Engineering Commons^™

Investigating The Accuracy Of One-Dimensional Volcanic Plume Models Using Laboratory Experiments And Field Data, James S. Mcneal, Graham Freedland, L. G. Mastin, Raúl Bayoán Cal, S. A. Solovitz

Mechanical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

During volcanic eruptions, model predictions of plume height are limited by the accuracy of entrainment coefficients used in many plume models. Typically, two parameters are used, 𝛼 and 𝛽, which relate the entrained air speed to the jet speed in the axial and cross-flow directions, respectively. To improve estimates of these parameters, wind tunnel experiments have been conducted for a range of cross-wind velocities and turbulence conditions. Measurements are compared directly to computations from the 1-D plume model, Plumeria, in the near-field, bending region of the jet. Entrainment coefficients are determined through regression analysis, demonstrating optimal combinations of effective 𝛼 …