Effects of Wall Heating on Flow Characteristics in a Street Canyon

We develop a large-eddy simulation (LES) model based on a meteorological numerical model for a real scale street-canyon flow with rough building facets heated by a given temperature. The model is applied to a canyon with the aspect ratio of unity for two idealized heating scenarios: (1) the roof and the entire upstream wall are heated, named as ‘assisting cases’, and (2) the roof and the entire downstream wall are heated, named as ‘opposing cases’. These facets were heated up to 15 K above the air temperature. A wall function for temperature is proposed for a rough facet with an assumption that the thermal roughness length, z _0T, is much smaller than the aerodynamic roughness length, z ₀. It is demonstrated that the sensible heat flux and canyon-air temperature are significantly influenced by the near-facet process that is parametrized by z _0T as the primary factor; other processes such as in-canyon mixing and roof-level exchange are secondary. This new finding strongly suggests that it is vital to choose an appropriate value of z _0T in a numerical simulation of street-canyon flows with the facet-air exchange processes of heat or any scalar. The finding also raises an awareness of the demand for carefully designed laboratory or field experiments of quantifying z _0T values for various urban surfaces. For the opposing cases, an unsteady penetrating narrow updraft zone appears occasionally along the heated wall and this feature is consistent field observations. The unique result indicates the superior capability of LES. The results of this study can be used to guide the parametrization of turbulent processes inside the urban canopy layer.     

Heat flux parameterization for sparse and dense grasslands with the analytical land-atmosphere radiometer model (alarm)

The dependence of radiometric surface temperature (_s) on view angle and the unclear definition of the aerodynamic temperature, which is the temperature that gives the correct sensible heat flux estimate at a specified roughness length, bring about a challenge in estimating sensible heat flux from _s. An analytical-land-atmosphere-radiometer model (ALARM) has been developed to convert _s taken at any zenith view angle to a clearly defined equivalent isothermal surface temperature, _i, at a defined scalar roughness length. ALARM is an analytical model based on K-theory that links the foliage temperature profile to the radiometric surface temperature and the temperature felt by the turbulent lower atmosphere. ALARM has previously been applied with slightly different values of its parameters to several grassland sites of varying canopy density. Our objective in this study was to apply ALARM to these and to one additional dataset with a single parameterization. When compared to the reference (measured) values of sensible heat flux H, ALARM estimates of H had root mean square errors of about 35 W m^-2. These results were comparable to those from two other simple canopy models also tested with these datasets.     

Modelling surface energy fluxes and temperatures in dry and wet bare soils

Abstract

A physically‐based numerical model was developed to estimate the temporal course of the surface energy flux densities and the soil temperatures in dry and wet bare soils. Aerodynamic heat, vapour and momentum transfer theory was used to calculate the sensible and latent heat flux densities at the surface under diabatic and adiabatic conditions. A finite‐difference solution of the differential equation describing one‐dimensional heat transfer was used to calculate the surface soil heat flux density and soil profile temperatures. The surface temperature was determined iteratively by the simultaneous solution of equations describing radiative, heat and momentum transfer at the surface. The model was tested with measurements from energy balance studies conducted on a dry, sandy soil and a wet, silt loam soil, and was found to predict accurately the surface energy fluxes and soil temperatures over three‐day periods under conditions of potential and negligible evaporation. The sensitivity of the model to uncertainties in the aerodynamic roughness lengths for momentum (z₀) and heat (z_T) is reported. Values for z₀ and Z₀/Z_T of 0.5 mm and 3.0, respectively, resulted in the best agreement between modelled and measured values of the fluxes and temperatures for both soils.     

