SIAM Review · 2011 · 375 citations · 29 references
Natural SciencesEarth SciencesEnvironmental SciencesAir PollutionAtmospheric ScienceEnvironmental ModelingAir Pollution ModelingAir Pollution SourcesAir QualityAtmospheric DispersionAtmospheric Dispersion ModelingContaminant TransportAirborne Pollutant TransportAtmospheric Transport ModelingContaminant Plume ModelingContaminant Transport ModellingEmission ModelsGaussian Plume ModelInverse Problem SolvingTurbulent Diffusion
The Gaussian plume model is a standard approach for studying the transport of airborne contaminants due to turbulent diffusion and advection by the wind. The paper reviews the Gaussian plume model’s assumptions and derivation, then applies it to determine emission source rates from ground‑level measurements. The inverse problem is formulated as an overdetermined linear system solved by least squares, with generalizations illustrated through a zinc emission study at a smelter. The approach is validated by applying it to zinc emissions from a smelting operation.
The Gaussian plume model is a standard approach for studying the transport of airborne contaminants due to turbulent diffusion and advection by the wind. This paper reviews the assumptions underlying the model, its derivation from the advection-diffusion equation, and the key properties of the plume solution. The results are then applied to solving an inverse problem in which emission source rates are determined from a given set of ground-level contaminant measurements. This source identification problem can be formulated as an overdetermined linear system of equations that is most easily solved using the method of least squares. Various generalizations of this problem are discussed, and we illustrate our results with an application to the study of zinc emissions from a smelting operation.
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