Topic 4.1 Cooling Towers
Topic 4.1 Cooling Towers
Topic 4.1 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.
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.
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.
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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)
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)
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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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.
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?
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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