Particulate matter dynamics

TL;DR

This paper investigates the dispersion and deposition of coarse particulate matter in the atmosphere, using numerical simulations that incorporate turbulence and weather conditions to improve understanding of particle transport.

Contribution

It introduces a novel simulation approach for coarse particle dispersion using the Bulirsch Stoer integrator and Langevin equation under various weather scenarios.

Findings

Weather significantly affects particle deposition patterns.

Simulation results highlight differences between stable and unstable atmospheric conditions.

The model provides detailed trajectories of coarse particles in diverse environments.

Abstract

A substantial fraction of the particulate matter released into the atmosphere by industrial or natural processes corresponds to particles whose aerodynamic diameters are greater than 50 mm. It has been shown that, for these particles, the classical description of Gaussian plume diffusion processes, is inadequate to describe the transport and deposition. In this paper we present new results concerning the dispersion of coarse particulate matter. The simulations are done with our own code that uses the Bulirsch Stoer numerical integrator to calculate threedimensional trajectories of particles released into the environment under very general conditions. Turbulent processes are simulated by the Langevin equation and weather conditions are modeled after stable (Monin-Obukhov length L> 0) and unstable conditions (L <0). We present several case studies based on Monte Carlo simulations and discusses the effect of weather on the final deposition of these particles.