Topic 4.1 Cooling Towers

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COOLING TOWERS

Cooling towers are a very important part of many chemical plants. The primary task of a cooling tower is to reject heat into the
atmosphere. They represent a relatively inexpensive and dependable means of removing low-grade heat from cooling water. The
make-up water source is used to replenish water lost to evaporation. Hot water from heat exchangers is sent to the cooling tower. The
water exits the cooling tower and is sent back to the exchangers or to other units for further cooling. Typical closed loop cooling tower
system is shown in figure below.

Cooling Tower Types


Cooling towers fall into two main categories: Natural draft and Mechanical draft. Natural draft towers use very large concrete
chimneys to introduce air through the media. Due to the large size of these towers, they are generally used for water flow rates above
45,000 m3/hr. These types of towers are used only by utility power stations. Mechanical draft towers utilize large fans to force or suck
air through circulated water. The water falls downward over fill surfaces, which help increase the contact time between the water and
the air - this helps maximize heat transfer between the two. Cooling rates of Mechanical draft towers depend upon their fan diameter
and speed of operation.

Direct contact Cooling tower


Mechanical draft towers
Mechanical draft towers are available in the following airflow arrangements:
1. Counter flows induced draft.
2. Counter flow forced draft.
3. Cross flow induced draft.

In the counter flow induced draft design, hot water enters at the top, while the air is introduced at the bottom and exits at the top.
Both forced and induced draft fans are used. In cross flow induced draft towers, the water enters at the top and passes over the fill. The
air, however, is introduced at the side either on one side (single-flow tower) or opposite sides (double-flow tower). An induced draft
fan draws the air across the wetted fill and expels it through the top of the structure. The Figure below illustrates various cooling tower
types. Mechanical draft towers are available in a large range of capacities. Normal capacities range from approximately 10 tons, 2.5
m3/hr flow to several thousand tons and m3/hr. Towers can be either factory built or field erected - for example concrete towers are
only field erected.
Many towers are constructed so that they can be grouped together to achieve the desired capacity. Thus, many cooling towers are
assemblies of two or more individual cooling towers or "cells." The number of cells they have, e.g., an eight-cell tower, often refers to
such towers. Multiple-cell towers can be lineal, square, or round depending upon the shape of the individual cells and whether the air
inlets are located on the sides or bottoms of the cells.

Components of Cooling Tower


The basic components of an evaporative tower are: Frame and casing, fill, cold water basin, drift eliminators, air inlet, louvers,
nozzles and fans. Frame and casing: Most towers have structural frames that support the exterior enclosures (casings), motors, fans,
and other components. With some smaller designs, such as some glass fiber units, the casing may essentially be the frame.
1. Fill: Most towers employ fills (made of plastic or wood) to facilitate heat transfer by maximizing water and air contact. Fill
can either be splash or film type. With splash fill, water falls over successive layers of horizontal splash bars, continuously
breaking into smaller droplets, while also wetting the fill surface. Plastic splash fill promotes better heat transfer than the
wood splash fill. Film fill consists of thin, closely spaced plastic surfaces over which the water spreads, forming a thin film in
contact with the air. These surfaces may be flat, corrugated, honeycombed, or other patterns. The film type of fill is the more
efficient and provides same heat transfer in a smaller volume than the splash fill.
2. Cold water basin: The cold water basin, located at or near the bottom of the tower, receives the cooled water that flows
down through the tower and fill. The basin usually has a sump or low point for the cold water discharge connection. In many
tower designs, the cold water basin is beneath the entire fill.

In some forced draft counter flow design, however, the water at the bottom of the fill is channeled to a perimeter trough that
functions as the cold water basin. Propeller fans are mounted beneath the fill to blow the air up through the tower. With this design,
the tower is mounted on legs, providing easy access to the fans and their motors.

