted values tor o, and «,The above values closely fit the well known curves of Pasquill-Gifford shown 3.19 and 3.20. These correlations are subject to the following limitations: 1. These concentrations estimated from the use of these charts and equations should correspond to a sampling time of 10 min 2. g, and g, are based on a surface corresponding to an open level country and probably underestimate the plume dispersion in an urban area 3. The uncertainties associated with the estimates of o, and o, will increase with distance from the source. If the time interval employed in the sampling is other than 10 min. it will be necessary to correct the results predicted by the dispersion model. The following equation gives approximate values of concentration for time intervals less than 2 hours. 10"oe Jon Parameters ‘Sutton's Diffus! the statistical theory he diffusion paran Lose 13.61) 2 10) 10 10° 10 Distance, x (metres) Fig. 3.20.0, a 3 function of downwind distance ‘The diffusion parameters C, and C, depend on components of turbulence in the yand directions, respectively, and can be determined in practice by fitting the diffusion equation to concentration profile data. The turbulence index x” depends on the wind velocity profile given by Eq, (3.19), and is related to the exponent a as ee ne (2-2) 8.62) "Thus, knowing the values of C,, C, and n’ we can calculate spreading and o, from Eqs. (3.60) and (3.61) m seatioantac,.wind speed at the stack height #2. This can be le expression given by Eq. (4.19) a8 = [= 43.68) x a) = 10 metres. where @, is usually the meteorological value of the velocity measured at 2, Smith" recommends o = 0.25 for unstable and @. = 0.50 for stable conditions: Limits to Gaussian Plume Mode! The Gaussian plume model provides a simple method by which useful results ean obtained provided its limitations are properly observed. The model is most accurate for downwind distances between approximately 100 and 2000 metres. For distances below 100 metzes, the value of has to be corrected by considering the details of the wind flow pattern around the source structure. Similarly, for distances greater than 1000 metres, the local terrain features and meteorological variability have to be taken into consideration. ‘The dispersion coefficients c, and o, used in the equation are not very accurate. Also, the model neglects the turning of the wind due to frictional effects. This tends to spread ‘the plume in the cross-wind direction. Also, the consideration of any absorption or deposition of pollutants when the plume reaches the ground is neglected. Ifthe plume is reactive, the model gives inaccurate results. Hence, care is required in using the equations. Example 1 ‘Achimney with a design stack height of 250 m is emitting sulphur dioxide at a rate of 500 p/s on a sunny day in June with moderate wind speed at the stack altitude. Estimate the eoncentration of sulphur dioxide downwind for the following situations: (a) (psa,) (2000, 0, 0, 250) be (b) (Aga,) (1000, 50, 0, 250) (©) (ps0,) (2000, 50, 20, 250) (@) If (psx) (1000, y, 0, 250) is 100 ugim®, what is the value of y in metres? Solution On a sunny day in June the incoming solar radiation will be strong, Also, the air wi unstable, A moderate wind epeed at the stack altitude will be around 5-7 mie: Let oe rate G = 6 m/s. From Eq, (3.63) the velocity a, at 10 m level can be obtained. (al ee See ‘