Numerical simulation of the scavenging rates of ice crystals of various microphysical characteristics

Numerical models of trajectories of small aerosol spheres relative to oblate spheroids were used to determine ice crystal scavenging efficiencies. The models included the effects of aerodynamic flow about the ice particle, gravity, aerosol particle inertia and drag and electrostatic effects. Two electric configurations of the ice particle were investigated in detail. The first applied a net charge to the ice particle, of magnitude equal to the mean thunderstorm charge distribution, while the second applied a charge distribution, with no net charge, to the ice particle to model the electric multipole charge distribution. The results show that growing ice crystals with electric multipoles are better scavengers than single ice crystals with net thunderstorm charges, especially in the Greenfield gap (0.1 to 1.0 m), and that larger single crystals are better scavengers than smaller single crystals. The results also show that the low density ice crystals are more effective scavengers with net charges than they are with charge distribution. 1991 Advances in Atmospheric Sciences.

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