Simultaneous measurement of velocity fields of wind-blown sand and surrounding wind in an atmospheric boundary layer

Saltation is the most important mechanism of wind-blown sand transport. Till now the interaction between wind and sand has not been fully understood. In this study the saltation of sand sample taken from Taklimakan desert was tested in a simulated atmospheric boundary layer. The captured particle images containing both the tracers for wind and saltating sand, were separated by a digital phase mask technique. Both PIV and PTV methods were employed to extract the velocity fields of wind and the dispersed sand particles, respectively. The mean streamwise wind velocity field and turbulent statistics with and without sand transportation were compared, revealing the effect of the moving sand on the wind field. This study is helpful to understand the interaction between wind and blown sand (in saltation), and provide reliable experimental data fur evaluating numerical models.