Powerhouse Approach Flow Study for Mississippi River Lock and Dam No. 2 Hydrowpower Project

Abstract

A 5 MW hydroelectric generating facility is currently under construction on the Mississippi River at Lock and Dam No. 2 near Hastings, Minnesota. As part of its licensing agreement, the City of Hastings was required to have a model study done to ascertain that the impact of the power plant on navigation into and out of the lock and on scour potential of the new faci1ilty would be negligible or acceptable. The model study was conducted at the St. Anthony Falls Hydraulic Laboratory, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota. For that study, a 1:72 scale fixed bed model was constructed of a river reach extending 1-1/3 miles upstream and 2/3 mile downstream of the dam. Upon completion of the tests required for the navigation study, it was decided that the model would further be used to study some aspects of the powerhouse approach flow.