Nuclear Science and Engineering

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Early Time Air Fireball Model for Near Surface

Energy Release

G. C. Pomraning

To cite this article: G. C. Pomraning (1974) Early Time Air Fireball Model for Near Surface Energy
Release, Nuclear Science and Engineering, 53:2, 220-225, DOI: 10.13182/NSE74-A23345

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.13182/NSE74-A23345

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 Early Time Air Fireball Model for Near
Surface Energy Release

G. C. Pomraning
Science Applications, Inc., P. O. Box 2351, LaJolla, California 92037
Received September 24, 1973

A model is developed which gives the r a d i u s and t e m p e r a t u r e as a function of

t i m e f o r the f i r e b a l l which f o r m s following the r e l e a s e of a l a r g e amount of x - r a y
e n e r g y in the a t m o s p h e r e . The p r e s e n c e of the ground is accounted f o r in the case
of a n e a r s u r f a c e r e l e a s e of energy. Typical n u m e r i c a l r e s u l t s a r e given.

I. INTRODUCTION ture. Of course, in reality these two phases a r e

It is well known that an intense source of x rays
released locally in the atmosphere leads to a so-
called " f i r e b a l l , " i.e., a relatively well-defined
volume of air which is highly ionized. A definitive
calculation of the volume and temperature of the
fireball region as a function of time is a quite
complex r a d i a t i v e t r a n s f e r problem. In this
paper, we present a simplified model of the f i r e -
ball growth which has proved quite useful in
parametric studies.
The classic works by Brode 1 and Glasstone 2
discuss the underlying physics leading to the
formation of a fireball. We r e s t r i c t our discussion
in this paper to those points which elucidate the
assumptions in the model to be presented.
The growth of a fireball proceeds in roughly
two phases: (a) the burnout phase, followed by
(b) a radiation diffusion phase. During burnout,
the temperature of the fireball is sensibly constant
in time, and the fireball radius is roughly a linear
function of time. The diffusion phase begins when
the source of x rays is no longer of sufficient
strength to maintain the burnout temperature.
During this phase, the fireball grows much more
slowly and cools down from the burnout tempera-
1
H. L. BRODE, "Review of Nuclear Weapons E f -
f e c t s , " Annual Review of Nuclear Science, Vol. 20,
E. SEGRE, Ed., Annual Reviews, Inc., P a l o Alto, Cali-
fornia (1970).
2
S. GLASSTONE, The Effects of Nuclear Weapons,
U.S. Government Printing Office (1962).
not distinct but smoothly blend from one to
another. In our work, we assume two distinct
phases and this simplification allows the con-
struction of a relatively straightforward model.
Section II of this paper formulates the burnout
model for a source in an infinite sea of air, while
Sec. Ill gives the necessary modifications to the
model to account for an air-ground interface
intersecting the fireball. Section IV discusses the
diffusion phase of fireball growth, and Sec. V gives
a numerical example of the results the model
provides.
II. BURNOUT IN INFINITE AIR
We envision a point source of x rays of total
strength or yield Y with a time dependence given
by f(t), normalized according to
/o°° dtfit) = 1 . (1)
In this section, we take this source to be embedded
in an infinite sea of uniform-density air.
We assume that during the burnout phase of the
fireball growth the source x rays a r e absorbed and
heat the air within the fireball to a temperature
TB (the burnout temperature), and that no heating
above this temperature occurs. This is tanta-
mount to the assumption that the opacity of air is
very small at temperatures greater than TB. We
also assume that the opacity is very large for
temperatures less than TB. This means that an
expanding spherical region at a uniform tempera-
t u r e TB, i.e., the fireball, will develop a s the
source x r a y s a r e emitted. Finally, we assume a
small residual opacity K is extant at the burnout
temperature TB. The fact that K is nonzero
implies that a t h e r m a l radiation field will build up
in the fireball region. These assumptions con-
cerning the air opacity a r e a reasonable idealiza-
tion of the actual a i r opacity.
Let R = R(t) be the fireball radius a s a function
of time. We p e r f o r m an energy balance on an
element dR for a time dt, assuming the streaming
(source) radiation is responsible for the a i r burn-
out at the edge of the fireball. We have
4 t i R 2 c E s d t = 4 nR2QdR + 4tt R2EsdR , (2)
where
c = speed of light
Equation (6) states that the time r a t e of change of
the thermal radiation is due to emission [the posi-
tive t e r m on the right side of Eq. (6)] and absorp-
tion (the negative term). The solution of Eq. (6)
is, making use of Eq. (5),
| ttR3Et = pKcaTg J* dt'^irR3(t')
x exp[-p/cc(f - *')] . (7)
Finally, we consider the streaming radiation.
Since at the burnout temperature TB the air
opacity (K) is nonzero, the burned-out a i r will
radiate and attempt to cool. We assume the
streaming radiation will be absorbed by the a i r a s
it radiates to maintain its temperature. We p e r -
f o r m an energy balance at some radius r in the
interior of the fireball. This gives

