A customer in our shop this week was a travelling nuclear qualified pipe fitter. I once worked nuclear, and we found some commonality. He explained an observance he had doing a recent decommission of a coastal nuclear power plant. This particular plant utilized cooling towers to condense low pressure turbine steam back to water to then be sent back to the heat exchanger and re-use as steam. These cooling towers had a 10 ft diameter underground concrete storm sewer pipe connecting them to a drain area. This took care of rain runoff and leakage. Length was about 900 feet.
His story was that the plant had been shut down for some time and the cooling towers drained. However, several thousand gallons of water continued to flow out the pipe every day. He and two other pipe fitters were sent up to find the leak. What they found was there were no groundwater or plumbing leaks. Engineers were called in and they discovered the water flow was due to condensed water in the pipe. This condensate was from the passive flow of moisture laden air through the pipe in the chimney effect. They closed off the inlet end of the pipe and the water flow stopped.
I did a little research and discovered DARPA announced in 2022 that they were working on a similar system for the military. With some special materials they were able to construct an atmospheric water extraction system using the same concept that was capable of removing up to 600 gallons of water/day from 14% rel humidity air in warm to hot environments. Externally it resembles a 20 ft long pipe. No energy input required, only sunshine!
Posts: 3823 | Location: SC,USA | Registered: 07 March 2002
Indeed. But we are so much smarter today, right? C'mon, the Brits + even the Phoenicians, et al. before them, knew to stretch canvases to cover the deck to collect dew/moisture. As most of you know, that my trade has + is in the replication of historical metal works, to circa originality. My point being, that today, we are so arrogant on our accumulated knowledge that we really have lost track of those that did.
Posts: 4410 | Location: Austin,Texas | Registered: 08 April 2006
You are so correct! There is no telling how much technology has been lost over the ages. The biggie for me is how megalithic cultures cut and moved 50-ton rocks dozens of miles, over rough terrain and water, then stacked them!!!!
quote:
Originally posted by Norman Conquest: Indeed. But we are so much smarter today, right? C'mon, the Brits + even the Phoenicians, et al. before them, knew to stretch canvases to cover the deck to collect dew/moisture. As most of you know, that my trade has + is in the replication of historical metal works, to circa originality. My point being, that today, we are so arrogant on our accumulated knowledge that we really have lost track of those that did.
Posts: 3823 | Location: SC,USA | Registered: 07 March 2002
Bob, just as an aside; I have an old friend from college that regales in offending any + everyone. He has T-shirt of the building of the pyramids, with the caption "Slavery Works." The liberals are greatly offended + Roy regales in their ignorance, so wears it often; along with a few others that I have sent him; being in commiseration of good comedy in a truthful cause.
Posts: 4410 | Location: Austin,Texas | Registered: 08 April 2006
Originally posted by Bobster: A customer in our shop this week was a travelling nuclear qualified pipe fitter. I once worked nuclear, and we found some commonality. He explained an observance he had doing a recent decommission of a coastal nuclear power plant. This particular plant utilized cooling towers to condense low pressure turbine steam back to water to then be sent back to the heat exchanger and re-use as steam. These cooling towers had a 10 ft diameter underground concrete storm sewer pipe connecting them to a drain area. This took care of rain runoff and leakage. Length was about 900 feet.
His story was that the plant had been shut down for some time and the cooling towers drained. However, several thousand gallons of water continued to flow out the pipe every day. He and two other pipe fitters were sent up to find the leak. What they found was there were no groundwater or plumbing leaks. Engineers were called in and they discovered the water flow was due to condensed water in the pipe. This condensate was from the passive flow of moisture laden air through the pipe in the chimney effect. They closed off the inlet end of the pipe and the water flow stopped.
I did a little research and discovered DARPA announced in 2022 that they were working on a similar system for the military. With some special materials they were able to construct an atmospheric water extraction system using the same concept that was capable of removing up to 600 gallons of water/day from 14% rel humidity air in warm to hot environments. Externally it resembles a 20 ft long pipe. No energy input required, only sunshine!
How far below the surface was the pipe? I idly wonder about the dew point and temperature in the pipe...
TomP
Our country, right or wrong. When right, to be kept right, when wrong to be put right.
Carl Schurz (1829 - 1906)
Posts: 14714 | Location: Moreno Valley CA USA | Registered: 20 November 2000
