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The PI-SWERL: Portable in situ Wind Erosion Lab
My post-doc at the Desert Research Institute involved using this wind tunnel technology. This small instrument can be operated by one or two people and can go places where large portable field wind tunnels cannot. The PI-SWERL produces similar dust emissions compared to a large field wind tunnel making it advantageous in many aspects of dust research. My colleagues and I have been using PI-SWERL to assess dust emissions from a wide variety of desert landforms.
An overview of the PI-SWERL and research applications can be seen in this 2024 Dust Alliance of North America video: Portable in situ Wind Erosion Lab (PI-SWERL): Improving our understanding of dust emissions
Selected Research Papers on PI-SWERL:
Etyemezian, V., Nikolich, G., Ahonen, S., Pitchford, M., Sweeney, M., Purcell, R., Gillies, J., and Kuhns, H., 2007, The Portable In-Situ Wind Erosion Laboratory (PI-SWERL): A new method to measure PM10 windblown dust properties and potential for emissions. Atmospheric Environment, v. 41, p. 3789-3796.
Sweeney, M., V. Etyemezian, T. Macpherson, W. Nickling, J. Gillies, G. Nikolich, and E. McDonald, 2008, Comparison of PI-SWERL with dust emission measurements from a straight-line field wind tunnel, Journal of Geophysical Research, 113, F01012, doi:10.1029/2007JF000830.
Kavouras, I. G., Etyemezian, V., Nikolich, G., Gillies, J, Sweeney, M., Young, M., and Shafer, D., 2009, A new technique for characterizing the efficacy of fugitive dust suppressants. Journal of Air and Waste Management, v. 59, p. 603-612.
King, J., Etyemezian, V., Sweeney, M., Buck, B., Nikolich, G., 2011, Dust emission variability at the Salton Sea, California. Aeolian Research, v. 3, p. 67-79.
Sweeney, M.R., McDonald, E.V., Etyemezian, V., 2011, Quantifying dust emissions from desert landforms, eastern Mojave Desert, USA. Geomorphology, v. 135, p. 21-34. doi: 10.1016/j.geomorph.2011.07.022
Sweeney, M.R. and Mason, J.A., 2013, Mechanisms of dust emission from Pleistocene loess deposits, Nebraska, USA. Journal of Geophysical Research - Earth Surface, doi:10.1002/jgrf.20101
Sweeney, M.R., Zlotnik, V.A., Joeckel, R.M., Stout, J.E., 2016, Geomorphic and hydrologic controls of dust emissions during drought from Yellow Lake playa, West Texas, USA. Journal of Arid Environments, v. 133, p. 37-46. doi:10.1016/j.aridenv.2016.05.007
Sweeney, M.R., Lacey, T., Forman, S.L., 2023, The role of abrasion and resident fines in dust production from aeolian sands as measured by the Portable in situ Wind Erosion Laboratory (PI-SWERL). Aeolian Research, v. 63-65, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2023.100889Â
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