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3. Drift eliminators: These capture water droplets entrapped in the air stream that otherwise would be lost to the atmosphere.
Air inlet: This is the point of entry for the air entering a tower. The inlet may take up an entire side of a tower–cross flow
design– or be located low on the side or the bottom of counter flow designs.
4. Louvers: Generally, cross-flow towers have inlet louvers. The purpose of louvers is to equalize air flow into the fill and
retain the water within the tower. Many counter flow tower designs do not require louvers.
5. Nozzles: These provide the water sprays to wet the fill. Uniform water distribution at the top of the fill is essential to achieve
proper wetting of the entire fill surface. Nozzles can either be fixed in place and have either round or square spray patterns or
can be part of a rotating assembly as found in some circular cross-section towers.
6. Fans: Both axial (propeller type) and centrifugal fans are used in towers. Generally, propeller fans are used in induced draft
towers and both propeller and centrifugal fans are found in forced draft towers. Depending upon their size, propeller fans can
either be fixed or variable pitch. A fan having non-automatic adjustable pitch blades permits the same fan to be used over a
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wide range of kW with the fan adjusted to deliver the desired air flow at the lowest power consumption. Automatic variable
pitch blades can vary air flow in response to changing load conditions.

Tower Materials
In the early days of cooling tower manufacture, towers were constructed primarily of wood. Wooden components included the
frame, casing, louvers, fill, and often the cold water basin. If the basin was not of wood, it likely was of concrete. Today, tower
manufacturers fabricate towers and tower components from a variety of materials. Often several materials are used to enhance
corrosion resistance, reduce maintenance, and promote reliability and long service life. Galvanized steel, various grades of stainless
steel, glass fiber, and concrete are widely used in tower construction as well as aluminum and various types of plastics for some
components.
Wood towers are still available, but they have glass fiber rather than wood panels (casing) over the wood framework. The inlet
air louvers may be glass fiber, the fill may be plastic, and the cold water basin may be steel.
Larger towers sometimes are made of concrete. Many towers–casings and basins–are constructed of galvanized steel or, where a
corrosive atmosphere is a problem, stainless steel. Sometimes a galvanized tower has a stainless steel basin. Glass fiber is also widely
used for cooling tower casings and basins, giving long life and protection from the harmful effects of many chemicals.
Plastics are widely used for fill, including PVC, polypropylene, and other polymers. Treated wood splash fill is still specified for
wood towers, but plastic splash fill is also widely used when water conditions mandate the use of splash fill. Film fill, because it offers
greater heat transfer efficiency, is the fill of choice for applications where the circulating water is generally free of debris that could
plug the fill passageways. Plastics also find wide use as nozzle materials. Many nozzles are being made of PVC, ABS, polypropylene,
and glass-filled nylon. Aluminum, glass fiber, and hot-dipped galvanized steel are commonly used fan materials. Centrifugal fans are
often fabricated from galvanized steel. Propeller fans are fabricated from galvanized, aluminum, or moulded glass fiber reinforced
plastic.

Cooling Tower Performance

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The important parameters, from the point of determining the performance of cooling towers, are:
i. "Range" is the difference between the cooling tower water inlet and outlet temperature. (See Figure 7.3).
ii. "Approach" is the difference between the cooling tower outlet cold water temperature and ambient wet bulb temperature.
Although, both range and approach should be monitored, the 'Approach' is a better indicator of cooling tower performance.
iii. Cooling tower effectiveness (in percentage) is the ratio of range, to the ideal range, i.e., difference between cooling water
inlet temperature and ambient wet bulb temperature, or in other words it is = Range / (Range + Approach).
iv. Cooling capacity is the heat rejected in kCal/hr or TR, given as product of mass flow rate of water, specific heat and
temperature difference.
v. Evaporation loss is the water quantity evaporated for cooling duty and, theoretically, for every 10,00,000 kCal heat rejected,
evaporation quantity works out to 1.8 m3. An empirical relation used often is:
*Evaporation Loss (m3/hr) = 0.00085 x 1.8 x circulation rate (m3/hr) x (T1-T2)
T1-T2 = Temp. difference between inlet and outlet water.
*Source: Perry’s Chemical Engineers Handbook (Page: 12-17)
vi. Cycles of concentration (C.O.C) is the ratio of dissolved solids in circulating water to the dissolved solids in make up water.
vii. Blow down losses depend upon cycles of concentration and the evaporation losses and is given by relation:
Blow Down = Evaporation Loss / (C.O.C. – 1)
viii. Liquid/Gas (L/G) ratio, of a cooling tower is the ratio between the water and the air mass flow rates. Against design values,
seasonal variations require adjustment and tuning of water and air flow rates to get the best cooling tower effectiveness
through measures like water box loading changes, blade angle adjustments. Thermodynamics also dictate that the heat
removed from the water must be equal to the heat absorbed by the surrounding air:

where:
L/G = liquid to gas mass flow ratio (kg/kg)
T1 = hot water temperature (°C)
T2 = cold water temperature (°C)
h2 = enthalpy of air-water vapor mixture at exhaust wet-bulb temperature (same units as above)
h1 = enthalpy of air-water vapor mixture at inlet wet-bulb temperature (same units as above)

