Design of cooling tower for all external load using SAP2000

Rahul Bahuguna Sanket Prasanna Kankarej Kriti Yadav

rahul.bahuguna2022@vitstudent sanket.prasanna2022@vitstudent kriti.yadav2022@vitstudent.
.ac.in .ac.in ac.in

Associate Professor
Dr. Ankit Bhardwaj
Department of Structural Engineering, School of Structural and Geotechnical Engineering
Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore – 632014, Tamil Nadu, India.

ABSTRACT: INTRODUCTION:
This report details the cooling tower design In industries where heat dispersion is essential
created with SAP2000 and aims for selecting for maintaining effective operations, cooling
optimum model for cooling tower subjected to towers are essential components. They are
external loads using SAP2000. By eliminating frequently used in industrial operations that
extra heat from the system and ensuring produce a lot of heat, such as power plants,
smooth operation, cooling towers are essential refineries, HVAC systems, and other activities.
in many industrial processes. Numerous
A cooling tower's main purpose is to remove
factors, including load calculations, material
extra heat from the system by transferring it to
selection, and structural stability, are taken
the atmosphere via convection and
into account during the design process.
evaporation. The tower accomplishes this by
Powerful facilities for modelling, load
enhancing heat exchange and reducing the
analysis, structural analysis, and design
temperature of the circulating fluid by
optimisation are available in SAP2000, a
interacting hot water or condenser fluid with a
popular structural analysis and design
stream of air.
programme. This report provides an example
of how to design and analyse a cooling tower This report's goal is to provide a summary of
using SAP2000 for a particular set of loads. the important factors to take into account when
The study outlines a step-by-step design designing a cooling tower to perform at its best
procedure that includes modelling the cooling under external loads. External loads are the
tower in 3D, adding loads, performing pressures and stress that element like wind,
structural analysis, and optimising the design. seismic activity, and temperature place on the
To confirm that the cooling tower complies cooling tower's structure and parts.
with safety and performance standards, the
analysis results are then compared to design The major objective of this paper is to provide
standards and codes. The paper comes to the readers with a comprehensive understanding
conclusion that SAP2000 is a potent tool that of the SAP2000-related cooling tower design
can help with cooling tower design and process. The method is laid out step by step,
analysis. It helps engineers to assess various with calculations for loads, structural
configurations, materials, and sizes, optimise modelling, analysis, design optimisation, and
the design, and make sure the cooling tower verification. Engineers and designers can
satisfies performance and safety standards. effectively assess the structural performance
and integrity of cooling towers using
Keywords: Cooling Tower, SAP2000, SAP2000, guaranteeing that they can
External Loads, Thermal Load, Wind Load, withstand external stresses while preserving
Seismic Load. operating efficiency.
A thorough understanding of the forces acting elements below by compression in both
on the structure and the behaviour of its architecture and structural engineering.
components is necessary when designing 3. Supports: A support member aids other
cooling towers under external loads. Engineers members in a structure in resisting loads.
can do intricate structural analyses using Various supports, how they behave, and
SAP2000, assess several design alternatives, how they are used in constructions.
and base their judgements on the resulting Supports in a construction distribute the
results. With the aid of this software, engineers load to the ground and stabilise the
may optimise the cooling tower design, structure it is resting on.
enhancing structural dependability, lowering
maintenance costs, and enhancing system
performance in general.
Engineers can make sure that cooling towers
are reliable, secure, and able to withstand the
external loads they are subjected to by using
SAP2000 for the best cooling tower design.
With the help of this study, engineers working
on the design and analysis of cooling towers
will be better able to make use of SAP2000's
Figure 1: Finite element model of cooling tower
capabilities and arrive at the best design
solutions. The model dimensions table is shown below:

MATERIAL PROPERTIES Table 2: Model Dimension

MODEL 1(m) MODEL 2(m) MODEL 3(m) MODEL 4(m)
In cooling tower the material properties used is
concrete with grade of M30 and reinforcement Total Height 100 160 162 180

bars of grade Fe550. The other properties of

Bottom Diameter 80 110 117 120
concrete and steel shown below:
Top Diameter 45 65 68 70
Table 1: Material Properties - Basic
Mechanical Properties Column Diameter 0.8 1.6 0.8 1.8

Column Height 15 15 13 15
Materia Unit Unit
l Weight mass EI U G
0.
Fe550 76.973 7.849 2.1*10^8 3 80.77*10^6

M30 2.50E+01 2.548 27.38*10^5

0.
2 11.41*10^6
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

MODELS DIMENSION The design of the tower, the qualities of the

material, the distribution of the load, as well as
The three parts if cooling tower which is used
the quantity and kind of external loads used,
in modelling the tower in SAP2000 is:
can all affect how much a cooling tower will
1. Shell: The lifespan and maintenance of a deflect under different external loads. Here are
cooling tower are greatly impacted by the some typical predictions for cooling tower
choice of the exterior shell and frame. deflections:
Therefore, while purchasing a cooling
tower, clients must consider overall 1. Dead Loads: Dead loads are any
performance, notably maintenance equipment or permanent fixtures in
requirements. addition to the weight of the tower
2. Column: A column or pillar is a structural structure itself. Deflections due to dead
feature that transmits weight from the loads are typically predictable and
structure above to other structural accounted for in the design phase. The
 tower should be designed to support its expansion and contraction, which may
own weight without excessive deflections. result in some deflection. However,
thermal deflections are typically small
compared to other load types, and the
tower's design should consider the effects
of thermal expansion and contraction.

