An Application of Low-Level Bulk Aerodynamic Procedures to a Cooling Pond

Abstract

The decision to construct either a cooling tower or a cooling pond for the dissaption of waste heat produced by a power plant is influenced by such fctors as the availability of water, land values, construction costs, environmental impact, and the rate at which thermal energy can be transferred to the atmosphere. This paper presents an attempt to apply established bulk aerodynamic procedures by means of a computer model to a series of cooling ponds (operated at Dresden Ill. by Commonwealth Edison) to determine the thermal transfer rate. The results are then compared with a commonly used empirical formula. The water temperatures of the ponds are predicted for nine consecutive days by means of the calculated energy transfer between the water and the atmosphere, which occurs through the processes of sensible (or conductive) heat flux, latent (or evaporative) heat flux, and by radiation. The low-level bulk aerodynamic (LLBA) Procedures presented below are essentially those described earlier by Hicks (1973), which incorporate the effects of atmospheric stability, varying surface roughness, and surface drift.