Factors Affecting Cooling Tower Performance

a. Capacity
Heat dissipation (in kCal/hour) and circulated flow rate (m3/hr) are not sufficient to understand cooling tower performance. Other
factors, which we will see, must be stated along with flow rate m3/hr. For example, a cooling tower sized to cool 4540 m3/hr through
a 13.9°C range might be larger than a cooling tower to cool 4540 m3/hr through 19.5°C range.

b. Range
Range is determined not by the cooling tower, but by the process it is serving. The range at the exchanger is determined entirely
by the heat load and the water circulation rate through the exchanger and on to the cooling water.
Range °C = Heat Load in kcals/hour / Water Circulation Rate in LPH
Thus, Range is a function of the heat load and the flow circulated through the system. Cooling towers are usually specified to cool a
certain flow rate from one temperature to another temperature at a certain wet bulb temperature. For example, the cooling
tower might be specified to cool 4540 m3/hr from 48.9°C to 32.2°C at 26.7°C wet bulb temperature.

Cold Water Temperature 32.2°C – Wet Bulb Temperature (26.7°C) = Approach (5.5°C)
As a generalization, the closer the approach to the wet bulb, the more expensive the cooling tower due to increased size. Usually a
2.8°C approach to the design wet bulb is the coldest water temperature that cooling tower manufacturers will guarantee. If flow rate,
range, approach and wet bulb had to be ranked in the order of their importance in sizing a tower, approach would be first with flow
rate closely following the range and wet bulb would be of lesser importance.

c. Heat Load
The heat load imposed on a cooling tower is determined by the process being served. The degree of cooling required is controlled
by the desired operating temperature level of the process. In most cases, a low operating temperature is desirable to increase process
efficiency or to improve the quality or quantity of the product. In some applications (e.g. internal combustion engines), however, high
operating temperatures are desirable. The size and cost of the cooling tower is proportional to the heat load. If heat load calculations
are low undersized equipment will be purchased. If the calculated load is high, oversize and more costly, equipment will result.
Process heat loads may vary considerably depending upon the process involved.
Determination of accurate process heat loads can become very complex but proper consideration can produce satisfactory results. On
the other hand, air conditioning and refrigeration heat loads can be determined with greater accuracy.
Information is available for the heat rejection requirements of various types of power equipment.
A sample list is as follows:
* Air Compressor
- Single-stage - 129 kCal/kW/hr
- Single-stage with after cooler - 862 kCal/kW/hr
- Two-stage with intercooler - 518 kCal/kW/hr
- Two-stage with intercooler and after cooler - 862 kCal/kW/hr
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* Refrigeration, Compression - 63 kCal/min/TR
* Refrigeration, Absorption - 127 kCal/min/TR
* Steam Turbine Condenser - 555 kCal/kg of steam
* Diesel Engine, Four-Cycle, Supercharged - 880 kCal/kW/hr
* Natural Gas Engine, Four-cycle - 1523 kCal/kW/hr (18 kg/cm2 compression)

d. Wet Bulb Temperature


Wet bulb temperature is an important factor in performance of evaporative water cooling equipment. It is a controlling factor
from the aspect of minimum cold water temperature to which water can be cooled by the evaporative method. Thus, the wet bulb
temperature of the air entering the cooling tower determines operating temperature levels throughout the plant, process, or system.
Theoretically, a cooling tower will cool water to the entering wet bulb temperature, when operating without a heat load. However, a
thermal potential is required to reject heat, so it is not possible to cool water to the entering air wet bulb temperature, when a heat load
is
applied. The approach obtained is a function of thermal conditions and tower capability. Initial selection of towers with respect to
design wet bulb temperature must be made on the basis of conditions existing at the tower site. The temperature selected is generally
close to the average maximum wet bulb for the summer months. An important aspect of wet bulb selection is, whether it is specified
as ambient or inlet. The ambient wet bulb is the temperature, which exists generally in the cooling tower area, whereas inlet wet bulb
is the wet bulb temperature of the air entering the tower. The later can be, and often is, affected by discharge vapours being
recirculated into the tower. Recirculation raises the effective wet bulb temperature of the air entering the tower with corresponding
increase in the cold water temperature. Since there is no initial knowledge or control over the recirculation factor, the ambient wet
bulb should be specified. The cooling tower supplier is required to furnish a tower of sufficient capability to absorb the effects of the
increased wet bulb temperature peculiar to his own equipment. It is very important to have the cold water temperature low enough to
exchange heat or to condense vapours at the optimum temperature level. By evaluating the cost and size of heat exchangers versus the
cost and size of the cooling tower, the quantity and temperature of the cooling tower water can be selected to get the maximum
economy for the particular process.

