Measuring where the wind blows

Ted Stathopoulos, professor in the Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering, was recently recognized as a highly cited author by Elsevier, publishers of a range of science, engineering and health related journals. He was recognized for the ongoing influence of an article he co-authored.

“CFD [computational fluid dynamics] simulation of the atmospheric boundary layer: wall function problems” appeared in the Elsevier journal Atmospheric Environment in 2007. The article, presenting a more accurate way to determine wind flow over uneven terrain, has been widely cited since its publication and has facilitated the work of researchers and planners addressing problems related to urban air pollution, natural ventilation, pedestrian wind comfort and wind energy.

The paper addressed an ongoing problem in applying CFD to wind flow and heat and mass transfer in areas where the terrain is not homogenous or consistent over the area being investigated.

Stathopoulos explains that “the roughness of the upstream terrain (exposure) could be as smooth as an open prairie (or a calm lake) or as rough as downtown Manhattan with lots of cases in between (suburban terrain). The wind travels above ground, the roughness of which affects its velocity profile and turbulence (gustiness) characteristics due to friction created by the roughness elements (trees, cars, buildings and other ground obstacles upstream). Unless you simulate (model) this oncoming wind correctly, the interaction with the building or structure of interest will not be indicative of what happens in reality. Hence this representation is extremely important.”

The paper breaks down the factors that complicate the evaluation of the impact of terrain roughness on wind flow and addresses them in a coherent way. “This paper contributes to more accurate and reliable CFD simulations by identifying a major potential source of error and by presenting, for the first time, exact and consistent relationships between the roughness parameters to alleviate this error,” says Stathopoulos.

Related links:
•  The article
•  Ted Stathopoulos
•  Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering