Electrification of thundercloud by an entrainment mechanism

Summary A time dependent model for the growth of electric field by an entrainment mechanism has been developed, in which charge separation takes place at the interface of the descending blob due to discontinuity in the conductivity either from the onset of ice process or from the evaporative depletion of small ice or water particles in cloud parcels diluted by entrainment of dry air at the cloud top. Charge generation by the entrainment mechanism may be self limiting in high electric fields. We examine the extent to which the leakage current produced by the electrical forces acting on the descending thermals influences the net charge separation caused by the entrainment mechanism. When the effect of electrical force on the descending blob is negligibly small and the fractional change in conductivity of the blob is 0.75, high electric field of the order of a few hundred kV/m can be generated within the duration of 800s. The electrical force acting on the blods, however, does set an upper limit to the growth of an electric field, and the considered mechanism can generate electric field of the order of ten kV/m within the duration of 400 to 800s, depending on the meteorological and electrical conditions. We conclude that an entrainment mechanism can account for the observed electrification of thunderstorm at the initial stages, but that it is inadequate to generate an electric field high enough to initiate lightning.With 8 Figures