Figure 2: Deformation of Models under Dead load

2. Wind Loads: Wind loads can significantly

affect the deflection of a cooling tower.
Wind exerts pressure on the structure,
causing it to deflect. Cooling towers are
typically designed to withstand wind loads Figure 5: Deformation of Models under Thermal Load.
based on specific design codes and It's important to note that the specific
standards. The tower's design should deflections resulting from external loads
consider wind pressure, wind direction, on a cooling tower would require detailed
and the tower's shape and height. engineering analysis based on the tower's
Deflections due to wind loads are design, materials, and site-specific
generally limited to acceptable levels to conditions. Design engineers and
ensure the tower's stability and integrity. structural experts use advanced
calculations, simulations, and modelling
techniques to evaluate the effects of
different loads and ensure that the
deflections remain within acceptable limits
for the tower's structural integrity.

Figure 3: Deformation of Models under Wind load 700

600 Minimum
3. Seismic Loads: In seismic-prone regions, Deflection
500
cooling towers must be designed to resist 400 Maximum
Deflection
earthquake forces. The deflections induced 300
by seismic loads can be significant during 200
100
an earthquake event. Tower design codes 0
and standards specify guidelines to ensure Model Model Model Model
that cooling towers can withstand seismic 1 2 3 4
forces without excessive deflections or
failure. Figure 6: Maximum and Minimum Deflection

After analysing the four standard models

we found out the total deflection on each
model and found out the maximum and
minimum deflection on each model and
concluded that model 4 i.e. of Height 180
m and base diameter 120 m gives the most
Figure 4: Deformation of Models under Seismic Load
prominent results with maximum
4. Thermal Loads: Cooling towers are deflection value for the 101.27 mm
exposed to temperature differentials due to compared to other models.
the hot water being cooled and the
surrounding environment. These
temperature variations can cause thermal
 layered soil under unsymmetrical wind
CONCLUSION load." Wind and Structures 22.6 (2016): 617-
633.
In conclusion, the deformation seen during the 4. Riahi, Hossein Tajmir, and Bahman Haghighi.
SAP2000 modelling process under "Static and dynamic soil-structure interaction
response of Kazeroon cooling towers." 8th
temperature loads, along with the effects of
International Congress on Civil Engineering.
dead load, wind load, and earthquake, 2009.
emphasises how crucial it is to take these 5. Jahangir, Hashem, et al. "The Wind Analysis
aspects into account when designing and of Reinforced Concrete (RC) Cooling
analysing structural systems. Thermal Towers."
expansion or contraction caused by 6. Asadzadeh, Esmaeil, and Mehtab Alam.
temperature stresses can drastically alter the "Progressive Collapse of Hyperbolic Cooling
behaviour of a structure, resulting in Tower Considering the Support
deformations and possibly jeopardising its Inclinations." International Journal of Civil and
structural integrity. In order to guarantee the Environmental Engineering 10.3 (2016): 426-
432.
structural stability and functionality of the
7. Siddesh, T. M., et al. "FINITE ELEMENT
system, temperature impacts must be carefully
MODELING OF RECTANGULAR
taken into account throughout the design FUNICULAR SHELL USING SAP2000."
process. 8. Nouri, G. R., and S. Bararnia. "Effect of
The deformations seen throughout the Rotational Components of Strong Ground
modelling process also highlight the need for a Motions on the Response of Cooling Towers
thorough design strategy that takes into Based on Dense Array Data (A Case Study:
account material qualities, structural layout, Kazeron Cooling Tower)." AUT journal of
loadings, and the right design guidelines and Civil engineering 1.1 (2017): 87-92.
standards. Engineers can guarantee the 9. Özgan, Korhan, Ali Karakaş, and A. Y. Ş. E.
designed structure's structural integrity, safety, Daloglu. "Earthquake analysis of hyperbolic
cooling towers." PAMUKKALE
and serviceability by following these
UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF
guidelines. ENGINEERING SCIENCES-PAMUKKALE
The discovery and assessment of deformations UNIVERSITESI MUHENDISLIK
in SAP2000 under temperature loads, in BILIMLERI DERGISI 22.6 (2016).
addition to other significant loadings like dead 10. Madina, Bulatova, and L. N. Gumilyov.
load, wind load, and earthquake, emphasises "Determination of the most effective location
the significance of careful analysis, design, of environmental hardenings in concrete
and consideration of numerous factors in order cooling tower under far-source seismic using
to produce structurally sound and resilient linear spectral dynamic analysis
structures. results." Journal of Research in Science,
Engineering and Technology 8.1 (2020): 22-
24.
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