To protect the permafrost under the embankment from thawing and to ensure the safety and smoothness of the road, the use of shading boards (awnings) was one of the main measures applied along the sideslopes of the Qinghai–Tibet Highway, the Qinghai–Tibet Railway and the Qingkang–Highway embankments. Aside from the shading effect acting against solar irradiation such constructions may also help to channel the natural wind flow and thus contribute to the cooling of the embankment and the underlying ground by enhancing the natural wind flow close to the surface. In this research the researchers present results from numerical finite element simulations of the air flow under two different awning designs, with the aim to find an optimal geometry and awning height to be applied in future engineering work. Researchers compared the air flow profiles across and along the awning headroom and investigate the influence of embankmentslope inclination on the flow under the awning.

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