Numerical Modelling of Blowing Snow Around Buildings

• Main Author: Ian Moore
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1995
• Subjects: Antarctic; Brunt Ice Shelf; Antarc*; Antarctica; British Antarctic Survey; Ice Shelf
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.64.2893; http://www.env.leeds.ac.uk/~gmann/Public/Moorethesis/Moorethesis.ps.gz

The candidate confirms that the work submitted is his own and that appropriate credit has been given where reference has been made to the work of others. Abstract The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) has maintained a succession of five research stations at Halley (75ffiS, 27ffiW) on the Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica since 1956. The first four stations had operational lives of only 7 to 10 years as, after that time, the weight of drift snow on the buildings within the station rendered them unsafe for occupation and they had to be abandoned. In order to improve the situation, the buildings of the fifth station, Halley V, have been built to a new design. This involved lifting the buildings from the ice shelf by means of legs which can be extended in order to overcome the background precipitation rate. It was hoped that the accelerated wind flow underneath the building would keep this region clear of snow and that accumulation would take place away from the building. The design of the station was based on the previous experiences of the constructors in similar environments and on scale modelling in a wind tunnel. The object of this thesis is to produce a numerical model which is capable of predicting the accumulation patterns and rates at the present stations. The model can then be used to improve the design of the building through its ability to predict the effect of changing parameters such as the building geometry. Two models have been developed, both of which are two-dimensional. The first employs a cartesian grid and, by calculating the fluid flow and particle density fields near the building, is able to predict accumulation over level ground. The second model, which supersedes the first, employs a curvilinear grid which matches smoothly onto the building and terrain. As such, it is able to predict a sequence of drift profiles with the terrain changing between each. The building geometry and wind direction and strength can also be changed as time progresses. Model results are compared with experimental data from ...