Diverting water at dams during construction of hydro plants

Journal Article · Mon Apr 01 04:00:00 EST 1991 · Hydro Review; (United States)

OSTI ID:5663014

Kneitz, P R ^[1]

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1. Tudor Engineering Company, Oakland, CA (United States)

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) estimates that hydropower could contribute another 24,000 MW of electricity to the US power supply by building new plants at existing dams. (Conventional hydro currently contributes about 71,800 MW of electricity.) When installing a plant at an existing dam, it is often feasible to connect the plant to the existing outlet works of the dam. To do this, however, typically requires a temporary shutdown of the outlet works during construction. Since most dam owners are required to discharge a minimum flow of water through the outlet works to meet water quality standards, some type of temporary diversion scheme is essential. The Incorporated County of Los Alamos, New Mexico, was recently faced with this situation when constructing a hydroelectric project at an existing US Army Corps of Engineers' dam. The county hired Tudor Engineering Company in Oakland, California, to perform the design for the hydro project, including a water diversion system that temporarily conveyed reservoir discharges over the dam to the river downstream. The diversion was necessary so modifications could be made to the outlet works of the dam where the county was building its 13-MW plant. This system, comprised of pumps mounted on a floating barge in the reservoir, allowed the Corps of Engineers to maintain required instream flows while the outlet works were being modified.

• OSTI ID: 5663014
• Journal Information: Hydro Review; (United States), Journal Name: Hydro Review; (United States) Vol. 10:2; ISSN HYREE8; ISSN 0884-0385
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

13 HYDRO ENERGY
130300* -- Hydro Energy-- Plant Design & Operation
BARGES
CONSTRUCTION
DAMS
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
HYDROELECTRIC POWER PLANTS
LOS ALAMOS
MECHANICAL STRUCTURES
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NEW MEXICO
NORTH AMERICA
OUTLET STRUCTURES
POWER PLANTS
PUMPS
SHUTDOWN
URBAN AREAS
US CORPS OF ENGINEERS
US DOD
US ORGANIZATIONS
USA
WATER QUALITY