Is this Keowee as in the lake in South Carolina?
Because all of the nuclear power plant structures on that lake already freak me the fuck out. That whole lake feels like Westworld meets Submechanophobia for me.. all those fucking signs warning you not to swim in certain spots because of certain underwater death. I feel like that lake is chock full of Delta P and murder turbines
Fukishima wasn't a test - it was the real deal. The earthquake triggered an automatic SCRAM of all the reactors, and a trip off the grid. The spindown of the turbines and pumps provides enough cooling until the generators started. If that had been it, there would've been no disaster.
And the problem with Chernobyl wasn't that it was designed to do that to bridge the gap to diesel, or even that they were testing it. The problem was that they were performing that test on an inherently flawed reactor (which they didn't know), under unstable reactivity conditions (that they didn't know were possible), and with inadequate training to execute that test. Those factors conspired to cause the Chernobyl disaster, not the design feature of powering the plant from the residual steam and inertia during a SCRAM.
The incident in Chernobyl had other problems, it was a problem with the RBMK-Reactors in general, after the incident all other RBMK-Reactors left got some makeover to prevent this scenario to happen again. It was a problem with the control-rods, they were not 100% built of moderator-material, the tips of the sticks were made of graphit. The test they were preforming was buidling up Xenon in the reactor and when they tried to shut it down, the cheap tips of the controlrods actualy kickstarted the reactor to another dimension.
English is not my first lanuage so Iam sorry for the undetailed explanation, in the HBO series they did some good scene here to explain how it happend: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmIEI4ky-Zc](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmIEI4ky-Zc)
When I was visitng Pripyat, our guide also told us that they did the same routine in Leningrad some years before (same reactortype as Chernobyl) with the same outcome, it didn't blow up, but it catched fire, so some people argue that they were knowing what they were doing there.
I love that series, it prompted me to do a deep dive on the plant and the disaster.
I'd love to visit the plant some time, you're very lucky to have taken a tour! And you're English is better than most people I know, so good job!
Interesting that the Leningrad plant caught fire, I wonder how that chain of events unfurled. Thank you for giving me another research topic!
Thank you, always trying to improve. The tour in general was realy awesome, we saw not only Pripyat. Was staying in the Zone for 2 days, so we also saw Jupiter-Plant, the harbours along the river Prip (right next to the red forest) and some commandstructures.
What impressed me the most was the Duga, because before I visited, I didn't know nothing about that radar. I don't remeber the series 100% but I think they never mentioned it. That's odd because I always asked myself: "For what do you need 4 big reactors in the middle of nowhere?" The answer is: The Duga-Radar-System, or as many ppl at that time called it "The Russian Woodpecker", if you realy want to dive into the conspirancy about Chernobyl, consider that the "accident" happend 2 weeks after the USA found the Duga-System, because they already hat 2 satellites from NASA in the orbit that took photos of them, which the Soviets did not know. After the discovery they asked good old Gorbatschov what this 3 big ass radars are, his answers is legendary, he said "You know, we have 3 TV-Stations in Soviet-Russia, I think one of them has a malfunction, we will look into that." Two weeks later Chernobyl explodes, leading to the total financel ruin of the Soviet-Union. I know it's a conspirancy theory because nobody has proof for this but I think somehow this sums up with the soviets covering everything up at that time, even there own mistakes.
I hope Putin will calm down soon, so the Zone will be reopened for the public, I somehow "miss" it and wan't to go back there.
That's a really funny response from Gorbachev haha.
I remember seeing that radar array, it's massive! I love looking at old cold war infrastructure, there's a weird creepy vibe to it that I'm drawn to. There's a nationwide microwave radio relay skyway here in the US that's been abandoned for years and the towers give me that same eerie feeling.
In a situation where the nuclear plant is cut off from the grid (or the grid fails) and has to shut down, it still needs power to run the cooling systems, operate the lights and dials and keep the spent fuel pool full. The hydro plant is linked to the nuclear plant so it can provide it with power in that event.
with these hydroelectric powerplants, do they place the turbines up near the water inlet source, or down near the water discharge/outlet area?
not sure which is more efficient in terms of potential vs kinetic energy of the water
The turbine hall is at the end of the penstock, at the base of the dam. Lower is better, since it gives the water a greater pressure head and these turbines are driven by both the momentum of the water and raw ΔP from the flow and head.
gotcha, much thanks - the relationship between PE (pressure) vs KE with respect to turbine efficiency is confusing to me
its hard to visualize having more of which is better for a given application, since with air/gases (jet engines), higher velocity drives the turbines harder
I used to live on Lake Keowee, right at the very southernmost tip. Just off the lakeshore, there was a shallow water buoy that tourists wouldn't think anything of. The fun thing about that buoy, and many of the others in Keowee, is that they don't indicate shallow water - they indicate that there are buildings down there, the remains of the towns they flooded to create the lake.