The Table below illustrates the effect of approach on the size and cost of a cooling tower. The towers included were sized to cool 4540
m3/hr through a 16.67°C range at a 26.7°C design wet bulb. The overall width of all towers is 21.65 meters; the overall height, 15.25
meters, and the pump head, 10.6 m approximately.

e. Approach and Flow


Suppose a cooling tower is installed that is 21.65 m wide × 36.9 m long × 15.24m high, has three 7.32 m diameter fans and each
powered by 25 kW motors. The cooling tower cools from 3632 m3/hr water from 46.1°C to 29.4°C at 26.7°C WBT dissipating 60.69
million kCal/hr. The Table below shows what would happen with additional flow but with the range remaining constant at 16.67°C.
The heat dissipated varies from 60.69 million kCal/hr to 271.3 million kCal/hr.

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For meeting the increased heat load, few modifications would be needed to increase the water flow through the tower. However, at
higher capacities, the approach would increase.

f. Range, Flow and Heat Load


Range is a direct function of the quantity of water circulated and the heat load. Increasing the range as a result of added heat load
does require an increase in the tower size. If the cold water temperature is not changed and the range is increased with higher hot
water temperature, the driving force between the wet bulb temperature of the air entering the tower and the hot water temperature is
increased, the higher level heat is economical to dissipate.
If the hot water temperature is left constant and the range is increased by specifying a lower cold water temperature, the tower size
would have to be increased considerably. Not only would the range be increased, but the lower cold water temperature would lower
the approach. The resulting change in both range and approach would require a much larger cooling tower.

g. Approach & Wet Bulb Temperature


The design wet bulb temperature is determined by the geographical location. Usually the design wet bulb temperature selected is
not exceeded over 5 percent of the time in that area. Wet bulb temperature is a factor in cooling tower selection; the higher the wet
bulb temperature, the smaller the tower required to give a specified approach to the wet bulb at a constant range and flow rate.
A 4540 m3/hr cooling tower selected for a 16.67°C range and a 4.45°C approach to 21.11°C wet bulb would be larger than a
4540 m3/hr tower selected for a 16.67°C range and a 4.45°C approach to a 26.67°C wet bulb. Air at the higher wet bulb temperature is
capable of picking up more heat. Assume that the wet bulb temperature of the air is increased by approximately 11.1°C. As air
removes heat from the water in the tower, each kg of air entering the tower at 21.1°C wet bulb would contain 18.86 kCals and if it
were to leave the tower at 33.2°C wet bulb it would contain 24.17 kCal per kg of air. In the second case, each kg of air entering the
tower at 26.67°C wet bulb would contain 24.17 kCals and were to leave at 37.8°C wet bulb it would contain 39.67 kCal per kg of air.
In going from 21.1°C to 32.2°C, 12.1 kCal per kg of air is picked up, while 15.5 kCal/kg of air is picked up in going from 26.67°C to
37.8°C.
h. Fill Media Effects
In a cooling tower, hot water is distributed above fill media which flows down and is cooled due to evaporation with the
intermixing air. Air draft is achieved with use of fans. Thus some power is consumed in pumping the water to a height above the fill
and also by fans creating the draft.
An energy efficient or low power consuming cooling tower is to have efficient designs of fill media with appropriate water
distribution, drift eliminator, fan, gearbox and motor. Power savings in a cooling tower, with use of efficient fill design, is directly
reflected as savings in fan power consumption and pumping head requirement.