Parameterizing turbulent exchange over sea ice: the ice station weddell results

A 4-month deployment on Ice Station Weddell (ISW) in the western Weddell Sea yielded over 2000 h of nearly continuous surface-level meteorological data, including eddy-covariance measurements of the turbulent surface fluxes of momentum, and sensible and latent heat. Those data lead to a new parameterization for the roughness length for wind speed, z₀, for snow-covered sea ice that combines three regimes: an aerodynamically smooth regime, a high-wind saltation regime, and an intermediate regime between these two extremes where the macroscale or `permanent' roughness of the snow and ice determines z₀. Roughness lengths for temperature, z_T, computed from this data set corroborate the theoretical model that Andreas published in 1987. Roughness lengths for humidity,z_Q, do not support this model as conclusively but are all, on average, within an order of magnitude of its predictions. Only rarely arez_Tand z_Q equal to z₀. These parameterizations have implications for models that treat the atmosphere-ice-ocean system.     

MM5和ETA相似理论近地层方案对农田下垫面通量模拟比较研究

近地层湍流通量计算对于中尺度数值模式有重要意义,湍流通量的参数化是当前大气边界层研究的重要课题之一.选择青藏高原东缘大理观象台边界层通量观测系统,离线测试了WRF区域模式中的两种常用的近地层参数化方案(MM5相似理论非迭代方案A和ETA相似理论迭代方案B),并将参数化方案计算结果与边界层铁塔涡动相关法的观测值进行对比分析.在大理观象台观测场不同植被随季节交替的状况下,根据边界层铁塔4层高度风速拟合,发现近地层空气动力学粗糙度随季节变化特征明显.将拟合的空气动力学粗糙度输入模式参数化方案进行通量计算.结果表明:稳定度是影响近地层参数化方案精度的重要因素,在不稳定条件下方案B低估了动量通量,方案A优于方案B,而在稳定条件下方案A低估了动量通量,方案B优于方案A,两种方案总体来看误差不大.对于大理边界层通量观测场农田植被交替的环境条件,不同季节下垫面植被类型的差异,以及植被的稀疏对近地层参数化方案湍流通量计算结果的精度有显着影响.方案B考虑了空气动力学粗糙度z₀和热量粗糙度z_0h的差异,不稳定条件下感热通量计算结果在裸土或稀少植被条件下明显优于方案A.针对方案B不稳定条件下感热通量计算结果在裸土下垫面仍出现高估的现象,使用了Zeng等1998年提出的用辐射地表温度订正裸土下垫面感热能量方法后,计算结果也有明显改善.     

MM5和ETA相似理论近地层方案对农田下垫面通量模拟比较研究

近地层湍流通量计算对于中尺度数值模式有重要意义, 湍流通量的参数化是当前大气边界层研究的重要课题之一。选择青藏高原东缘大理观象台边界层通量观测系统, 离线测试了WRF区域模式中的两种常用的近地层参数化方案(MM5相似理论非迭代方案A和ETA 相似理论迭代方案B), 并将参数化方案计算结果与边界层铁塔涡动相关法的观测值进行对比分析。在大理观象台观测场不同植被随季节交替的状况下, 根据边界层铁塔4层高度风速拟合, 发现近地层空气动力学粗糙度随季节变化特征明显。将拟合的空气动力学粗糙度输入模式参数化方案进行通量计算。结果表明:稳定度是影响近地层参数化方案精度的重要因素, 在不稳定条件下方案B低估了动量通量, 方案A优于方案B, 而在稳定条件下方案A低估了动量通量, 方案B优于方案A, 两种方案总体来看误差不大。对于大理边界层通量观测场地农田植被交替的环境条件, 不同季节下垫面植被类型的差异, 以及植被的稀疏对近地层参数化方案湍流通量计算结果的精度有显著影响。方案B考虑了空气动力学粗糙度z₀和热量粗糙度z_0h的差异, 不稳定条件下感热通量计算结果在裸土或稀少植被条件下明显优于方案A。针对方案B不稳定条件下感热通量计算结果在裸土下垫面仍出现高估的现象, 在使用了(Zeng, et al, 1998)提出的对于使用辐射地表温度在裸土下垫面时的订正方法后, 计算结果也有明显改善。     

An Improvement of the Louis Scheme for the Surface Layer in an Atmospheric Modelling System

