Numerical Simulation of Wind and Sand Resistance in Three Typical Shrubs

Huimin Zhang, Liang Pei, Juyan Li, Fan Wang and Zhongdong Yin ()
Additional contact information
Huimin Zhang: School of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 10083, China
Liang Pei: Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China
Juyan Li: Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Soil and Water Conservation Monitoring Center (Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Soil and Water Conservation Experiment Station), Urumqi 830013, China
Fan Wang: School of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 10083, China
Zhongdong Yin: School of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 10083, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 12, 1-18

Abstract: The sand-laden airflow fields surrounding Artemisia desertorum Spreng., Reaumuria soongorica , and Hedysarum scoparium were investigated. The study focuses on a configuration of double rows with staggered shrub distribution. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations were employed to model the airflow. The resulting flow field was categorized into five distinct regions. The shelter distances downwind of the shrubs were observed to be 7 H, 6 H, and 6 H for A. desertorum , R. soongorica , and H. scoparium , respectively. The corresponding shelter widths were measured as 3 m, 3 m, and 8 m, respectively. The three kinds of shrubs all formed vortices behind the shrubs. Three shrub species demonstrated distinct wind shelter efficiency ranges: A. desertorum (0.5–4 H), R. soongorica (0.5–3 H), and H. scoparium (0.5–2 H). Optimal shelter effects were observed in different vertical layers: R. soongorica in the low (0–0.2 m), A. desertorum in the medium (0.2–0.7 m), and H. scoparium in the high (0.7–2.2 m) altitude layers. Overall, H. scoparium exhibited the highest sand resistance, followed by A. desertorum Spreng, with R. soongorica demonstrating the least resistance. This study offers theoretical insights for mitigating aeolian environmental degradation, particularly in safeguarding energy and transportation infrastructure in desert regions and promoting sustainable agricultural practices in arid areas.

Keywords: shelter effect; sand resistance; desert shrub; numerical simulation; flow field (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/12/5481/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/12/5481/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:12:p:5481-:d:1678730

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().