The design, fabrication and deployment of an ice boom to protect two hydroelectric power plant water intakes from ice blockages during winter

An ice boom was designed, fabricated and deployed on the Ottawa River, in Hull, Quebec, upstream, and at the north end of the Arch Dam. The boom was to protect two hydroelectric power plants, owned and operated by Hydro-Quebec and E. B. Eddy Forest Product Ltd, from ice. The boom was placed about 200 m upstream of the two intakes and spanned the entire bay width. The boom was justified following field observations carried out during the winter of 1996/97. The paper describes the procedures followed for the selection of the boom site, the calculation of the ice loads and the selection of the pontoon size, length and number, the span and anchor cable lengths and diameters and the anchor resistance. A comparison between the ice accumulation upstream of the intakes, before and after the installation of the ice boom, and the associated increase in power production is presented.