Es = streaming energy density at the edge of

47tt2Es cdt\r - Airr^Es cdt\r+dr = -4vr2drdEs .
the fireball
(8)
Q = energy density required to heat the air to
the burnout t e m p e r a t u r e . The left side of Eq. (8) is the net streaming r a d i a -
tion into the differential shell dr in a time dt, and
The left side of Eq. (2) is the energy impinging on
the right side is the streaming radiation absorbed
the edge of the fireball in a time dt, which must
(note that dEs is negative). Equation (8) gives the
equal the energy required to burn out the spherical
result
shell of thickness dR (the f i r s t t e r m on the right
side) and the streaming radiation in the shell (the d { A c )
second term). Solving Eq. (2) for dR/dt, we find ^ - 4ffr 2 f i . (9)

Now, to maintain the air at the burnout t e m p e r a -

dt (U/c)+4TTR2Q ' W/
ture, the r a t e of absorption of streaming energy
where we have defined must equal the net rate of emission of thermal
energy. Thus, we have
U = 4tTR2EsC . (4)
- ^ = c ( a T £ - E ) , (10)
We note that at early times 4TTR2Q is negligibly P K t

small compared with U/c, and Eq. (3) predicts a

fireball growth with the radius increasing at the and Eq. (9) becomes
speed of light. This is the expected physical
d ( ^ E s c ) __ _ ^ p K c { a n _ E r ) ( n )
r e s u l t for a point source of energy. The boundary
condition on Eq. (3) is that the fireball has a zero
initial radius; that is, The boundary condition on Eq. (11) is
R (0) = 0 . (5) 4irr2Es(r,t)cTTjYf(t) . (12)
We now consider the buildup of thermal radia-
Equation (12) is just the energy conservation con-
tion in the burnout sphere. If we a s s u m e the
sphere to be optically thin, then we can ignore dition for an a r b i t r a r i l y small sphere surrounding
spatial gradients and write the r a t e equation for the source.
the volume a s a whole. We have We write Eq. (11) a s

^ ( l ^ i T r ) = p / c c | VR'ICNI -ER) ,(6)

J: [lTrr2Es(r,t)c] = -4*r2S(t) , (13)

where where we have defined

ET = thermal radiation density S(t) = pKc[aT% -ET(t)] . (14)

p = air density Now, r in Eq. (13) is a path-length variable and t

is the associated time at which the radiation under
a = radiation constant. consideration is at the path-length position r .
Hence in Eq. (13), The numerical solution continues until

t = *ref + - , (15) U = 47rft Es c = 0 (30)

or
where £ref is any fixed r e f e r e n c e time. Let us set

ft(fact) | 7TR3(Q+ET)
^ref — t a (16)
(31)
where fact is the actual time of interest. Thus, Eq. Y f dt'f(t')
Jo
(13) r e a d s
The physical meaning of Eq. (30) is that the
streaming radiation is entirely absorbed before it
r e a c h e s the edge of the fireball. The physical
meaning of Eq. (31) is that the energy emitted by
2
= -4trr s(t-^^j , (17) the source is just sufficient to maintain the a i r at
a t e m p e r a t u r e TB together with the thermal r a d i a -
where we have dropped the subscript on 4ct. Inte- tion field which has built up.
gration of Eq. (17) f r o m r = 0 to r = ft yields A quantity which is often useful in the i n t e r p r e -
tation of r e s u l t s is the effective t e m p e r a t u r e of
4 T r R 2 E s ( R , t ) c = 4TTr2Es (r,t - |r=0 the thermal radiation field, defined by the r e l a -
tionship
- s: d r ^ S (t - B j Z ) , (18) aTtu = Er (32)

or, using Eq. (12),

III. BURNOUT IN THE PRESENCE OF A GROUND
4irft 2 Es (R,t) c
We now modify the r e s u l t s of Sec. II to include
. V - * i l ) .(19) the influence of the ground. The fireball will
remain spherical until its radius equals h, the
It is Es (ft, t) that is denoted by simply Es in Eq. height of the energy r e l e a s e above the ground. At
(2). later times, we a s s u m e the fireball is a truncated
We s u m m a r i z e the three pertinent equations to sphere, truncated by the air-ground interface.
be solved for the fireball radius, t h e r m a l radiation At such a time when ft > h, we have the
density, and streaming radiation density a s a schematic shown in Fig. 1. Let us compute the
function of time. These a r e [see Eqs. (3), (7), and volume of various regions of this sphere. We
(19)] have for all three regions the obvious r e s u l t
dR _ U
^abc = \ irr3 (33)
2 K
dt ~ ( u / c ) + 477ft (? '