i. Function of Fill media in a Cooling Tower


Heat exchange between air and water is influenced by surface area of heat exchange, time of heat exchange (interaction) and
turbulence in water effecting thoroughness of intermixing. Fill media in a cooling tower is responsible to achieve all of above.
Splash and Film Fill Media: As the name indicates, splash fill media generates the required heat exchange area by splashing action of
water over fill media and hence breaking into smaller water droplets. Thus, surface of heat exchange is the surface area of the water
droplets, which is in contact with air.
Film Fill and its Advantages
In a film fill, water forms a thin film on either side of fill sheets. Thus area of heat exchange is the surface area of the fill sheets, which
is in contact with air. Typical comparison between various fill media is shown in table below.

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Due to fewer requirements of air and pumping head, there is a tremendous saving in power with the invention of film fill. Recently,
low-clog film fills with higher flute sizes have been developed to handle high turbid waters. For sea water, low clog film fills are
considered as the best choice in terms of power saving and performance compared to conventional splash type fills.

Choosing a Cooling Tower


The counter-flow and cross flows are two basic designs of cooling towers based on the fundamentals of heat exchange. It is well
known that counter flow heat exchange is more effective as compared to cross flow or parallel flow heat exchange. Cross-flow cooling
towers are provided with splash fill of concrete, wood or perforated PVC. Counter-flow cooling towers are provided with both film fill
and splash fill.
Typical comparison of Cross flow Splash Fill, Counter Flow Tower with Film Fill and Splash fill is shown in Table below. The
power consumption is least in Counter Flow Film Fill followed by Counter Flow Splash Fill and Cross-Flow Splash Fill.

Efficient System Operation


Cooling Water Treatment
Cooling water treatment is mandatory for any cooling tower whether with splash fill or with film type fill for controlling
suspended solids, algae growth, etc. With increasing costs of water, efforts to increase Cycles of Concentration (COC), by Cooling
Water Treatment would help to reduce make up water requirements significantly. In large industries, power plants, COC improvement
is often considered as a key area for water conservation.

Drift Loss in the Cooling Towers


It is very difficult to ignore drift problem in cooling towers. Now-a-days most of the end user specification calls for 0.02% drift
loss. With technological development and processing of PVC, manufacturers have brought large change in the drift eliminator shapes
and the possibility of making efficient designs of drift eliminators that enable end user to specify the drift loss requirement to as low as
0.003 – 0.001%.

Cooling Tower Fans


The purpose of a cooling tower fan is to move a specified quantity of air through the system, overcoming the system resistance
which is defined as the pressure loss. The product of air flow and the pressure loss is air power developed/work done by the fan; this
may be also termed as fan output and input kW depends on fan efficiency.

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The fan efficiency in turn is greatly dependent on the profile of the blade. An aerodynamic profile with optimum twist, taper and
higher coefficient of lift to coefficient of drop ratio can provide the fan total efficiency as high as 85–92 %. However, this efficiency is
drastically affected by the factors such as tip clearance, obstacles to airflow and inlet shape, etc.
As the metallic fans are manufactured by adopting either extrusion or casting process it is always difficult to generate the ideal
aerodynamic profiles. The FRP blades are normally hand moulded which facilitates the generation of optimum aerodynamic profile to
meet specific duty condition more efficiently. Cases reported where replacement of metallic or Glass fibre reinforced plastic fan
blades have been replaced by efficient hollow FRP blades, with resultant fan energy savings of the order of 20–30% and with simple
pay back period of 6 to 7 months. Also, due to lightweight, FRP fans need low starting torque resulting in use of lower HP motors.
The lightweight of the fans also increases the life of the gear box, motor and bearing is and allows for easy handling and maintenance.

Performance Assessment of Cooling Towers


In operational performance assessment, the typical measurements and observations involved are:

Cooling tower design data and curves to be referred to as the basis.


• Intake air WBT and DBT at each cell at ground level using a whirling pyschrometer.
• Exhaust air WBT and DBT at each cell using a whirling psychrometer.
• CW inlet temperature at risers or top of tower, using accurate mercury in glass or a digital thermometer.
• CW outlet temperature at full bottom, using accurate mercury in glass or a digital thermometer.
• Process data on heat exchangers, loads on line or power plant control room readings, as relevant.
• CW flow measurements, either direct or inferred from pump motor kW and pump head and flow characteristics.
• CT fan motor amps, volts, kW and blade angle settings
• TDS of cooling water.
• Rated cycles of concentration at the site conditions.
• Observations on nozzle flows, drift eliminators, condition of fills, splash bars, etc.