The Louis scheme for calculating the vertical eddy fluxes within the atmospheric surface layer is improved by broadening the original assumptions. In our approach, the momentum and heat transfer roughness lengths (z₀ and z_T respectively) can be different, and z₀ need not be negligibly small compared with the lowest height (z) in modelling. For these conditions, we choose more consistent wind and potential temperature profile forms, then derive new algorithms for calculating fluxes. Improvement is demonstrated for a wide range of z/L (L is the Obukhov length), z/z₀ and z₀ z_T, by comparing these fluxes with those derived from a theoretical surface-layer model. The improved algorithms can be used in atmospheric modelling systems for more varied surfaces and a wide range of atmospheric stability.     

A model of airflow above changes in surface heat flux,temperature and roughness for neutral and unstable conditions

A numerical model of airflow in the lowest 50–100 m of the atmosphere above changes in surface roughness and temperature or heat flux has been developed based on boundary layer approximations, the Businger-Dyer hypotheses for the non-dimensional wind shear and heat flux and a mixing length hypothesis.Results have been obtained for several situations, in particular, airflow with neutral upstream conditions encountering a step change in surface temperature or heat flux with no roughness change. In these cases large increases in shear stress at the outer edge of the internal boundary layer are predicted. The case of unstable upstream flow encountering a step change to zero heat flux is also considered.Two situations that may be encountered near the shores of the Great Lakes are considered.Notation B Businger-Dyer constant (= 16.0) in form for _M, _H - c _p Specific heat at constant pressure - g Acceleration due to gravity - H Upward vertical heat flux - H ₀ , H ₁ Surface heat fluxes for x < 0, x 0 - k von Kármán's constant ( = 0.4) - l Mixing length - L Monin-Obukhov length - L ₀ Upstream value of L - m Ratio of roughness lengths (= z ₁/z ₀) - RL ^* Non-dimensional parameter, see Equations (20, 22 and 24) - RL ₁ ^* Same as RL ^* but with z ₁ scaling (= mRL ^*) - T Scaled temperature - T ₀ (z) Upstream temperature profile - u ₀, u ₁(x) Surface friction velocities for x < 0, x 0 - U, W Horizontal and vertical mean velocities - U ₀ (z) Upstream velocity profile - x, z Horizontal and vertical coordinates - z _i Local roughness length     

Bulk Formulation of the Surface Heat Flux

An interpretive literature survey examines different approachesfor applying the bulk aerodynamic formulato predict the surface heat flux. The surface heat flux is often predicted in terms of the surface radiation temperature, which is also used to predict the upward longwave radiation and the heat flux into the soil. In models, the thermal roughness length based on the surface radiation temperature (radiometric roughness length) is often specified to be smaller than the roughness length for momentum for a number of distinct reasons. The definition of the radiometric roughness length depends on the way that the surface temperature is measured, the choice of stability functions and displacement height and inclusion of any additional resistances.Using airborne eddy correlation data collected over eight different sites including bare soil, crops and grassland and several types of forests, the radiometric roughness length is found to vary by orders of magnitude in a manner that is difficult to formulate. Alternatively, we evaluate the approach where the thermal roughness length is equated with the better behaved roughness length for momentum and the corresponding aerodynamic surface temperature is modelled in terms of the surface radiation temperature, solar radiation, and vegetation index. The influence of wind speed and soil moisture on the difference between the aerodynamic and surface radiation temperatures is also examined.     

Estimation of the sensible heat flux of a semi-arid area using surface radiative temperature measurements

In the framework of an international field program for the study of semi-arid areas, observations were done in the region called La Crau in southern France. In this paper, the use of the surface radiative temperature for the determination of the sensible heat flux is addressed. We found that, once proper values of the roughness length of momentum (z ₀) and heat (z ₀h) are set, the sensible heat flux can be reliably predicted with a one-layer resistance model using standard observations of wind speed and air temperature, together with the surface temperature. The latter quantity has to be known with a precision better than ±2°C. From our observations, the value of the parameterB ^–1k ^–1 In (z ₀ z ₀h) was found to be 9.2, which falls between values quoted by Brutsaert (1982) for grass and bluff bodies.     