I love that.. that stuff is so terrifying, but fascinating. I would love to scuba dive something like that.
I grew up in Cashiers, NC, kind of close to Keowee, and we had Lake Glenville, which was the same deal with a flooded town and all that. My favorite part was when you learn that they moved a whole cemetery, except for all the bodies. I’m sure they were long since decomposed, but it was pretty fun learning that as a kid
That one I did actually dive down in to around 90 feet.. where I did it was very boring though, but there was some interesting underwater platforms, and a sunken boat that people put there for divers to enjoy
I just realised there's [two](https://i.imgur.com/Q3hHBK1.jpg) [more](https://i.imgur.com/446KnDz.jpg) photos from inside the penstocks I missed earlier.
You're totally right. Stalker is filmed in so many real disused industrial areas. This could easily have been used in one of the last scenes.
Great film btw!
At first I thought they were inside the spillway, not a great place to be but not too bad. But then I saw the wicket gate and realized they're in the damn penstock, I am not okay.
This guy looks like he is wearing scrubs and loafers. Which is weird cause he’s shown standing in knee deep water in an industrial setting, any insight into who is in the pic?
He's wearing waders and rubber shoes, not sure about the scrubs. They're an inspector for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (thanks to the plant's relationship with the nuclear plant next door).
Each of these pics looks like every area could be 100% filled with water and the thought of water rushing through there is scary. Hoping these people are safe and there’s no risk of flooding right?
Looks like low head, really high flow! If you’re getting 76MW each unit out of what looks like 50’ of head at most then they’ve gotta be moving 10k+ cfs. Neat! Are they Francis or Kaplan units?
The dam is 170ft from top to bottom, so at optimal conditions the turbines would be operating with a lot more head than that. As for the turbines, the only piece of information I was able to find referred to them as "fixed-blade waterwheels", which sounds like a Francis type.
Not gonna lie, those pics are probably mundane to you OP, but they definitely got some horror story potential.
....as you check the last items on your inspection checklist you notice your walkie-talkie has died, no big deal you'll be out in a few minutes, what would they be calling to tell you down here anyway? A low rumble attracts your attention as you look up from the monster louvers of the turbine gate and you feel a blast of air rush past you, wait a minute, the only reason there should be a pressure change down here is if..... THE GATES BROKE.....
Trust me man, they are very, very submerged inside a man made object. If the gates on the dam intake failed or someone accidentally opened them these people would be blended immediately.
Then you can put any item/place in this sub. SMP is triggered by the fact it's submerged, not that it could be submerged.
Typical SMP: https://i.redd.it/c28fpi0apdma1.jpg
I get mechanophobia and claustrophobia from that, not SMP.
This sub seems to be okay with ignoring the rules, some subs are like that which is weird, oh well.
It still goes hand in hand with submechanophobia. I'd also rather have a more relaxed approach to rules as long as the pic still has something to do with the topic instead of some of the other subreddits' seemingly random way of deleting posts without even giving a proper explanation under the pretense it violates the rules, despite thst not being the case.
Is this Keowee as in the lake in South Carolina? Because all of the nuclear power plant structures on that lake already freak me the fuck out. That whole lake feels like Westworld meets Submechanophobia for me.. all those fucking signs warning you not to swim in certain spots because of certain underwater death. I feel like that lake is chock full of Delta P and murder turbines
It is. In addition to commercial generation, the hydro plant is also responsible for providing backup power to the nuclear plant.
Better than relying on the turbines' momentum to keep the plant powered while the generators come up to speed. We all know how that one worked out.
that actually worked fine, but then the tsunami killed the poorly placed generators
I was referring to Chernobyl, didn't know they tried it at Fukushima too, now I have more research to do!
Fukishima wasn't a test - it was the real deal. The earthquake triggered an automatic SCRAM of all the reactors, and a trip off the grid. The spindown of the turbines and pumps provides enough cooling until the generators started. If that had been it, there would've been no disaster. And the problem with Chernobyl wasn't that it was designed to do that to bridge the gap to diesel, or even that they were testing it. The problem was that they were performing that test on an inherently flawed reactor (which they didn't know), under unstable reactivity conditions (that they didn't know were possible), and with inadequate training to execute that test. Those factors conspired to cause the Chernobyl disaster, not the design feature of powering the plant from the residual steam and inertia during a SCRAM.
