Boundary-Layer Meteorology

, Volume 8, Issue 2, pp 227–234 | Cite as

Effect of thermal stratification on the growth of the internal boundary layer

  • K. S. Rao
Research Note
Received:

Abstract

The growth of a two-dimensional internal boundary layer (IBL), which develops when a neutral or unstably stratified flow over a uniform terrain encounters a step-change in surface roughness, is numerically investigated by a higher-order turbulence closure theory. It is found that the thickness δ of the IBL increases as δ ~ xn, where x is the downstream distance from the roughness-transition line. For a given set of upstream conditions, the value of the exponent n depends only on the Monin-Obukhov length L, and it is approximately independent of the roughness-change parameter M = In (z01/z02). At large fetches, δ increases markedly with increasing instability.

Keywords

Boundary Layer Surface Roughness Stratification Thermal Stratification Internal Boundary 
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Copyright information

© D. Reidel Publishing Company 1975

Authors and Affiliations

  • K. S. Rao
    • 1
    • 2
  1. 1.Air Force Cambridge Research LaboratoriesBedfordUSA
  2. 2.Environmental Research and Technology, Inc.ConcordUSA

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