Mahlman, J. D., 1975: Some fundamental limitations of simplified transport models as implied by results from a three-dimensional general-circulation/tracer model. In Fourth Conference on CIAP, U.S. Department of Transportation, 132-146.

Abstract: The answers to a number of important environmental questions depend quite critically upon our capability for providing reliable descriptions of large-scale atmospheric transport of trace substances. In many cases, it is useful to try to provide meaningful answers by using highly simplified models of tracer transport. In this paper, an attempt is made to provide some assessments of the fundamental uncertainties inherent in such models. The approach used is the analysis of results of a comprehensive three-dimensional general-circulation/tracer model in order to examine the validity of various transport hypotheses. Evaluations are made of various one-dimensional, two-dimensional, and low-resolution three-dimensional transport hypotheses. The analyses indicate that some of the basic assumptions utilized in these simpler models are often not satisfied. This leads to some fundamental uncertainties which cannot easily be reduced without significant conceptual reformulations of the simpler models.