Three-dimensional air pollutant modeling in the lower atmosphere

A steady-state, three-dimensional turbulent diffusion equation describing the concentration distribution of an air pollutant from an elevated point source in the lower atmosphere is solved analytically. The same formulation can be used to obtain solutions from line, area or other kinds of sources. The solution is developed for the cases in which the velocity, vertical and lateral diffusivities are given by the power law. The model preserves the beauty of analytical solution without sacrificing much on the accuracy of approximating the velocity and eddy diffusivities. Methods of evaluating the parameters, which are required for the model applications, are discussed. Results indicate that the ratio of the plume width to the plume length increases with decreasing stability and with increasing source height. These consequences are in response to the variations of the size of eddies in the vertical direction.