An overview of waste heat utilization research at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Programs concerned with utilization of power plant waste heat, their historical development and possible future directions are discussed. Feasibility studies led to experimental greenhouse efforts and sponsorship of several waste heat utilization conferences. Long-term research is being pursued concerning the relationship between temperature, growth rate and food conversion efficiency. Largemouth, smallmouth and striped bass, sauger, crayfish and the clam Corbicula are being studied in both constant and oscillating thermal regimes. An assessment of the relative economic and heat utilization merits of waste heat utilization systems was recently performed. The results indicated that extensive pond aquaculture offered the greatest economic and widescale application potential. This was followed by animal shelters, algal ponds, intensive raceway aquaculture, undersoil heating and greenhouses. Based on historical program development and the results of the waste heat technology assessment, it appears that future waste heat utilization research at ORNL could include several broad-scale efforts. Technical support will continue for the Browns Ferry demonstration greenhouse. Technical assistance will also be provided for efforts to utilize waste heat from gaseous diffusion plants. Performance data and economic and technical feasibility analyses will be performed for integrated power plant-waste heat complex systems and for new utilization technologies. Long range goals indicatemore » the need for studies concerning mass balance and zooplankton production estimates of sewage oxidation ponds. Development of a comprehensive program exploring thermally enriched pond polyculture appears to be desirable. The program could investigate economic and technical considerations of producing low-cost protein using power plant reject heat.« less