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AERMOD: A DISPERSION MODEL FOR INDUSTRIAL SOURCE APPLICATIONS PART I: GENERAL MODEL FORMULATION AND BOUNDARY LAYER CHARACTERIZATION
Citation:
Cimorelli, A. J., S G. Perry, A. Venkatram, J. C. Weil, R. J. Paine, R. B. Wilson, R. F. Lee, W. D. Peters, AND R. W. BRODE. AERMOD: A DISPERSION MODEL FOR INDUSTRIAL SOURCE APPLICATIONS PART I: GENERAL MODEL FORMULATION AND BOUNDARY LAYER CHARACTERIZATION. JOURNAL OF APPLIED METEOROLOGY AND CLIMATOLOGY. American Meteorological Society, Boston, MA, 44(5):682-693, (2005).
Impact/Purpose:
This task objective is the development and improvement of state-of-the-science meteorology models and contributing process parameterizations for use in advanced air quality simulation model systems such as the Community Multi-scale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system and for other modeling studies and situations involving transport and dispersion of pollutants. Components of this work include: (a) improved meteorological and transport modeling, (b) improved meteorological modeling physics, (c) physical modeling of flows- building wakes, complex terrain, urban canyons, (d) modeling of transport and dispersion of specialized situations and (e) develop AERMOD (AMS/EPA Regulatory MODel).
Description:
The formulations of the AMS/EPA Regulatory Model Improvement Committee's applied air dispersion model (AERMOD) as related to the characterization of the planetary boundary layer are described. This is the first in a series of three articles. Part II describes the formulation of the dispersion algorithms while Part III covers the model's performance and evaluation. For use in estimating turbulence and dispersion, AERMOD first characterizes the state of the boundary layer with computation of Monin-Obukhov length, surface friction velocity, surface roughness length, sensible heat flux, convective scaling velocity, and both the shear-driven and convection-driven mixing heights. These parameters are used in conjunction with meteorological measurements to characterize the vertical structure of the wind, temperature, and turbulence. AERMOD's method for incorporating the vertical inhomogeneity of the meteorology into the dispersion calculations is described. Finally, the characterization of representative terrain used to influence the flow at each receptor point is explained.
This paper has been reviewed in accordance with the United States Environmental Protection Agency's peer review and administrative review policies for approval for presentation and publication. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.