A simple extension of the Louis method for rough surface layer modelling

The surface flux calculation method proposed by Louis (1979) is extended by allowing momentum and heat to have different roughness lengths (z ₀ andz T respectively). Our approach is to extend the traditional analysis by a more careful consideration of potential temperature structure near the surface. This consideration leads to a redefinition of the bulk Richardson number. For bulk transfer coefficients, our method shows a significant improvement over the original Louis method when compared with the theoretical surface-layer model applied to rough surfaces. Numerical experiments simulating sea breezes in 2D show that our extension is crucially important in simulating light wind and low humidity conditions.     

Impact of surface variations on the momentum flux above the urban canopy

Based on the momentum flux–wind profile relationship of the Monin–Obukhov Similarity (MOS) theory, the observational data from the urban boundary layer field campaign in Nanjing are used to calculate the friction velocity ( $ {u_*} $ ) at the top of the urban canopy and the calculated results are evaluated. The urban surface roughness parameters (the roughness length z ₀ and zero-plane displacement height z _d) are estimated with the Ba method (Bottema’s morphological method). Two different regimes are employed for the calculations. In the homogeneous approach, z ₀ and z _d are averagely derived from the surface elements in the whole study area; while in the heterogeneous approach, z ₀ and z _d are locally derived from the surface elements in the corresponding upwind fetches (or source areas). The calculated friction velocities are compared to the measurement data. The results show that the calculated friction velocities from the heterogeneous approach are in better agreement with the observed values than those from the homogeneous approach are. This study implies that the local roughness parameters can properly represent the dynamical heterogeneity of urban surface, and its application can significantly improve the performance of parameterizations based on the MOS theory in the urban roughness sublayer.     

A Case Study Of An On-Ice Air Flow Over The Arctic Marginal Sea-Ice Zone

A case study of warm air advection over the Arctic marginalsea-ice zone is presented, based on aircraft observations with direct flux measurements carriedout in early spring, 1998. A shallow atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) was observed, which wasgradually cooling with distance downwind of the ice edge. This process was mainly connected with astrong stable stratification and downward turbulent heat fluxes of about 10–20 W m^-2, but wasalso due to radiative cooling. Two mesoscale models, one hydrostatic and the other non-hydrostatic,having different turbulence closures, were applied. Despite these fundamental differences betweenthe models, the results of both agreed well with the observed data. Various closure assumptions had amore crucial influence on the results than the differences between the models.Such an assumption was, for example,the parameterization of the surface roughness for momentum (z₀) and heat (z_T). This stronglyaffected the wind and temperature fields not only close to the surface but also within and abovethe temperature inversion layer. The best results were achieved using a formulation for z₀ that took intoaccount the form drag effect of sea-ice ridges together withz_T = 0.1z₀. The stability within theelevated inversion strongly depended on the minimum eddy diffusivity K_min. A simple ad hocparameterization seems applicable, where K_min is calculated as 0.005 timesthe neutral eddy diffusivity. Although the longwave radiative cooling was largest within the ABL, theapplication of a radiation scheme was less important there than above the ABL. This was related to theinteraction of the turbulent and radiative fluxes. To reproduce the strong inversion, it wasnecessary to use vertical and horizontal resolutions higher than those applied in most regional andlarge-scale atmospheric models.     

