3-D dispersion model for simulation of accidental toxic gas releases in a metropolitan area

Computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations were performed to assess the potential chlorine leak scenario in the super-urban area of South Korea, where the human population density is very high and numerous buildings exist near operational water treatment facilities. Flame acceleration simulator (FLACS) was used to predict the consequence from accidental chlorine releases out of one of the water treatment facilities for the nearby area having a size of 5 km × 3 km approximately. The ability to precisely implement 3-D geometries is crucial for a successful 3-D simulation. Thus, a method was proposed to rapidly and accurately implement geometry by importing computer aided-design (CAD) files provided by a government agency, and processing them using Auto CAD and MicroStation software programs. An accidental release from an 18-ton tank was simulated with three different wind directions to determine the expected evacuation distances. Results from the study showed that the endpoint distances varied depending on the density and arrangement of the buildings. Moreover, we employed physical barriers with varying heights for mitigating the effects of toxic gas releases and simulated how effectively they decreased the concentration of released chlorine.     

Simulation of solute transport across low-permeability barrier walls

Low-permeability, non-reactive barrier walls are often used to contain contaminants in an aquifer. Rates of solute transport through such barriers are typically many orders of magnitude slower than rates through the aquifer. Nevertheless, the success of remedial actions may be sensitive to these low rates of transport. Two numerical simulation methods for representing low-permeability barriers in a finite-difference groundwater-flow and transport model were tested. In the first method, the hydraulic properties of the barrier were represented directly on grid cells and in the second method, the intercell hydraulic-conductance values were adjusted to approximate the reduction in horizontal flow, allowing use of a coarser and computationally efficient grid. The alternative methods were tested and evaluated on the basis of hypothetical test problems and a field case involving tetrachloroethylene (PCE) contamination at a Superfund site in New Hampshire. For all cases, advective transport across the barrier was negligible, but preexisting numerical approaches to calculate dispersion yielded dispersive fluxes that were greater than expected. A transport model (MODFLOW-GWT) was modified to (1) allow different dispersive and diffusive properties to be assigned to the barrier than the adjacent aquifer and (2) more accurately calculate dispersion from concentration gradients and solute fluxes near barriers. The new approach yields reasonable and accurate concentrations for the test cases.     

Assessing biological variation from the perspective of diversity

Particularly in ecological and evolutionary genetics, methods of discerning complex traits are improving at a considerable rate. As a consequence, the resolution of intrinsically qualitative traits such as species affiliation or genetic type is increasing to degrees that blur their distinction from continuously varying characteristics. The common notion of diversity, however, relies on distinct features such as the states of qualitative traits, and it aims to assess variation as a counting of these features or types. This situation brings up the question of whether and how the diversity perspective of variation can be broadened to cover higher levels of complexity without sacrificing its concept. The present paper suggests two approaches that refer to established criteria for measures of diversity and that complement each other. The partitions approach treats complexity through general measures of difference between trait states, and the relations approach rests on general binary relations that capture structural aspects of diversity. Both approaches are shown to consistently imply effective numbers of types even in cases where distinct types are not explicitly specified. Practically all of the common methods of measuring diversity can be classified into either of the two approaches, and new opportunities for analyses of the diversity of complex traits are provided. The latter analyses include those of diversity in subdivided collections. Other perspectives of variation (such as dispersion, variances, etc.) are discussed and analyzed for their distinction from the diversity perspective. In many cases, the distinction can be made apparent with the help of diversity portraits.     

Evaluation of multi-phase atmospheric dispersion models for application to Carbon Capture and Storage

A dispersion model validation study is presented for atmospheric releases of dense-phase carbon dioxide (CO₂). Predictions from an integral model and two different Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) models are compared to data from field-scale experiments conducted by INERIS, as part of the EU-funded CO₂PipeHaz project.The experiments studied consist of a 2 m³ vessel fitted with a short pipe, from which CO₂ was discharged into the atmosphere through either a 6 mm or 25 mm diameter orifice. Comparisons are made to measured temperatures and concentrations in the multi-phase CO₂ jets.The integral dispersion model tested is DNV Phast and the two CFD models are ANSYS-CFX and a research and development version of FLACS, both of which adopt a Lagrangian particle-tracking approach to simulate the sublimating solid CO₂ particles in the jet. Source conditions for the CFD models are taken from a sophisticated near-field CFD model developed by the University of Leeds that simulates the multi-phase, compressible flow in the expansion region of the CO₂ jet, close to the orifice.Overall, the predicted concentrations from the various models are found to be in reasonable agreement with the measurements, but generally in poorer agreement than has been reported previously for similar dispersion models in other dense-phase CO₂ release experiments. The ANSYS-CFX model is shown to be sensitive to the way in which the source conditions are prescribed, while FLACS shows some sensitivity to the solid CO₂ particle size. Difficulties in interpreting the results from one of the tests, which featured some time-varying phenomena, are also discussed.The study provides useful insight into the coupling of near- and far-field dispersion models, and the strengths and weaknesses of different modelling approaches. These findings contribute to the assessment of potential hazards presented by Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) infrastructure.     

