Safe Clearance from Surface Exhaust Plumes
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Location: Canberra Australia
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Safe Clearance from Surface Exhaust Plumes
Safe Flight in Vicinity of Surface Exhaust Plumes
Exhaust plumes of high temperature and oxygen depleted gas from surface mounted gas turbines may present a hazard to aircraft in close vicinity.
Gas turbine powered naval ships with attendant helicopters may need a significant avoidance zone around the ship's exhaust plume.
Then there are many land based gas turbines being installed vertically to power electricity generators to satisfy peak electricity loads.
What is a safe clearance for flight in the vicinity of these exhaust plumes?
Has there been any flight testing? If so are there any advisories available?
Exhaust plumes of high temperature and oxygen depleted gas from surface mounted gas turbines may present a hazard to aircraft in close vicinity.
Gas turbine powered naval ships with attendant helicopters may need a significant avoidance zone around the ship's exhaust plume.
Then there are many land based gas turbines being installed vertically to power electricity generators to satisfy peak electricity loads.
What is a safe clearance for flight in the vicinity of these exhaust plumes?
Has there been any flight testing? If so are there any advisories available?
I've had occasion to look seriously into the issue of turbulence downwind of a windfarm on several occasions. There's strong circumstantial evidence that they create substantial turbulence downwind, but little hard data.
There's also a lot of research that goes into turbulence around ship / rig structures for helo operations. Most of this involves complex CFD analysis: Qinetiq at Portsdown, near Portsmouth, England have a particularly impressive setup that does a lot of research, usually concentrating upon military helicopter / small ship combinations.
As for plumes of noncombustible gas, I've not seen anything (and confess that my instinct is to believe that the safe distance will actually be quite short due to the rapid diffusion rates. But, this should be reasonably straightforward to model in CFD, confirm this with a few static measurements, then apply a comfortable safety factor. Surely attempting to flight test this would be a bit silly? - since it'll largely consist of flying an aircraft close to the ground / structure and seeing if/when the engine fails due to oxygen starvation - not a trial I'd personally like to be responsible for!
If you are in need of somebody, I may have some colleagues who are up to this sort of flow modelling if you'd like me to ask around.
G
There's also a lot of research that goes into turbulence around ship / rig structures for helo operations. Most of this involves complex CFD analysis: Qinetiq at Portsdown, near Portsmouth, England have a particularly impressive setup that does a lot of research, usually concentrating upon military helicopter / small ship combinations.
As for plumes of noncombustible gas, I've not seen anything (and confess that my instinct is to believe that the safe distance will actually be quite short due to the rapid diffusion rates. But, this should be reasonably straightforward to model in CFD, confirm this with a few static measurements, then apply a comfortable safety factor. Surely attempting to flight test this would be a bit silly? - since it'll largely consist of flying an aircraft close to the ground / structure and seeing if/when the engine fails due to oxygen starvation - not a trial I'd personally like to be responsible for!
If you are in need of somebody, I may have some colleagues who are up to this sort of flow modelling if you'd like me to ask around.
G
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Gday,
Moons ago I flew regularly into Moomba Gas Field in central Aus. They had the normal gas flare on the plant there and I vaguely remember a .7nm radius and min 2000' altitude restriction around the site.
As I say, too long ago to be sure of the data. But rest assured nobody wanted to test the claimed min safe alt. above the thing and we all stay well clear
Milt, if you can access the IAL plates for Moomba I'm sure it will still be marked on the chart. Maybe someone at Airservices can tell you who gave them the data??
Cheers,
Con
Moons ago I flew regularly into Moomba Gas Field in central Aus. They had the normal gas flare on the plant there and I vaguely remember a .7nm radius and min 2000' altitude restriction around the site.
As I say, too long ago to be sure of the data. But rest assured nobody wanted to test the claimed min safe alt. above the thing and we all stay well clear
Milt, if you can access the IAL plates for Moomba I'm sure it will still be marked on the chart. Maybe someone at Airservices can tell you who gave them the data??
Cheers,
Con
