Search Results
ASAM v2.7: A compressible atmospheric model with a Cartesian cut cell approach
2015, Jähn, M., Knoth, O., König, M., Vogelsberg, U.
In this work, the fully compressible, three-dimensional, nonhydrostatic atmospheric model called All Scale Atmospheric Model (ASAM) is presented. A cut cell approach is used to include obstacles and orography into the Cartesian grid. Discretization is realized by a mixture of finite differences and finite volumes and a state limiting is applied. Necessary shifting and interpolation techniques are outlined. The method can be generalized to any other orthogonal grids, e.g., a lat–long grid. A linear implicit Rosenbrock time integration scheme ensures numerical stability in the presence of fast sound waves and around small cells. Analyses of five two-dimensional benchmark test cases from the literature are carried out to show that the described method produces meaningful results with respect to conservation properties and model accuracy. The test cases are partly modified in a way that the flow field or scalars interact with cut cells. To make the model applicable for atmospheric problems, physical parameterizations like a Smagorinsky subgrid-scale model, a two-moment bulk microphysics scheme, and precipitation and surface fluxes using a sophisticated multi-layer soil model are implemented and described. Results of an idealized three-dimensional simulation are shown, where the flow field around an idealized mountain with subsequent gravity wave generation, latent heat release, orographic clouds and precipitation are modeled.
Implementation of multirate time integration methods for air pollution modelling
2012, Schlegel, M., Knoth, O., Arnold, M., Wolke, R.
Explicit time integration methods are characterised by a small numerical effort per time step. In the application to multiscale problems in atmospheric modelling, this benefit is often more than compensated by stability problems and step size restrictions resulting from stiff chemical reaction terms and from a locally varying Courant-Friedrichs-Lewy (CFL) condition for the advection terms. Splitting methods may be applied to efficiently combine implicit and explicit methods (IMEX splitting). Complementarily multirate time integration schemes allow for a local adaptation of the time step size to the grid size. In combination, these approaches lead to schemes which are efficient in terms of evaluations of the right-hand side. Special challenges arise when these methods are to be implemented. For an efficient implementation, it is crucial to locate and exploit redundancies. Furthermore, the more complex programme flow may lead to computational overhead which, in the worst case, more than compensates the theoretical gain in efficiency. We present a general splitting approach which allows both for IMEX splittings and for local time step adaptation. The main focus is on an efficient implementation of this approach for parallel computation on computer clusters.
Dispersion of traffic-related exhaust particles near the Berlin urban motorway – estimation of fleet emission factors
2009, Birmili, W., Alaviippola, B., Hinneburg, D., Knoth, O., Tuch, T., Borken-Kleefeld, J., Schacht, A.
Atmospheric particle number size distributions of airborne particles (diameter range 10–500 nm) were collected over ten weeks at three sites in the vicinity of the A100 urban motorway in Berlin, Germany. The A100 carries about 180 000 vehicles on a weekday. The roadside particle distributions showed a number maximum between 20 and 60 nm clearly related to the motorway emissions. The average total number concentration at roadside was 28 000 cm−3 with a total range of 1200–168 000 cm−3. At distances of 80 and 400 m from the motorway the concentrations decreased to mean levels of 11 000 and 9000 cm−3, respectively. An obstacle-resolving dispersion model was applied to simulate the 3-D flow field and traffic tracer transport in the urban environment around the motorway. By inverse modelling, vehicle emission factors were derived that are representative of a fleet with a relative share of 6% lorry-like vehicles, and driving at a speed of 80 km h−1. Three different calculation approaches were compared, which differ in the choice of the experimental winds driving the flow simulation. The average emission factor per vehicle was 2.1 (±0.2) · 1014 km−1 for particle number and 0.077 (±0.01) · 1014 cm3 km−1 for particle volume. Regression analysis suggested that lorry-like vehicles emit 123 (±28) times more particle number than passenger car-like vehicles, and lorry-like vehicles account for about 91% of particulate number emissions on weekdays. Our work highlights the increasing applicability of 3-D flow models in urban microscale environments and their usefulness for determining traffic emission factors.
Investigations of boundary layer structure, cloud characteristics and vertical mixing of aerosols at Barbados with large eddy simulations
2016, Jähn, M., Muñoz-Esparza, D., Chouza, F., Reitebuch, O., Knoth, O., Haarig, M., Ansmann, A.
Large eddy simulations (LESs) are performed for the area of the Caribbean island Barbados to investigate island effects on boundary layer modification, cloud generation and vertical mixing of aerosols. Due to the presence of a topographically structured island surface in the domain center, the model setup has to be designed with open lateral boundaries. In order to generate inflow turbulence consistent with the upstream marine boundary layer forcing, we use the cell perturbation method based on finite amplitude potential temperature perturbations. In this work, this method is for the first time tested and validated for moist boundary layer simulations with open lateral boundary conditions. Observational data obtained from the SALTRACE field campaign is used for both model initialization and a comparison with Doppler wind and Raman lidar data. Several numerical sensitivity tests are carried out to demonstrate the problems related to “gray zone modeling” when using coarser spatial grid spacings beyond the inertial subrange of three-dimensional turbulence or when the turbulent marine boundary layer flow is replaced by laminar winds. Especially cloud properties in the downwind area west of Barbados are markedly affected in these kinds of simulations. Results of an additional simulation with a strong trade-wind inversion reveal its effect on cloud layer depth and location. Saharan dust layers that reach Barbados via long-range transport over the North Atlantic are included as passive tracers in the model. Effects of layer thinning, subsidence and turbulent downward transport near the layer bottom at z ≈ 1800 m become apparent. The exact position of these layers and strength of downward mixing is found to be mainly controlled atmospheric stability (especially inversion strength) and wind shear. Comparisons of LES model output with wind lidar data show similarities in the downwind vertical wind structure. Additionally, the model results accurately reproduce the development of the daytime convective boundary layer measured by the Raman lidar.