The findings of one typical trial pertaining to the Cooling Towers of a Thermal Power Plant 3 x 200 MW is given below:

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Comments
❖ Cooling water flow per cell is much lower, almost by 16.5%, need to investigate CW pump and system performance for
improvements. Increasing CW flow through cell was identified as a key result area for improving performance of cooling
towers.
❖ Flow stratification in 3 cooling tower cells identified.
❖ Algae growth identified in 6 cooling tower cells.
❖ Cooling tower fans are of GRP type drawing 36.2 kW average. Replacement by efficient hollow FRP fan blades is
recommended.

Flow Control Strategies


Control of tower air flow can be done by varying methods: starting and stopping (On-off) of fans, use of two- or three-speed fan
motors, use of automatically adjustable pitch fans, use of variable speed fans. On-off fan operation of single speed fans provides the
least effective control. Two-speed fans provide better control with further improvement shown with three speed fans. Automatic
adjustable pitch fans and variable-speed fans can provide even closer control of tower cold- water temperature. In multi-cell towers,
fans in adjacent cells may be running at different speeds or some may be on and others off depending upon the tower load and
required water temperature. Depending upon the method of air volume control selected, control strategies can be determined to
minimize fan energy while achieving the desired control of the Cold water temperature.

Energy Saving Opportunities in Cooling Towers


Follow manufacturer's recommended clearances around cooling towers and relocate or modify structures that interfere with
the air intake or exhaust.
Optimise cooling tower fan blade angle on a seasonal and/or load basis.
Correct excessive and/or uneven fan blade tip clearance and poor fan balance.
On old counter-flow cooling towers, replace old spray type nozzles with new square spray ABS practically non-clogging
nozzles.
Replace splash bars with self-extinguishing PVC cellular film fill.
Install new nozzles to obtain a more uniform water pattern
Periodically clean plugged cooling tower distribution nozzles.
Balance flow to cooling tower hot water basins.
Cover hot water basins to minimise algae growth that contributes to fouling.
Optimise blow down flow rate, as per COC limit.
Replace slat type drift eliminators with low pressure drop, self extinguishing, PVC cellular units.
Restrict flows through large loads to design values.
Segregate high heat loads like furnaces, air compressors, DG sets, and isolate cooling towers for sensitive applications like
A/C plants, condensers of captive power plant etc. A 1°C cooling water temperature increase may increase A/C compressor
kW by 2.7%. A 1°C drop in cooling water temperature can give a heat rate saving of 5 kCal/kWh in a thermal power plant.
Monitor L/G ratio, CW flow rates w.r.t. design as well as seasonal variations. It would help to increase water load during
summer and times when approach is high and increase air flow during monsoon times and when approach is narrow.
Monitor approach, effectiveness and cooling capacity for continuous optimization efforts, as per seasonal variations as well
as load side variations.
Consider COC improvement measures for water savings.
Consider energy efficient FRP blade adoption for fan energy savings.
Consider possible improvements on CW pumps w.r.t. efficiency improvement.
Control cooling tower fans based on leaving water temperatures especially in case of small units.
Optimise process CW flow requirements, to save on pumping energy, cooling load, evaporation losses (directly proportional
to circulation rate) and blow down losses.
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Some typical problems and their trouble shooting for cooling towers are given in table below.

