WRF-FLUENT coupled modeling approach for simulating airflow and dust dispersion during cold periods in cold-region...

Dust pollution in open-pit coal mines poses a critical threat to occupational health, ecological stability, and regional air quality, particularly during cold periods in northern China, where cold climates and frequent atmospheric temperature inversions exacerbate dust accumulation. Existing studies often simulate dust dispersion under static boundary conditions, overlooking the influence of dynamic atmospheric processes. To address this gap, this study develops a coupled modeling framework integrating the Weather Research and Forecasting model (WRF) with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations using ANSYS Fluent. The Haerwusu Open-Pit Coal Mine, one of China's largest coal bases, was selected as the case study. Meteorological fields simulated by WRF were used to derive dynamic wind profile parameters, which were then incorporated as inlet boundary conditions for FLUENT simulations. Field measurements were conducted to validate model outputs. Results demonstrate that atmospheric stability and mine topography jointly shape airflow circulation and dust dispersion within the pit. Under stagnant and inversion conditions, airflow stratification, and recirculation significantly hinder dust dilution. The WRF-FLUENT coupled model effectively captured these dynamics and showed strong agreement with field data, outperforming traditional constant-boundary simulations. The findings underscore the necessity of incorporating mesoscale meteorological dynamics into mine-scale CFD simulations to improve the prediction of dust behavior in open-pit coal mines.