Implications of vegetation on pollutant dispersion in an idealized urban neighborhood

Abstract

Configurations of avenue-trees and a central park in an idealized urban neighborhood and their implications on traffic pollutant concentrations at the pedestrian level were investigated with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). Steady state simulations were performed using a Reynolds Stress Model (RSM) extended with additional terms to represent the effects of vegetation on air flow. The results show that the type of configuration of avenue-trees and/or park has a clearly noticeable effect on the overall pollutant distribution and on the maximum concentration. The central park was found to lead to a general reduction of concentrations in its immediate vicinity and at locations downwind.