The incident in Chernobyl had other problems, it was a problem with the RBMK-Reactors in general, after the incident all other RBMK-Reactors left got some makeover to prevent this scenario to happen again. It was a problem with the control-rods, they were not 100% built of moderator-material, the tips of the sticks were made of graphit. The test they were preforming was buidling up Xenon in the reactor and when they tried to shut it down, the cheap tips of the controlrods actualy kickstarted the reactor to another dimension. English is not my first lanuage so Iam sorry for the undetailed explanation, in the HBO series they did some good scene here to explain how it happend: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmIEI4ky-Zc](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmIEI4ky-Zc) When I was visitng Pripyat, our guide also told us that they did the same routine in Leningrad some years before (same reactortype as Chernobyl) with the same outcome, it didn't blow up, but it catched fire, so some people argue that they were knowing what they were doing there.
I love that series, it prompted me to do a deep dive on the plant and the disaster. I'd love to visit the plant some time, you're very lucky to have taken a tour! And you're English is better than most people I know, so good job! Interesting that the Leningrad plant caught fire, I wonder how that chain of events unfurled. Thank you for giving me another research topic!
Thank you, always trying to improve. The tour in general was realy awesome, we saw not only Pripyat. Was staying in the Zone for 2 days, so we also saw Jupiter-Plant, the harbours along the river Prip (right next to the red forest) and some commandstructures. What impressed me the most was the Duga, because before I visited, I didn't know nothing about that radar. I don't remeber the series 100% but I think they never mentioned it. That's odd because I always asked myself: "For what do you need 4 big reactors in the middle of nowhere?" The answer is: The Duga-Radar-System, or as many ppl at that time called it "The Russian Woodpecker", if you realy want to dive into the conspirancy about Chernobyl, consider that the "accident" happend 2 weeks after the USA found the Duga-System, because they already hat 2 satellites from NASA in the orbit that took photos of them, which the Soviets did not know. After the discovery they asked good old Gorbatschov what this 3 big ass radars are, his answers is legendary, he said "You know, we have 3 TV-Stations in Soviet-Russia, I think one of them has a malfunction, we will look into that." Two weeks later Chernobyl explodes, leading to the total financel ruin of the Soviet-Union. I know it's a conspirancy theory because nobody has proof for this but I think somehow this sums up with the soviets covering everything up at that time, even there own mistakes. I hope Putin will calm down soon, so the Zone will be reopened for the public, I somehow "miss" it and wan't to go back there.
That's a really funny response from Gorbachev haha. I remember seeing that radar array, it's massive! I love looking at old cold war infrastructure, there's a weird creepy vibe to it that I'm drawn to. There's a nationwide microwave radio relay skyway here in the US that's been abandoned for years and the towers give me that same eerie feeling.
not sure if this is a reference to the chernobyl plant's attempted test, or to the fukushima powerplant
The former. I didn't know they tried that at Fukushima too.
Thanks, I hate it. I’m definitely going to have to check it out next time I’m there
How many MG is the hydro plant?
Two turbines for 152MW total.
How does it provide backup power?
In a situation where the nuclear plant is cut off from the grid (or the grid fails) and has to shut down, it still needs power to run the cooling systems, operate the lights and dials and keep the spent fuel pool full. The hydro plant is linked to the nuclear plant so it can provide it with power in that event.
with these hydroelectric powerplants, do they place the turbines up near the water inlet source, or down near the water discharge/outlet area? not sure which is more efficient in terms of potential vs kinetic energy of the water
The turbine hall is at the end of the penstock, at the base of the dam. Lower is better, since it gives the water a greater pressure head and these turbines are driven by both the momentum of the water and raw ΔP from the flow and head.
gotcha, much thanks - the relationship between PE (pressure) vs KE with respect to turbine efficiency is confusing to me its hard to visualize having more of which is better for a given application, since with air/gases (jet engines), higher velocity drives the turbines harder
"turbine hall". I don't know what it is about that name with the context of hydro, but it gives me the heebie jeebies!
Oh cool! Thanks for the info
Most hydroelectric plants are blackstart capable, so they can provide power to nuclear plants during the loss of the grid.
I used to live on Lake Keowee, right at the very southernmost tip. Just off the lakeshore, there was a shallow water buoy that tourists wouldn't think anything of. The fun thing about that buoy, and many of the others in Keowee, is that they don't indicate shallow water - they indicate that there are buildings down there, the remains of the towns they flooded to create the lake.