Critical Evaluation of Scalar Roughness Length Parametrizations Over a Melting Valley Glacier

We present a field investigation over a melting valley glacier on the Tibetan Plateau. In the ablation zone, aerodynamic roughness lengths (z _0M ) vary on the order of 10⁻⁴–10⁻² m, whose evolution corresponds to three melt phases with distinct surface cover and moisture exchange: snow (sublimation/evaporation), bare ice (deposition/condensation), and ice hummocks (sublimation/evaporation). Bowen-ratio similarity is validated in the stably stratified katabatic winds, which suggests a useful means for data quality check. A roughness sublayer is regarded as irrelevant to the present ablation season, because selected characteristics of scalar turbulence over smooth snow are quite similar to those over hummocky ice. We evaluate three parametrizations of the scalar roughness lengths (z _0T for temperature and z _0q for humidity), viz. key factors for the accurate estimation of sensible heat and latent heat fluxes using the bulk aerodynamic method. The first approach is based on surface-renewal models and has been widely applied in glaciated areas; the second has never received application over an ice/snow surface, despite its validity in (semi-)arid regions; the third, a derivative of the first, is proposed for use specifically over rough ice defined as z _0M > 10⁻³ m or so. This empirical z _0M threshold value is deemed of general relevance to glaciated areas (e.g. ice sheet/cap and valley/outlet glaciers), above which the first approach gives notably underestimated z _0T,q . The first and the third approaches tend to underestimate and overestimate turbulent heat/moisture exchange, respectively, frequently leading to relative errors higher than 30%. Comparatively, the second approach produces fairly low errors in energy flux estimates both in individual melt phases and over the whole ablation season; it thus emerges as a practically useful choice to parametrize z _0T,q in glaciated areas. Moreover, we find all three candidate parametrizations unable to predict diurnal variations in the excess resistances to humidity transfer, thus encouraging more efforts for improvement.     

Aerodynamic Roughness Length of Fresh Snow

This study presents the results from a series of wind-tunnel experiments designed to investigate the aerodynamic roughness length z ₀ of fresh snow under no-drift conditions. A two-component hot-film anemometer was employed to obtain vertical profiles of velocity statistics in a zero pressure gradient turbulent boundary layer for flow over naturally deposited snow surfaces. The roughness of these snow surfaces was measured by means of digital photography to capture characteristic length scales that can be related to z ₀. Our results show that, under aerodynamically rough conditions, the mean value of the roughness length for fresh snow is \({\langle{z}_{0}\rangle= 0.24}\) mm with a standard deviation σ(z ₀) = 0.05 mm. In this study, we show that variations in z ₀ are associated with variations in the roughness geometry. The roughness measurements suggest that the estimated values of z ₀ are consistent with the presence of irregular roughness structures that develop during snowfalls that mimic ballistic deposition processes.     

Spatial Variability of Both Turbulent Fluxes and Temperature Profiles in an Urban Roughness Layer

The spatial variability of both turbulent flow statistics in the roughness sublayer (RSL) and temperature profiles within and above the canopy layer (CL) were investigated experimentally in a densely built-up residential area in Tokyo, Japan. Using five towers with measuring devices, each tower isolated from the others by at least 200 m, we collected high-frequency measurements of velocity and temperature at a height z=1.8 z _H, where z _H, the mean building height in the area, is 7.3 m. Also, temperature profiles were measured from z=0.4 to 1.8 z _H. The ‘areal mean’ geometric parameters that were obtained for the areas within 200 m of each tower were fairly homogeneous among the tower sites. The main results are as follows: (1) The spatial variability of all RSL turbulent statistics, except the sensible heat flux, was comparable to that reported in a pine forest. Also, the variability decreased with increasing friction velocity. (2) The spatial variability of the RSL sensible heat flux was larger than that reported in a pine forest. Also, the variability depended on the time of the day and became larger in the morning. The difference among the sites was well related to the areal fraction of vegetation. (3) The spatial variability of the CL temperature profile depended on the time of the day and became larger in the morning. Nevertheless, the spatial standard deviation of CL temperature was always below 0.7 K. (4) It is suggested that the “warming-up” process in the morning when heat storage is dominant increases the spatial variation of RSL sensible heat flux and CL temperature according to the local properties around each tower and the variation decreases once there is further convective mixing in the midday     

Improving the CoLM in Taklimakan Desert hinterland with accurate key parameters and an appropriate parameterization scheme

