We present a turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) closure scheme for the stably stratified atmosphere in which the mixing lengths for momentum and heat are not parameterized in the same manner. The key difference is that, while the mixing length for heat tends towards the stability independent mixing length for momentum in neutrally stratified conditions, it tends towards one based on the Brunt-Väisälä time scale and square root of the TKE in the limit of large stability. This enables a unique steady-state solution for TKE to be obtained, which we demonstrate would otherwise be impossible if the mixing lengths were the same. Despite the model's relative simplicity, it is shown to perform reasonably well with observational data from the 1999 Cooperative Atmosphere-Surface Exchange Study (CASES-99) using commonly employed model constants. Analyzing the scaling behavior of the non-dimensional velocity and potential temperature gradients, or of the stability (correction) functions, reveals that for large stability the present model scales in the same manner as the first-order operational scheme of Viterbo et al. (Quart. J. Roy. Meteor. Soc. 125, 2401-2426, 1999). Alternatively, it appears as a blend of two cases of the TKE closure scheme of Baas et al. (Bound.-Layer Meteor. 127, 17-36, 2008). Critically, because a unique steady-state TKE can be obtained, the present model avoids the non-physical behavior identified in one of the cases of Baas et al. (2008).
We use a database of direct numerical simulations to evaluate parametrizations for energy dissipation rate in stably stratified flows. We show that shear-based formulations are more appropriate for stable boundary layers than commonly used buoyancy-based formulations. As part of the derivations, we explore several length scales of turbulence and investigate their dependence on local stability.
In this study, we explore several integral and outer length scales of turbulence which can be formulated by using the dissipation of temperature fluctuations ($χ$) and other relevant variables. Our analyses directly lead to simple yet non-trivial parameterizations for both $χ$ and the structure parameter of temperature ($C_T^2$). For our purposes, we make use of high-fidelity data from direct numerical simulations of stratified channel flows.
Inertial particles in stably stratified flows play a fundamental role in geophysics, from the dynamics of nutrients in the ocean to the dispersion of pollutants in the atmosphere. We consider the Maxey-Riley equation for small neutrally buoyant inertial particles in the Boussinesq approximation, and discuss its limits of validity. We show that particles behave as forced damped oscillators, with different regimes depending on the particles Stokes number and the fluid Brunt-Väisälä frequency. Using direct numerical simulations we study the particles dynamics and we show that small neutrally buoy…
In this study, the stability dependence of turbulent Prandtl number ($Pr_t$) is quantified via a novel and simple analytical approach. Based on the variance and flux budget equations, a hybrid length scale formulation is first proposed and its functional relationships to well-known length scales are established. Next, the ratios of these length scales are utilized to derive an explicit relationship between $Pr_t$ and gradient Richardson number. In addition, theoretical predictions are made for several key turbulence variables (e.g., dissipation rates, normalized fluxes). The results from our p…
Turbulent fluxes in the atmospheric surface layer are key input for the prediction of weather, hydrology, and carbon dioxide concentration. In numerical modelling of turbulent fluxes, a -7/3 power-law scaling in turbulence cospectra is usually assumed at high wavenumbers. In eddy-covariance (EC) measurements of turbulent fluxes, an assumed shape of turbulence cospectra is typically required for high-frequency spectral corrections, typically assuming a -7/3 power law. The derivation of -7/3 power-law scaling is based primarily on dimensional analysis, and other cospectral scaling has also been …
We investigate the effects of condensation and liquid water loading on the stably stratified surface layer, with an eye towards understanding the influence of turbulent mixing on fog formation. Direct numerical simulations (DNS) of dry and moist open channel flows are conducted, where in both a constant cooling rate is applied at the ground to mimic longwave radiative cooling. Depending on the cooling rate, it can lead to either turbulent (weakly stable) or laminar (very stable) flows. Compared to the completely dry case, the condensation of liquid water in the moist case enables slightly high…
The energy and flux budget (EFB) closure theory for a passive scalar (non-buoyant and non-inertial particles or gaseous admixtures) is developed for stably stratified turbulence. The physical background of the EFB turbulence closures is based on the budget equations for the turbulent kinetic and potential energies and turbulent fluxes of momentum and buoyancy, as well as the turbulent flux of particles. The EFB turbulence closure is designed for stratified geophysical flows from neutral to very stable stratification and it implies that turbulence is maintained by the velocity shear at any stra…
Revisiting the Local Scaling Hypothesis in Stably Stratified Atmospheric Boundary Layer Turbulence: an Integration of Field and Laboratory Measurements with Large-eddy Simulations
We extend the scaling relations of stably stratified turbulence from the geophysical regime of unity Prandtl number to the astrophysical regime of extremely small Prandtl number applicable to stably stratified regions of stars and gas giants. A transition to a new turbulent regime is found to occur when the Prandtl number drops below the inverse of the buoyancy Reynolds number, i.e. $PrRb<1$, which signals a shift of the dominant balance in the buoyancy equation. Application of critical balance arguments then derives new predictions for the anisotropic energy spectrum and dominant balance of t…
Machine-Learned Closure of URANS for Stably Stratified Turbulence: Connecting Physical Timescales & Data Hyperparameters of Deep Time-Series Models
National Center for Computational Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory（橡树岭国家实验室国家计算科学中心）；University of Massachusetts Amherst（马萨诸塞大学阿默斯特分校）；University of Washington（华盛顿大学）；DoD HPCMP PET/GDIT（美国国防部高性能计算现代化计划项目执行办公室/通用动力信息技术公司）
We have advanced the energy and flux budget (EFB) turbulence closure theory that takes into account a two-way coupling between internal gravity waves (IGW) and the shear-free stably stratified turbulence. This theory is based on the budget equation for the total (kinetic plus potential) energy of IGW, the budget equations for the kinetic and potential energies of fluid turbulence, and turbulent fluxes of potential temperature for waves and fluid flow. The waves emitted at a certain level, propagate upward, and the losses of wave energy cause the production of turbulence energy. We demonstrate …
Rotation is one of the key physical mechanisms that deeply impact the evolution of stars. Helio- and asteroseismology reveal a strong extraction of angular momentum from stellar radiation zones over the whole Hertzsprung-Russell diagram. Turbulent transport in differentially rotating stably stratified stellar radiation zones should be carefully modeled and its strength evaluated. Stratification and rotation imply that this turbulent transport is anisotropic. Only phenomenological prescriptions have been proposed for the transport in the horizontal direction, which however constitutes a corners…
We study forced, rapildy rotating and stably stratified turbulence in an elongated domain using an asymptotic expansion at simultaneously low Rossby number $Ro\ll1$ and large domain height compared to the energy injection scale, $h=H/\ell_{in}\gg1$. The resulting equations depend on the parameter $λ=(h Ro )^{-1}$ and the Froude number $Fr$. An extensive set of direct numerical simulations (DNS) is performed to explore the parameter space $(λ,Fr)$. We show that a forward energy cascade occurs in one region of this space, and a split energy cascade outside it. At weak stratification (large $Fr$)…
Convection over a wavy heated bottom wall in the air flow has been studied in experiments with the Rayleigh number $\sim 10^8$. It is shown that the mean temperature gradient in the flow core inside a large-scale circulation is directed upward, that corresponds to the stably stratified flow. In the experiments with a wavy heated bottom wall, we detect large-scale standing internal gravity waves excited in the regions with the stably stratified flow. The wavelength and the period of these waves are much larger than the turbulent spatial and time scales, respectively. In particular, the frequenc…
