| Abstract: | A numerical model is presented for the prediction of thermal radiation absorption in dense gas clouds during accidental release in the atmosphere. The model is based on the discrete transfer method (DT method) that was originally developed for modelling radiation in combustion chambers. The radiation model assumes a number of representative rays of predetermined orientation fired from each of the domain boundaries. Each ray is traced through the domain elements until reaching another boundary where it is terminated. Radiation sources are calculated for each element by performing an energy balance across each element for each ray passing through it. The energy sources recovered are fed into the finite element flow solver for every time step in the energy equation. The model proved accurate, and memory and computer time efficient. It showed that accounting for radiation effects lead to improved predictions. It also showed that in certain scenarios, radiation effects could be predominant. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |
