Modelling of coastal current and thermal plume dispersion - A case study off Nagapattinam, east coast of India

Abstract

Thermal plume simulation has been carried out using a 2D model to understand the nature of spreading and rate of cooling of warm water discharge from a proposed outfall in the nearshore region off Nagapattinam, Tamil Nadu, India. Four months representing the monsoons and the transition periods are selected to study the seasonal variability of simulated currents and thermal plumes. The plume showed northward spreading during March and July and southward during December. During October the spreading was mostly around the outfall with a weak southward component