Development of a Windbreak Dust Predictive Model and Mitigation Planning Tool
Abstract
Fugitive dust from unconfined sources such as unpaved roads and construction areas can impair both health and visibility. In this report, the potential benefits of vegetative windbreaks in reducing vehicle-generated fugitive dust are studied and quantified using a combined experimental and computational approach. The overall hypothesis for this study is that maintaining native vegetation, establishing compatible plantings along roads, or constructing windbreaks could be a useful dust mitigation technique on military training ranges. This work focuses on PM10 dust particles with an aerodynamic diameter of 10 m or less. The overall Objective of this project has been to address important fugitive dust issues for the Resource Conservation and Climate Change program area by developing and validating a proof-of-concept computational model for designing windbreaks for dust mitigation. The Technical Approach toward achieving this objective has been to utilize laboratory and field experiment data to develop improved models. Model development was accomplished by integrating particle dispersion and atmospheric turbulence theory with wind tunnel and field experiment data. The computational model for simulating near-road fugitive dust transport was integrated into the widely used Quick Urban and Industrial Complex (QUIC) Dispersion Modeling System. Prior to this project, QUIC had been applied to near-source pollutant transport around solid obstructions and this work extends its applicability to incorporate a novel sub-model to simulate the effects of both thin and deep vegetative canopies on wind fields and particle transport.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2013
- Accession Number
- ADA602245
Entities
People
- Eric Pardyjak
- John Veranth
- Scott Speckart
- Sean Moran
- Tim Price
Organizations
- University of Utah