Fifteen hazardous gas models were evaluated using data from eight fiel
d experiments. The models include seven publicly available models (AFT
OX, DEGADIS, HEGADAS, HGSYSTEM, INPUFF, OB/DG and SLAB), six proprieta
ry models (AIRTOX, CHARM, FOCUS, GASTAR, PHAST and TRACE), and two ''b
enchmark'' analytical models (the Gaussian Plume Model and the analyti
cal approximations to the Britter and McQuaid Workbook nomograms). The
field data were divided into three groups-continuous dense gas releas
es (Burro LNG, Coyote LNG, Desert Tortoise NH3-gas and aerosols, Goldf
ish HF-gas and aerosols, and Maplin Sands LNG), continuous passive gas
releases (Prairie Grass and Hanford), and instantaneous dense gas rel
eases (Thorney Island freon). The dense gas models that produced the m
ost consistent predictions of plume centerline concentrations across t
he dense gas data sets are the Britter and McQuaid, CHARM, GASTAR, HEG
ADAS, HGSYSTEM, PHAST, SLAB and TRACE models, with relative mean biase
s of about +/- 30% or less and magnitudes of relative scatter that are
about equal to the mean. The dense gas models tended to overpredict t
he plume widths and underpredict the plume depths by about a factor of
two. All models except GASTAR, TRACE, and the area source version of
DEGADIS perform fairly well with the continuous passive gas data sets.
Some sensitivity studies were also carried out. It was found that thr
ee of the more widely used publicly-available dense gas models (DEGADI
S, HGSYSTEM and SLAB) predicted increases in concentration of about 70
% as roughness length decreased by an order of magnitude for the Deser
t Tortoise and Goldfish field studies. It was also found that none of
the dense gas models that were considered came close to simulating the
observed factor of two increase in peak concentrations as averaging t
ime decreased from several minutes to 1 s. Because of their assumption
that a concentrated dense gas core existed that was unaffected by var
iations in averaging time, the dense gas models predicted, at most, a
20% increase in concentrations for this variation in averaging time.