Two-Dimensional Numerical Model of the Near-Field Flow for an Ocean Thermal Power Plant. Part I. The Theoretical Approach and a Laboratory Simulation,

Abstract

This report describes the computer model NRFL02 which has been developed to calculate the near-field stratified turbulent flow driven by the intakes and outflows of an ocean thermal power plant. A two-dimensional geometry is assumed, with the power plant intakes and jet outflows modelled by boundary conditions on the left boundary of a rectangular domain. Horizontal flow through the right boundary, to or from the far-field, is allowed by assuming a pressure in hydrostatic equilibrium with the ambient density distribution. The code uses a first-order closure model to treat the stratified turbulence. Advanced numerical methods enable convergent and accurate solutions to be obtained rapidly and economically. A simple laboratory simulation of two-dimensional stratified turbulence driven by intakes and jet outflows is proposed in order to address the general question of near-flow recirculation. Numerical results from NRFL02 are presented for the proposed experimental simulation. They confirm our analysis predicting a stability limit on the far-field horizontal flow, and demonstrate the occurrence of recirculation for fast flow cases.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 1977
Accession Number
ADA064787

Entities

People

  • Glyn O. Roberts
  • Juri Toomre
  • Steve A. Piacsek

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Boundary Layer
  • Computational Fluid Dynamics
  • Differential Equations
  • Energy
  • Environment
  • Equations
  • Fluid Dynamics
  • Internal Waves
  • Kinetic Energy
  • Layers
  • Models
  • Simulations
  • Temperature Gradients
  • Thermal Power Plants
  • Turbulence
  • Turbulent Flow
  • Turbulent Mixing

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Coastal and Marine Engineering/Sediment Transport/Hydraulic Engineering
  • Finite Element Method (FEM) for solving Partial Differential Equations (PDEs)
  • Fluid Dynamics.