THEORETICAL MODELS FOR RADIATIVE TRANSFER IN FIBROUS MEDIA

A comprehensive review of the current status of the theory of radiative transfer through fibrous media in the independent and dependent scattering regimes is presented in this paper. Independent scattering prevails if the average separation between the fibers is large compared to the fiber diameter and the incident wavelength. Dependent scattering is dominant when the fiber separation decreases to become comparable to the incident wavelength. The treatment of radiative modeling in the independent scattering regime begins with the discussion of scattering by an isolated fiber. The theoretical approach to account for the morphology of the fibrous medium and the experimental validation of the models are then described. Presentation on the dependent scattering regime begins with the scattering theory for a finite collection of closely spaced fibers. This is followed by the theoretical treatment of radiative propagation in dense fibrous media. The demarcation of the independent and dependent scattering regimes is then examined by means of numerical data based on the dependent scattering theory.