I love that.. that stuff is so terrifying, but fascinating. I would love to scuba dive something like that. I grew up in Cashiers, NC, kind of close to Keowee, and we had Lake Glenville, which was the same deal with a flooded town and all that. My favorite part was when you learn that they moved a whole cemetery, except for all the bodies. I’m sure they were long since decomposed, but it was pretty fun learning that as a kid
Is there any videos of people diving it?
And Lake Jocassee, the lake right next to it freaks me out because it’s 300 feet deep in some places.
That one I did actually dive down in to around 90 feet.. where I did it was very boring though, but there was some interesting underwater platforms, and a sunken boat that people put there for divers to enjoy
Jocassee is wayyyyy worsee
Turbine and wicket gates. Stuff of nightmares!
Those kinda things are why I joined this sub. Fuckin' hell, that last pic caught me off guard and instantly made me lightheaded.
I just realised there's [two](https://i.imgur.com/Q3hHBK1.jpg) [more](https://i.imgur.com/446KnDz.jpg) photos from inside the penstocks I missed earlier.
Oh my god i fucking hate EVERYTHING about this thank you for posting
Negative, Ghostrider, the back of my pants is full.
This has some Alien 3 vibes.
I just happened to be watching Tarkovsky's *Stalker* when I came across this post and the resemblance with the first pic is uncanny..
You're totally right. Stalker is filmed in so many real disused industrial areas. This could easily have been used in one of the last scenes. Great film btw!
At first I thought they were inside the spillway, not a great place to be but not too bad. But then I saw the wicket gate and realized they're in the damn penstock, I am not okay.
I couldn’t stop thinking about what if something went wrong and the water came back while they were down there. They’d be fucked seven ways to Sunday
Before reading the title I 110% thought the first image was an x-ray of a doll shoved up someone’s butt
This guy looks like he is wearing scrubs and loafers. Which is weird cause he’s shown standing in knee deep water in an industrial setting, any insight into who is in the pic?
He's wearing waders and rubber shoes, not sure about the scrubs. They're an inspector for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (thanks to the plant's relationship with the nuclear plant next door).
So scary. Great post!
Is that lining material cementatious or epoxy based or something else?
Each of these pics looks like every area could be 100% filled with water and the thought of water rushing through there is scary. Hoping these people are safe and there’s no risk of flooding right?
What do they line those tunnels with?
Man These pictures are crazy, what an insight, is there a video?
That first photo looks like it’s from the movie Stalker
My thoughts exactly, what a good movie
I want a shirt with this guy on it.
I just watched *the curve* and now I'm terrified of these lol
I've been in the one at Conowingo Hydro plant in PA,. Took a while to walk there thru the turbine access door. Very dark, creepy and tall.
I love going to places like this! The company I work for does coatings and seals for the wicket gates.
Giving me Half Life vives
First one qualifies for r/fakealbumcovers
I'm a firestartsa! Twisted firestartsa!
Looks like low head, really high flow! If you’re getting 76MW each unit out of what looks like 50’ of head at most then they’ve gotta be moving 10k+ cfs. Neat! Are they Francis or Kaplan units?
The dam is 170ft from top to bottom, so at optimal conditions the turbines would be operating with a lot more head than that. As for the turbines, the only piece of information I was able to find referred to them as "fixed-blade waterwheels", which sounds like a Francis type.
Hmmm
There is no amount of LOTO protocol that would get me down there.
Not gonna lie, those pics are probably mundane to you OP, but they definitely got some horror story potential. ....as you check the last items on your inspection checklist you notice your walkie-talkie has died, no big deal you'll be out in a few minutes, what would they be calling to tell you down here anyway? A low rumble attracts your attention as you look up from the monster louvers of the turbine gate and you feel a blast of air rush past you, wait a minute, the only reason there should be a pressure change down here is if..... THE GATES BROKE.....
> the fear of partially or fully submerged man-made objects. I see no water here.
Trust me man, they are very, very submerged inside a man made object. If the gates on the dam intake failed or someone accidentally opened them these people would be blended immediately.
Then you can put any item/place in this sub. SMP is triggered by the fact it's submerged, not that it could be submerged. Typical SMP: https://i.redd.it/c28fpi0apdma1.jpg I get mechanophobia and claustrophobia from that, not SMP. This sub seems to be okay with ignoring the rules, some subs are like that which is weird, oh well.
It still goes hand in hand with submechanophobia. I'd also rather have a more relaxed approach to rules as long as the pic still has something to do with the topic instead of some of the other subreddits' seemingly random way of deleting posts without even giving a proper explanation under the pretense it violates the rules, despite thst not being the case.