High-resolution modelling of plume dispersion

Samenvatting (Engelstalig)

Methane is the second most important greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide. Due to its relatively short residence time in the atmosphere (about 10 years), immediate emissions mitigating efforts will have a quick atmospheric response. However, methane has a large variety of sources, both natural and anthropogenic, which have not been properly constrained in the emission inventories. To constrain
the local methane sources, mobile measurement techniques can be used. These
techniques are most often performed on distances very close to the source.
There, methane plumes are subject to turbulent atmospheric motions which makes them extremely variable and difficult to measure. Therefore, this thesis
focuses on performing high-resolution modelling of methane plume dispersion
with the goal of evaluating mobile measurement techniques on very short downwind distances from the source. Furthermore, we evaluate the ability of high-resolution models to reproduce a realistic measurement day and also benchmark different plume modelling techniques against each other.