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Heat Budget of Cooling Basins¹

ABSTRACT

A system of open water basins which allows beneficial use of heated discharges from thermal power stations while at the same time providing a heatsink is proposed. These are large, shallow compartments filled with water which is well mixed, while cooling water is pumped through conduits below the basins. They might be used for the production of single-cell protein and fish. Equations were derived for the temperature distribution in the warm water conduit and basins of the system used in conjunction with a 1000-megawatt electric power plant. The rate of heat loss is controlled by the rate of heat loss at the air-water interface which may vary widely as a function of windspeed and relative humidity. The rate of heat exchange between the basins and the conduits was not critical. The surface area of basins required may vary from about 100 ha to over 500 ha.

For a constant surface area of the basins the temperature of the cooling water would fluctuate as a result of changing rates of heat loss. It might be difficult to develop commercial uses for a large number of basins. Use of such basins in conjunction with other methods of heat dispersion is therefore suggested.

Key Words: electric power plant • thermal pollution

¹ Technical Paper no. 3290. Oregon Agr. Exp. Sta., Corvallis. Paper presented August 19, 1971, in New York City at the symposium "Beneficial Uses for Thermal Discharges" held in conjunction with the annual meeting of the American Society of Agronomy. Research supported in part by the Office of Water Resources Research, USDI Project B-019-ORE.

² Assistant Professor, Dept. of Mathematics & Dept. of Agricultural Chemistry, and Professor, Dept. of Soil Science, respectively, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Ore. 97331.

Received for publication February 14, 1972.