Numerical simulations of wind deflection fins to control snow accumulation in building steps

Numerical simulation of three-dimensional, transient snow drifting around a cube

“…Such numerical modelling research finds relevance in a diverse range of fields. Among them are modelling and prediction of snow drifting for land use planning in an urban or agricultural environment [1][2][3][4][5], visibility and safety design evaluations related to transportations networks, large-scale topographical snow drifting and snow relocation modelling to evaluate avalanche danger zones and snow contributions to a local water budget [6][7][8][9]. Other studies focus on the meteorological effects such as sublimation of blowing snow and turbulence effects of snow entrainment, or changes in the atmospheric energy exchange from radiation fluctuations due to snow relocation [10][11][12][13].…”

“…Liston et al [6,7] employed similar techniques with a k-e turbulence model and used the snow mass transport information to fill and subsequently block control volumes simulating the accumulation process. Sundsbø [1,2] and Sundsbø and Bang [3] employed the volume of fluid (VOF) method [14], applied in FLOW-3D [15], to model the transient development of snowdrift. Governing equations were solved for the air-snow mixture momentum, mass conservation and snow concentration conservation equations for the suspension layer and the saltation layer snow flux was again found from empirical functions.…”

Railway Disaster Prevention and Snow Survey Design Optimization Technology

“…Another benefit is that it can be installed directly mounted on the column without a cross arm. The range of vertical tilt angle is usually limited to between 10°~ 45° [4]. is the schematic about principle applied in laser ranging snow depth measurements.…”

Direct Two–Phase Numerical Simulation of Snowdrift Remediation using Three–Dimensional Deflection Fins

“…Although it is very useful to understand the dynamics of snow drifting and transport, results of the processes themselves can present significant challenges to the activities of building occupants as well as to the structural integrity of buildings themselves. With such a purpose in mind, two recent studies (Sundsbø 1998;De Chant 2005) have been completed regarding twodimensional numerical simulation of displacement of snowdrifts away from building walls using deflection Journal of Applied Fluid Mechanics, Vol. 5, No.…”

“…The first involves a two -phase model which entails (i) numerical simulation of airflow due to the building and vertical deflection fin followed by (ii) a histogram cell model of snowfall accumulation and drifting. The geometry of the study (Sundsbø 1998) involves a 3m long deflection fin fixed 1.5m away from the top of a 3m high building and the results for deflecting the snow were very promising. The study also employed boundary conditions for turbulent flow ( De Chant 2005) and an analytical solution for modeling snow accumulation involving various saltation, erosion and solidification processes.…”