Mathematical modeling of the thermal effluent from power plants

A numerical model for the prediction of the flow field resulting from the interaction of a surface discharge with the much larger ambient body of water is developed. basic equations describing the interaction are those expressing the conservation of mass, momentum and energy in a turbulent floe including effects of buoyancy and inertia. The applied numerical method is capable to solve the complete unsteady three-dimensional basic equations governing field dynamics and can be classified as an explicit finite-difference scheme. The model includes a coordinate transformation which serves to increase resolution near the out flow and to meet ambient boundary conditions. The model is applied to the discharge of 'TE Obrenovac'. Numerical results agreed well with available field data and with prediction of the widely used Shirazy-Davis model. (author)