Improving and validating land surface models based on integrated observations in deserts is one of the challenges in land modeling. Particularly, key parameters and parameterization schemes in desert regions need to be evaluated in-situ to improve the models. In this study, we calibrated the land-surface key parameters and evaluated several formulations or schemes for thermal roughness length (z 0h ) in the common land model (CoLM). Our parameter calibration and scheme evaluation were based on the observed data during a torrid summer (29 July to 11 September 2009) over the Taklimakan Desert hinterland. First, the importance of the key parameters in the experiment was evaluated based on their physics principles and the significance of these key parameters were further validated using sensitivity test. Second, difference schemes (or physics-based formulas) of z 0h were adopted to simulate the variations of energy-related variables (e.g., sensible heat flux and surface skin temperature) and the simulated variations were then compared with the observed data. Third, the z 0h scheme that performed best (i.e., Y07) was then selected to replace the defaulted one (i.e., Z98); the revised scheme and the superiority of Y07 over Z98 was further demonstrated by comparing the simulated results with the observed data. Admittedly, the revised model did a relatively poor job of simulating the diurnal variations of surface soil heat flux, and nighttime soil temperature was also underestimated, calling for further improvement of the model for desert regions.     

Determination of Roughness Lengths for Heat and Momentum Over Boreal Forests

The roughness length for momentum (z_0m), zero-plane displacementheight (d), and roughness length for heat (z_0h) are importantparameters used to estimate land-atmosphere energy exchange. Although many different approaches have been developed to parameterizemomentum and heat transfer, existing parameterizations generally utilizehighly simplified representations of vegetation structure. Further, a mismatch exists between the treatments used for momentum and heat exchange and those used for radiative energy exchanges. In this paper, parameterizations are developed to estimate z_0m, d, and z_0h for forested regimes using information related to tree crown density and structure. The parameterizations provide realistic representationfor the vertical distribution of foliage within canopies, and include explicit treatment for the effects of the canopy roughness sublayer and leaf drag on momentum exchange. The proposed parameterizationsare able to realistically account for site-to-site differences in roughness lengths that arise from canopy structural properties.Comparisons between model predictions and field measurements show good agreement, suggesting that the proposed parameterizations capture the most important factors influencing turbulent exchange of momentumand heat over forests.     

北京城市下垫面动力学参数的计算与分析

采用北京325 m铁塔2008—2012年的单层超声观测资料,基于莫宁-奥布霍夫相似理论(Monin-Obukhov similarity theory)和前人提出的最小误差分析方法,计算了铁塔周边下垫面的零平面位移高度和动力粗糙度长度。结果表明,由于铁塔位于北京市区,其周边下垫面呈现极其复杂的非均匀性,所以对应铁塔周边不同的扇区,零平面位移高度和动力粗糙度长度各有不同。平均而言,在2008—2012年间,铁塔周边下垫面的零平面位移高度为34.4 m,动力粗糙度长度为1.16 m。此外,综合前人的计算结果发现,铁塔周边的零平面位移高度和动力粗糙度长度在2001年之前呈显著增加的趋势,而在2001年以后并未增长,这一现象与铁塔周边的城市化进程相对应。     

The scintillation method tested over a dry vineyard area

Measurements of a scintillometer device mounted at 4 m above a dry vineyard area in La Mancha, Spain, are used to obtain an average sensible heat flux densityH. Averaging is over a rectangular area determined by the distance between the scintillometer light source and receptor (875 m) and some upwind distance governed by the horizontal wind speed perpendicular to that line. Using similarity relations obtained from La Crau, a good correspondence betweenH measured with the scintillometer and an eddy-correlation device in the centre of a vineyard is obtained. The friction velocityu _* was either measured directly using a sonic anemometer or obtained indirectly from two wind speeds and known values of the roughness length z_o and displacementd. The free convection formulation underestimates the sensible heat flux by about 30%. This is due to a significant contribution of mechanically generated turbulence to the total turbulent transport, which was caused by relatively strong winds and rough terrain.