Numerical simulation of deposition of drifts and salt from multiple super-large seawater cooling towers

Abstract

A three-dimensional CFD simulation model was established to study the characteristics of flow, drifts and salt deposition from 6 super-large seawater cooling towers in a power station. In the model, site meteorological data, design parameters of cooling tower, general layout, environmental characteristics, are considered. The results show that: (1) when the wind direction is parallel to the towers, the streams overlap, reducing deposition of drifts and salt onto the ground. (2) The drifts with particle size greater than 550 μm cannot float out of cooling towers. (3) In normal operation of 6 such cooling towers, the resulting salt deposition will not cause serious damage to plants.