A review of recently reported cooling tower plume models yields none that is universally accepted. The entrainment and drag mechanisms and the effect of moisture on the plume trajectory are phenomena which are treated differently by various investigators. In order to better understand these phenomena, a simple numerical scheme is developed which can readily be used to evaluate different entrainment and drag assumptions. Preliminary results indicate that in moderate winds most of the entrainment due to wind can be accounted for by the direct impingement of the wind on the plume path. Initially, the pressure difference across the plume is found to produce a substantial drag force. Thus, it is likely that a certain portion of the plume bending is due to these pressure forces, and artificially increasing wind entrainment to fit experimental data is unnecessary.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 39-41).