A review of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methodology and analysis on airflow and sand transport over aeolian landforms

Relationships and feedback between airflow dynamics, sand transport and underlying surface characteristics play significant roles in the formation and evolution of aeolian landforms. Studies that apply Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modeling have increasingly provided insights into the influence of wind dynamics and characteristics of wind-blown sand. However, there is a lack of systematic review on modeling airflow and sand transport over aeolian landforms. This paper reviews 105 relevant CFD studies from the literature up to 2023 and summarizes methods of modeling airflow and sand transport. Additionally, it reviews their implementations of these methods and findings on how wind regimes and underlying surface characteristics, including surface roughness conditions and bedform morphology, affect wind dynamics and the behavior of wind-blown sand. This review aims to provide a comprehensive review of CFD modeling methods and their application to better understand the utilization of CFD simulations of aeolian landforms. CFD approach provides a valuable alternative to study related filed in a controlled, accessible, visualized, and detailed manner. We conclude this review by recommending three topics for future research to improve the accuracy of modeling and promote applications of CFD to aeolian landforms, i.e., modeling critical and comprehensive turbulent flow, developing robust and accurate models of particle motion, and investigating the effects of vegetation and boundary layers.