Thermodynamic efficiencies of an idealized global climate model |
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| Authors: | David K Adams Nilton O Rennó |
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| Institution: | (1) Scripps Institution of Oceanography Center for Atmospheric Sciences, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, Mail Code 0221, La Jolla, CA 92093-0221, USA;(2) Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA |
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| Abstract: | We employ the heat engine framework to derive a simple method for assessing the strength of irreversible processes in global
climate models (GCMs). Using the explicit energy budget of an idealized GCM, we show that the thermodynamic efficiencies based
on the net heating rate and frictional work rate provides a measure of physical and numerical irreversibilities present in
either open (e.g., the Hadley circulation) or closed (e.g., the general circulation) circulations. In addition, we show that
the Carnot efficiency is useful for assessing the maximum possible efficiency attained by closed circulations. Comparison
of the work-based efficiency with that based on the net heating rate and the Carnot efficiency provides a gauge of how close
to reversible and ideal the circulations are. A series of experiments with the idealized GCM demonstrate the usefulness of
our method and show the sensitivity of an essentially reversible model to changes in physical and numerical parameters such
as rotation period and resolution. |
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