Location of marine outfall and design of diffuser for a shore based industry off southeast coast of India

Abstract

Disposal of industrial effluent in the sea necessitates exhaustive study on the marine environment and the hydrodynamic behavior of the plume discharge with the ocean. Site specific baseline information on currents, waves, tide, density stratification and seabed bathymetry have to be collected. This paper describes the approach and methodology adopted for designing a effulent disposal system for a chemical industry at southeast Tamil Nadu Coast. Effluent discharged at 200 m sup(3)/hr for 9.5 hour per day undergoes initial dilution to the order of 50 at a water depth of 5.3 m. The buoyant plume after reaching sea surface undergoes further dilution of 6 due to dispersion, yielding a total dilution of 300 in 3 hours, before the effluent can reach the shore.