FURI | Fall 2019

Dust Entrainment and Dust Devils

In this study, dust entrainment and aerosol dynamics within the formation of dust devils are investigated numerically. A dust entrainment scheme based on local velocities is implemented in the canonical Rayleigh-Benard convection with a particle advection scheme to produce a framework to study dust devils. The model for dust emission based on local flow quantities predicts a more accurate uplift than the previous mean-shear models, which noticeably under-predict uplift. The developed models are useful for understanding the dynamics of dust devils and dust storms, which will help mitigate their detrimental effects to health and environment.