The OTEC Thermal Discharges in Coastal Waters using the CFD

Abstract

In this study we try to identify the mixing and dispersion characteristics of coastal waters to consider their physical properties using a field observation and a numerical modeling with CFD. A plume model and observed CTD data was used to predict the mixing behavior of thermal discharges in coastal waters. The current and temperature boundary conditions on the open boundary and thermal effluents at the specific boundary are considered in this study. Various turbulence models have been applied in the numerical model to assess the accuracy of turbulence models in predicting the effluent discharges in submerged outfalls. The model successfully reproduced well known the plume behavior in coastal waters. These works illustrate the challenging nature of OTEC environmental studies.predict the mixing behavior of thermal discharges in coastal waters. The current and temperature boundary conditions on the open boundary and thermal effluents at the specific boundary are considered in this study. Various turbulence models have been applied in the numerical model to assess the accuracy of turbulence models in predicting the effluent discharges in submerged outfalls. The model successfully reproduced well known the plume behavior in coastal waters. These works illustrate the challenging nature of OTEC environmental studies.