Problem Set
1) Water with a flow rate of 126kg/s enters a natural-draft cooling tower at 43C. The Water is cooled to 29C by air entering at
38C dry bulb and 24C wet-bulb. The air leaves saturated at 40C. Determine a) the air supply in m3/s ; b) the make-up water
required.
2) A natural draft cooling tower receives water at 42C and cools it to 26C. Three hundred m3/s of atmospheric air entering at
20C and 40% RH. The exit air is saturated at 32C. Make-up water is available at 26C. Determine the flowrate of water that
can be cooled.
3) A cooling tower is to be installed to supply cooling water. Water enters the tower at a rate of 190kg/s at 46C. Water must
leave the tower with a flowrate of 190kg/s at 29C. The air enters at 24C, 50%RH, and 1atm pressure, and leaves saturated at
31C. Determine a) the air flowrate in m3/s; b.) the make-up water flow rate.
4) A cooling tower must cool 9000gal/min of water from 84F to 68F with inlet air conditions of 70F dry bulb and 60F and 60F
wet bulb. The air exit condition is saturated at 80F. Determine a) the volumetric flowrate of air required; b.) the gpm of water
makeup required.
5) A cooling tower of a large industrial cold storage plant cools 12,000kg/s of water from 35C to 25C. The inlet air to the cooling tower has a temperature of 25C dry
bulb and 35% RH. Air leaves the cooling tower saturated at 35C. Calculate for the volume flowrate of air required by the
cooling tower in m3/min if the specific volume of inlet air is 0.75m3/kg.. ans. 273,000m3/min
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6) A water-cooling tower for a power plant cools 45◦C liquid water by evaporation. The tower receives air at 19.5◦C, RH =
30%, and 100 kPa that is blown through/over the water such that it leaves the tower at 25◦C and RH = 70%. The remaining
liquid water flows back to the condenser at 30◦C, having given off 1 MW. Find the mass flow rate of air, and determine the
amount of water that evaporates.
7) A mechanical draft cooling tower receives 115 m3/s of atmospheric air at 103Kpa, 32C DBT, 55%RH and discharges the air
at 36C. If the tower receives 200kg/s of water at 40C. What will be the exit temperature of the cooled water?
8) Atmospheric air at 100kPa, 16C and 55% RH passes through the suction duct of forced draft centrifugal fan in cooling water
at the rate of 1.42m3/s. The power input to the fan is 3.5kW. The air leaves the tower saturated at 32C. The temperature of the
water entering the tower is 46C and 1.36kg of water per second leaves the tower. Determine a) the exit temperature of water
b) the volume flowrate at which water is supplied to the tower c) cooling tower efficiency.
9) In an air-conditioning application for a building 4.7MWof energy maybe dissipated to the surrounding air using a wet cooling
water, inlet air is at 35C and 30%RH and air leaves at 38C and 98% RH. Make-up water enters the tower at 23C, cooling
tower from the air-conditioning unit enters at 40C and returned to the unit at 30C. determine a) mass flowrate of air b) mass
flowrate of water c) mass flowrate of make-up water.
10) Water at 55C is cooled in a cooling tower which has an efficiency of 50%. The temperature of the surrounding air is 33C and
70%RH. The heat dissipated from the condenser is 2,420,000BTU/hr. Find the capacity in gallons per minute of the pump to
be used in the cooling tower.
11) A flow of 190Li/min of water enters a cooling tower at 45C. Atmospheric air at 16C and 55%RH enters the tower at 3m3/s
and leaves at 33C and saturated. Determine a) volume flowrate of water that leaves the tower in gpm b) exit temperature of
water.
12) Liquid water at 50C enters a forced draft cooling tower operating at steady state. Cooled water exits the tower with a mass
flow rate of 80 kg/min. No makeup water is provided. A fan located within the tower draws in atmospheric air at 17C, 0.098
MPa, 60% relative humidity with a volumetric flow rate of 110 m3/min. Saturated air exits the tower at 30C, 0.098MPa. The
power input to the fan is 8 kW. Ignoring kinetic and potential energy effects, determine (a) the mass flow rate of the liquid
stream entering, in kg/min. (b) the temperature of the cooled liquid stream exiting, in C.

13) What do you understand by the following terms in respect of cooling towers?
Approach, b) Cooling Duty c) Range d) Cooling Tower Effectiveness
14) Explain with a sketch the different types of cooling towers.
15) Explain the term L/G ratio?
16) CT Observations at an industrial site were
a. CW Flow : 5000 m3/hr
b. CW in Temperature : 42°C
c. CW Out Temperature : 36°C
d. Wet Bulb Temperature : 29°C
What is the Effectiveness of the cooling tower?

17) What is the function of fill media in a cooling tower?

18) List the factors affecting cooling tower performance.


19) List the energy conservation opportunities in a cooling tower system.

20) Explain the difference between evaporation loss and drift loss?

21) What is the Blow-down Loss, if the Cycles of Concentration (COC) is 3.0?

REFERENCES
1. ASHRAE Handbook
2. NPC Case Studies

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