Comparison of vertical dust flux by implementing three dust emission schemes in WRF/Chem

Vertical dust flux parameterizations were assessed by implementing three different dust emission schemes, namely, those of Marticorena and Bergametti (1995), Lu and Shao (1999), and Shao (2004) (hereinafter referred to as MB, LS, and S04 schemes, respectively) in Weather Research and Forecasting with Chemistry (WRF/Chem). Through sensitivity tests, the scattering of vertical dust fluxes resulting from different parameterizations was shown even under the condition of same horizontal sand flux. The difference between the estimated vertical dust fluxes of three emission schemes ranges from the order of 101 for sand to the order of 102 for clay. The MB scheme generally produces higher dust emissions than the LS and S04 schemes, and the difference is the greatest for clay because the MB scheme considers vertical dust flux to be related to clay content, while the LS and S04 schemes consider it to be inversely proportional to surface hardness. To investigate the performance of each dust emission scheme in the simulation of Asian dust events, a case study was carried out for a severe Asian dust event that took place between 30 March and 1 April 2007. Simulation results reproduced the outbreak and transport pattern of dust plumes satisfactorily. However, the estimated dust emission amounts in each scheme differed greatly, particularly in loamy soil. The total dust emission amounts averaged for the main dust source region in this Asian dust event for five consecutive days are 84 Tg, 149 Tg, and 532 Tg for the LS, S04, and MB schemes, respectively. Key Points Three different dust emission schemes were implemented in WRF/Chem The dust emission difference is the greatest for clay soils The MB scheme shows the highest dust concentration among the three schemes