Non-Gaussian dispersion in model smokestack plumes

✍ Scribed by V. L. Thompson; R. A. Greenkorn

• Publisher: American Institute of Chemical Engineers
• Year: 1988
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 643 KB
• Volume: 34
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0001-1541
• DOI: 10.1002/aic.690340206

✦ Synopsis

The dispersion of emissions from a plume in a cross stream was studied using both experimental and theoretical techniques. Wind tunnel experiments were done for three jet to cross stream velocity ratios: R = 0.5, 1, and 2. The concentration in the plane perpendicular to the cross stream was measured using light scattering and photographic image analysis. The analysis of the negatives revealed the presence of two counterrotating vortices that greatly affected dispersion of smoke in the plume.

Convection and random turbulent dispersion were modeled with a statistical convection simulator on a CYBER 205 computer. The input velocities to the convection model were obtained using experimental measurements. The model revealed the effects of the vortices on dispersion, and the concentration distributions across the plume were determined once the vortices had dissipated. The existence of the counterrotating vortices and their effects upon plume dispersion showed that the Gaussian plume model, which is widely used for modeling pollutant dispersion, is inapplicable in the near range of the model stack.