The Coupling State of an Idealized Stable Boundary Layer

The coupling state between the surface and the top of the stable boundary layer (SBL) is investigated using four different schemes to represent the turbulent exchange. An idealized SBL is assumed, with fixed wind speed and temperature at its top. At the surface, two cases are considered, first a constant temperature, 20 K lower than the SBL top, and later a constant 2 K h−1 cooling rate is assumed for 10 h after a neutral initial condition. The idealized conditions have been chosen to isolate the influence of the turbulence formulations on the coupling state, and the intense stratification has the purpose of enhancing such a response. The formulations compared are those that solve a prognostic equation for turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) and those that directly prescribe turbulence intensity as a function of atmospheric stability. Two TKE formulations are considered, with and without a dependence of the exchange coefficients on stability, while short and long tail stability functions (SFs) are also compared. In each case, the dependence on the wind speed at the SBL top is considered and it is shown that, for all formulations, the SBL experiences a transition from a decoupled state to a coupled state at an intermediate value of mechanical forcing. The vertical profiles of potential temperature, wind speed and turbulence intensity are shown as a function of the wind speed at the SBL top, both for the decoupled and coupled states. The formulation influence on the coupling state is analyzed and it is concluded that, in general, the simple TKE formulation has a better response, although it also tends to overestimate turbulent mixing. The consequences are discussed.