Et = p K ™ T » ff dt'R3(t') exp[-pKc{t - f)] (21)

U = Y f ( t - | ) - 4 7 r f * d r r 2 S (t - , (22)

where [see Eqs. (4) and (14)]

U = 47TR2 Esc (23)

S = pKc[aTg - Et] (24)
In general, these equations must be solved
numerically, with starting conditions
ft(0) = 0 (25)
ET( 0) = 0 (26)

S(0) = pncaT& (27)

U( 0) = Yf( 0) (28)
dR (0)/dt = c (29) Fig. 1. The geometry of the fireball.
The volume of regions A and B is given by The significance of Eqs. (44) and (45) has been
discussed previously.
FAB = f*R dyux2 = £R dyHR2 - / ) (34)
IV. DIFFUSION PHASE OF THE
FIREBALL GROWTH
v;AB (35)
Following the end of burnout, we assume that
The volume of region A alone is given by further fireball growth takes place by a diffusion
process. At the end of burnout, the material and
(36) thermal radiation field are, in general, not in
equilibrium, and we formulate the diffusion p r o -
VA = I IRRZ(R +h) . (37) cess to take this into account. We assume that the
diffusion growth of the fireball is described by the
Now, we assume that the yield directed into one-dimensional spherical equation, but we shall
segment B is not absorbed in the air, but is account for the intersection of the fireball with the
entirely absorbed in the ground and then entirely ground.
reradiated back into the fireball, all in zero time. In spherical geometry, the energy conservation
This energy is then available to increase the size equation is
of the fireball in the air. We account for this by
Yf(t)
increasing the yield. We let ! ( c „ r + £ T + * s ) + l (r2F) 6 (r)
dr 471T 2
Yf(t) - Yf(t)d(t) , (38) (46)
where d(t) is the enhancement factor given by the where
ratio of 4TT to the solid angle associated with
region A. Thus, we have cv = air heat capacity (assumed constant)
F = radiative flux
d(t) = VABC 2R
(39)
VK R +k 6(r) = Dirac delta function indicating that the
Of course, Eq. (39) holds only for R > h. For source of radiation is at the center of
R ^ h, we have d{t) = 1. the sphere.
The burnout equations in the presence of a To obtain diffusion theory, we assume the radi-
ground then become [see Eqs. (20) through (31)] ative flux is proportional to the gradient of the
dR _ U thermal radiation energy density (see, e.g., Pom-
(40) raning 3 ); in particular, we write
dt ~ (u/C) +4?tR2Q
c\(T) 3Er
F = - (47)
Et = EMail j* dt>VAB(t>) e x p [ - p K c ( t - t')] (41) 3 dr
JO
"AB
where \(T) is the air mean f r e e path which, as in-
U = Y d ( t - § ) f ( t - l ) dicated, depends on temperature. We further
assume that \(T) has the classic cubic tempera-
ture dependence; that is,
- 4 7 , (42)
X(T) = , (48)
with U and S still defined by Eqs. (23) and (24) and

3
where X, a constant, is the a i r mean f r e e path at
U R R < h , TB, the burnout temperature. Use of Eqs. (47) and
Vh* = \ /, .sx (43) (48) in Eq. (46) yields
R > h

In writing Eq. (41), we have replaced f- vR 3 in Eq.

(21) with VAB, the actual fireball volume. The . Yf(t) 6(r) (49)
burnout phase of the fireball growth is over when 47rr

U = 4tTR2EsC = 0 (44) Finally, we assume

or Ef eaT' (50)
VAB(Q + E T )
= 1 (45) 3
G. C. POMRANING, Radiation Hydrodynamics, Per-
dt ' f i t ' ) gamon P r e s s , Oxford (1973).
where e is allowed to depend on time but not Equations (55) and (59) a r e the first two spatial
space, [if e were also allowed to depend on space, moments of the diffusion equation.
Eq. (50) could be considered a definition for e.j The interaction between the material and radia-
Equation (50) allows us to write tion is handled by assuming that T, ER, and ES
satisfy equilibration equations of the type
.3 M l _ { a e T l ) = 4 ^ { t , E t ) ; (51)
.3
3r 7 9r
y
YT ( AB T) = PKC ( ^ J y A B (ER + ES - a r 4 )
and use of Eq. (51) in Eq. (49) gives the diffusion
equation (60)

l ( c v T + E T + E s ) ^
pl[r2l (r
^ >] it (Fab ^ = P*c (t)3 ^ - Er) (61)
f(t)6(r) ±(VABES) = - P K c ( l f ) VABES + Yf(t) . (62)
+ Y (52)
4irr2
The sum of Eqs. (60), (61), and (62) is just Eq.
To proceed further, we form the f i r s t two (55), the conservation equation. We consider Eqs.
spatial moments of Eq. (52). Integration over all (59) through (62) as four equations for the four
volume yields unknowns VAB, T, ET, and ES. These equations
are solved numerically with the starting condi-
fQ°° dr4nr2(cvT +ET +ES) = Yf(t) . (53) tions on the four dependent variables correspond-
ing to the conditions at the end of burnout. As
We now assume T, ET, and ES to be space inde- before, it is often illuminating to define an effec-
pendent within the fireball and zero elsewhere. tive temperature for the thermal radiation field by
This gives the relationship

