Impact of high- and low-vorticity turbulence on cloud–environment mixing and cloud microphysics processes
<p>Turbulent mixing of dry air affects the evolution of the cloud droplet size spectrum via various mechanisms. In a turbulent cloud, high- and low-vorticity regions coexist, and inertial clustering of cloud droplets can occur in low-vorticity regions. The nonuniformity in the spatial distribu...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2021-08-01
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| Series: | Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics |
| Online Access: | https://acp.copernicus.org/articles/21/12317/2021/acp-21-12317-2021.pdf |
| Summary: | <p>Turbulent mixing of dry air affects the evolution of the cloud droplet size spectrum via various mechanisms. In a turbulent cloud, high- and low-vorticity regions coexist, and inertial clustering of cloud droplets can occur in low-vorticity regions. The nonuniformity in the spatial distribution of the size and in the number of droplets, variable vertical velocity in vortical turbulent structures, and dilution by entrainment/mixing may result in spatial supersaturation variability, which affects the evolution of the cloud droplet size spectrum via condensation and evaporation processes. To untangle the processes involved in mixing phenomena, a 3D direct numerical simulation of turbulent mixing followed by droplet evaporation/condensation in a submeter-sized cubed domain consisting of a large number of droplets was performed in this study. The analysis focused on the thermodynamic and microphysical characteristics of the droplets and the flow in high- and low-vorticity regions. The impact of vorticity generation in turbulent flows on mixing and cloud microphysics is illustrated.</p> |
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| ISSN: | 1680-7316 1680-7324 |