Impact of the atmosphere state on interaction of aircraft vortex and condensation trails

Currently, much emphasis is given to the environmental problems. This article is not an exception. It is devoted to the issue of propagation and interaction of vortex and condensation trails that form behind aircraft when flying in the atmosphere, depending on its state. A vortex trail is an area of disturbed air flow behind an aircraft formed as a result of its motion. A condensation trail is a product of the aviation fuel combustion in the engine and represents condensed moisture in the form of ice crystals, which is generated under certain ambient conditions. As the numerous studies and observations have shown, condensation trails can affect the heat exchange processes in the atmosphere, contributing to the greenhouse effect, deteriorate the environment. It is especially relevant for the area where numerous transitional airways pass. Therefore, it is essential to understand behind what aircraft type the condensation trail, interacting with the vortex one, dissipates in the atmosphere, and the substances composing the condensation trail lose their concentration. And on the contrary, behind what aircraft type the condensation trail does not dissipate for a long term, and the substances, composing the contrail, retain concentration for a long time. It should also be noted that the contrail, while interacting with the vortex wake, can reveal its structure and visualize the processes of propagation and attenuation of the vortex wake. This paper uses a special computational software application, based on the discrete vortex method, to study the interaction of condensation and vortex trails. It considers the flight weight, aircraft speed and altitude, its in-flight configuration, atmospheric conditions, axial velocity in the vortex core and some other factors, when calculating the vortex wake performance. This complex passed the required testing and state registration. Several procedures were executed to validate and verify the developed complex, confirming its program efficiency and the reliability of the results obtained. The Airbus A320 and A380 were selected as the research object of this article. The flight mode and atmospheric conditions are similar for all aircraft. The results obtained allow us to understand how atmospheric conditions affect the propagation of contrails behind aircraft of different classes, provided their interaction with vortex trails.

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