Mechanistic study of aerosol dry deposition on vegetated canopies

Abstract

Aerosol dry deposition onto agricultural and forest areas is investigated. Its estimation is still uncertain, particularly for rough surfaces and sub-micronic aerosols. In fact models used in radiological risk or air quality assessment studies are highly empirical and fail to reproduce the results of the most recent measurement campaigns. Therefore a theoretical framework, based on a mechanistic description, has been developed. The proposed approach consists in two steps. First, interaction between aerosols and foliar surface is formulated by using a set of parameters, which are defined on the local scale of one foliar element. In the second step, the collective effect of the foliage is taken into account through statistical distribution of these parameters. The model integrates the three main factors governing aerosol dry deposition. These are local aerodynamic characteristics of the flow within the canopy, aerosol mechanisms governing the deposition, and canopy structural and morphological properties. Physical processes considered in the study are inertial impaction, gravitational settling and Brownian diffusion. The canopy characteristics considered are spatial distribution, orientation and micro-structure of foliar surfaces. The applicability of the model is demonstrated on an existing measurement campaign.