-i | j ITR3(CvT +ET + £ s ) j = Yf(t) . (54) ATTA = ER . (63)

We recognize j irR 3 a s the volume of a sphere, and V. A NUMERICAL EXAMPLE

we interpret this volume as the fireball volume,
VAB [see Eq. (43)]. Thus, Eq. (54) becomes A computer code has been written to solve
numerically the equations developed in this paper.
This code typically runs in a matter of seconds on
[7 A B (cvT +ET +ES)] = Yf(t) . (55)
a large machine such as the UNIVAC 1108 or the
Equation (55) is, of course, just the conservation CDC 6600. An example of r e s u l t s the model p r o -
equation. Similarly, multiplying Eq. (52) by r3 and vides is given in Figs. 2, 3, and 4. These r e s u l t s
integrating over all space, we obtain correspond to a source function f(t) given by
(g + /3) exp[ojt - to)]
| J;r3DR(CvT +ET +ES) =^ r d r T 3
E T , M = § (64)
21 N j3 + a exp [(a + 0)(t - £<>)]
(56)
where the right side of Eq. (56) resulted from two
integrations by parts. Again assuming T, Er, and
Es constant in space within the fireball and zero
elsewhere yields
2 3
\±[R*(cvT+ET+Es)] i r ,
2—%R T ET . (57) Burnout Complete
at t = 1.87 x 10"7 sec
For a sphere, we have

R (58)
- f f i "

and if we interpret the volume in Eq. (58) as FAB ,

the actual fireball volume, Eq. (57) becomes

Time (sec)
XVlgT3ET . (59) Fig. 2. The fireball radius.
 >
<D
400- <D 400 -
D
>0) Burnout Complete o Burnout Complete
®
at t = 1.87 x 10"7 sec a at t = 1.87 x 10"7 sec
E
? 300 ^ <u 300-
i—
o
c
CL o
£
«
200- "O 200
o
Of
>

o
100 _j ' 11 • 11 100 • • • 1 1 1 • 1I
10 -7
-9 -7
10" 10" 10'1-6 10 10" 10 10'1-6
Time (sec) Time (sec)
Fig. 3. T h e a i r t e m p e r a t u r e within the f i r e b a l l . Fig. 4. T h e r a d i a t i o n t e m p e r a t u r e within the f i r e b a l l .

where a, /3, and t0 a r e p a r a m e t e r s characteristic Q = 4.96 x 1011 erg/cm 3 ; burnout temperature

of the distribution. The quantity N is a normali-
zation constant to ensure a unit integral [see Eq.
(1)]. This function has the following properties:
1. It r i s e s like exp(af) for small t.
2. It falls like exp(-/3f) for large t.
3. It has a single maximum at t = t0.
4. f{t0) = 1/1V.
For the example reported here, the values
a = 13 = 6 x 10"9 sec and t0 = 6 x 10"8 sec were
used. The total source strength used was Y =
4 x 1015 cal at a release height of 1 m. Air of
standard density, p = 1.293 x 10"3 g/cm 3 , was
assumed. The additional air p a r a m e t e r s used
were 4 a s follows: air burnout energy density
4
K. D. P Y A T T , P r i v a t e Communication (1972).
TB = 400 eV; residual opacity of air above burnout
temperature K = 0.23 cm 2 /g; absorption mean f r e e
path of a i r at burnout temperature X = 50 m; and
heat capacity of air cv = 1.24 x 109 erg/(cm 3 eV).
As indicated in the figures, the burnout phase
of the fireball growth ended at a time of 1.87 x
10"7 sec in this example. It can also be seen that
at late times, during the diffusion phase of the
fireball formation, the radiation and material tend
toward equilibrium; that is, the air temperature
and effective radiation temperature tend to come
together, a s one would expect.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
T h i s w o r k was s u p p o r t e d by the U.S. G o v e r n m e n t
u n d e r c o n t r a c t DNA001-73-C-0012. The a u t h o r would
a l s o like to acknowledge K. D. P y a t t , whose unpublished
work p r o v i d e d the i m p e t u s f o r the model d e s c r i b e d h e r e .