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Chemical Engineering 357
Professors Allen and Durrenberger
Plume Classification
“Plume Rise” by G. A. Briggs pages 12 to 15
By the end of today’s lecture you should:
¢ Understand the way temperature affects plumes from
stacks
Know the five basic plume types
Outline:
I. Temperature profile in the atmosphere
I. Plume classification scheme
Il. Application of plume classification scheme to photos of
actual plumes I. Temperature profile in the atmosphere
.
The dry adiabatic lapse rate defines the change in
temperature in the atmosphere that normally occurs with
change of elevation. This rate is a decrease in temperature of
about
1 degree C per 100 meters (5.4 degrees F per 1,000 feet).
A layer in which the temperature increases with elevation is
called an inversion.
In an inversion layer the air will not tend to rise vertically.
Normally at night due to radiation cooling of the surface, an
inversion forms with its base near the surface.
After the sun rises, the surface is heated forming convective
eddies that penetrate higher as the ground warms up. Thus
the inversion layer rises above the surface.
The bottom of the inversion layer is called the mixing height.
This means that the atmosphere is well mixed in the layer
between the surface and mixing height. * Actual conditions can be related to the dry adiabatic lapse
tate to evaluate the behavior of air masses. There are many
combinations of conditions that can occur, but the names for
plume behavior have been attached to five most important
sets of conditions. These are described in a number of texts
on air pollution in various ways. The approach taken by
Briggs is perhaps the best and is based on the typical way the
atmosphere changes during the day.
I. Plume classification scheme
The five plume types are:
Fanning
© Fumigation
¢ Coning
© Looping
© Lofting
Each of these five plume types will be illustrated with a graphic of
a tall power plant stack. Then we will examine photos of actual
plumes and classify them. Fanning
On clear nights the ground radiates heat and most of it passes to
space. The surface is cooler than the air above it, so an inversion
forms with the bottom being near the surface. This forms a stable
layer from the surface to as much as several thousand feet above
the surface. In this layer air masses do not tend to move vertically.
The typical vertical profile is shown in the figure. Plumes quickly
loose their buoyancy (due to stack temperature) and level off.
Fumigation.
After the sun rises, convective eddies develop near the surface due
to the warming of the surface. These penetrate higher as the
heating continues, resulting in the mixing layer rising. As the
inversion reaches the plume, the inversion keeps the plume from
rising higher, and the cddics quickly bring high concentrations to
the surface. Coning
Later the atmosphere below the mixing height is well mixed and
neutral. The plume rises and diffuses smoothly. This is also the
situation’with-cloudy or windy conditions.
Looping
As the heating of the ground intensifies, large convective eddies
develop. These eddies fragment the plume so that it rapidly moves
up and down in a looping fashion. we Lofting
As the sun gets lower, the convection deceases and an inversion
starts to build form the ground. At first the inversion is weak
enough for the plume penctrate through it. The plume diffuses
upward, but is prevented from diffusing downward.
IL Application of plume classification scheme to photos of
actual plumes