An analytical solution for two-dimensional contaminant transport during groundwater extraction

We obtain an analytical solution for two-dimensional steady-state transport of conservative contaminant between injecting and pumping wells. Flow and transport are considered in the vertical cross-section. The Dupuit approximation and conformal mapping onto the complex potential domain are employed to determine the velocity and concentration distributions, respectively. We use this solution to derive a priori conditions under which widely used 1-D analytical solutions with constant velocity and dispersion coefficients provide accurate approximations. These conditions are formulated in terms of aquifer parameters, such as hydraulic conductivity, porosity and dispersivities, and remediation strategy, e.g., well spacing and pumping regimes.     

Assessing the inter-annual variability of separation distances around odour sources to protect the residents from odour annoyance

In recent years, there has been a growing concern about potential impacts on public health and wellbeing due to exposure to environmental odour. Separation distances between odour-emitting sources and residential areas can be calculated using dispersion models, as a means of protecting the neighbourhood from odour annoyance. This study investigates the suitability of using one single year of meteorological input data to calculate reliable direction-dependent separation distances. Accordingly, we assessed and quantified the inter-annual variability of separation distances at two sites with different meteorological conditions, one in Brazil and the other in Austria. A 5-year dataset of hourly meteorological observations was used for each site. Two odour impact criteria set in current regulations were selected to explore their effect on the separation distances. The coefficient of variation was used as a statistical measure to characterise the amount of annual variation. Overall,for all scenarios, the separation distances had a low degree of inter-annual variability(mean coefficient of variation values from 8% to 21%). Reasonable agreements from year to year were therefore observed at the two sites under investigation, showing that one year of meteorological data is a good compromise to achieve reliable accuracy. This finding can provide a more cost-effective solution to calculate separation distances in the vicinity of odour sources.     

Effects of ultrasonic treatment on dithiothreitol (DTT) assay measurements for carbon materials

The dithiothreitol (DTT) assay is the most commonly used method to quantify the oxidative potential of fine particles. However, the reported DTT decay rates of carbon black (CB) materials vary greatly among different researchers. This might have resulted from either the intrinsic toxicity of CB or the unsuitability of the DTT assay protocol for CB particles. In the current study, the protocol of the DTT assay for CB materials has been carefully evaluated. It was found that the dispersion degree of CB particles in water has a great influence on the DTT decay rate of CB materials. For CB particles (special black 4A (SB4A) and Printex U) and single-walled carbon nanotube tube (SWCNT), the DTT decay rate after sonication for 10?min became 4.2, 4.6 and 1.7 times higher than that without sonication. The rate continued to grow as a function of ultrasound time up to 30?min of sonication. Although the concentration of soluble transition metals and surface oxygen-containing species such as carbonyls increased slightly with sonication, they had no significant effects on the measured DTT activity, while the increase in the dispersion degree of aggregates was found to play a vital role in the observed enhancement of the DTT decay rates for different CB materials. Based on our results, 30?min of sonication is recommended for sample dispersion when measuring the DTT decay rate of CB materials.     

大气污染物扩散模式的应用研究综述

应用大气污染物扩散模式可以模拟不同尺度、气象、地形条件下工业污染物在大气中的输送与扩散特征,为大气监测、城市环境规划和空气质量预报等工作提供科学依据.归纳了目前广泛应用于模拟工业污染物扩散的模式,着重介绍了近年来国内外对这些模式的主要应用研究进展,比较了各模式在应用上的优缺点,并对大气污染物扩散模式的应用研究前景进行了讨论.     

A new model for the CBL growth based on the turbulent kinetic energy equation

Starting from the evolution equation for the turbulent energy density spectrum (EDS), we develop a new model for the growth of the Convective boundary layer (CBL). We apply dimensional analysis to parameterize the unknown inertial transport and convective source term in the dynamic equation for the three-dimensional (3-D) spectrum and solve the 3-D EDS equation. The one-dimensional vertical spectrum is derived from the 3-D spectrum, employing a weight function. This allows us to select the magnitude of the vertical spectral component for the construction of the growing 3-D EDS. Furthermore, we employ the vertical component of the energy spectrum to calculate the eddy diffusivity (required in dispersion models). Currently there are no available experimental data to directly verify our EDS model.     

Are dispersion models suitable for simulating small gaseous chlorine releases?

Dispersion models are mostly validated on the basis of historical dispersion experiments. The latter imply large quantities of hazardous products (flammable or toxic gases), and are dedicated to study the dispersion of the resulting clouds on great distances from the source to reach a better knowledge of the different phases of gas dispersion (slumping, creeping, passive dispersion…).However, dispersion models have hardly been validated on small releases and therefore require more validation on small plumes of dangerous gases. Indeed, what is their reliability in case of accidents involving small amounts (e.g., chlorine leakages at swimming pools’ installations), and for small distances downwind the gas source? This information is of prime interest in so far as small releases are more likely to occur than larger ones.This paper reports on chlorine small-scale dispersion experiments and deals with the comparison between experimental data of ground level concentrations in the plume and predicted concentrations obtained from several dispersion models.