Development of Eulerian–Lagrangian simulation for snow transport in the presence of obstacles

Abstract

The aim of this study is to develop a wind-induced snow transport model in a turbulent atmospheric boundary layer with the multiphase particle-in-cell (MP-PIC) approach. The airflow is treated as a continuum (Eulerian phase), and the snow is treated as discrete particles (Lagrangian phase). The momentum exchange between airflow and snow particles is considered, as well as the drag force of fluctuation velocity on particles, the turbulence damping near the snow-airflow interface, and the inter-particle collisions. The validation comprised wind-induced snow transport on flat terrain and around the roadbed, with the typical Eulerian–Eulerian approach serving as a control. The Eulerian–Lagrangian approach yields a better agreement with the experimental observations, especially in the presence of obstacles. On the contrary, considerable discrepancies with the experimental data are detected when utilizing the Eulerian–Eulerian approach. The Eulerian–Lagrangian approach is thought to have the advantages of independent snow momentum-governing equations and a precise snow-airflow momentum exchange model, which could be beneficial for snow transport prediction in urban environments.