Recirculation, interference and plume diffusion in power stations and the effects on the efficiency

Mechanical driven cooling devices like multi cell cooling towers or air cooled condensors were often used in new power plants. Due to their little height effects like recirculation and interference can lead to problems concerning their efficiency. In several wind tunnel studies these effects were investigated. This paper shows the influence of wind speed and direction on the plume diffusion which can lead to the above mentioned problems. The tests show that it might be usefull to consider the local wind situation during the planing stage of a new power plant. The negative influence is not only effecting the cooling devices, but also surrounding plant structures like gas turbines which can suck hot exhaust air as fresh air what can lead to a dramatically decrease of its efficiency.