A cooling tower is a device for removing heat from a process by transferring waste heat to the atmosphere through the water. All cooling towers work by evaporating a tiny amount of water re-circulated through the device to remove heat from the water. Water cools when it is mixed with colder air, releasing the latent heat of vaporization. Views of buildings below from a high rise may reveal square units with fans mounted on their roofs. They’re called cooling towers, and that’s what they’re called.
No one likes to spend an extended period of time in a facility with poor air conditioning. Facilities with superior cooling make you want to come back again and again, even if it’s only to breathe the fresh air. Cooling tower system modernization and innovation are largely to blame for this.
Purpose of a Cooling Tower
A cooling tower is a large heat exchanger that removes heat from a building and returns it to the chiller as cooler water. A chiller sends hot water to a cooling tower to be used as evaporative cooling. Because the chiller’s condenser generates heat, the heated water is referred to as condenser water. Chillers are frequently situated on lower floors, such as in a basement. The cooling tower’s job is to keep the water cold so that it may be pumped back into the chiller and reheated.
Tons of hot water generated by air conditioning systems and industrial operations must be cooled. That is where cooling towers come in. The cooling tower re-circulates and exposes the hot, overheated water to the cool, dry air. Evaporation removes heat from the cooling tower water that is re-circulated. The cooler water then returns to the air conditioning system to chill it more, and the cooling cycle is repeated endlessly. It is cooled by passing it through a cooling tower and sprinkling tiny droplets on it. This increases water surface area and permits improved heat loss through increased evaporation. At the top of the cooling tower, the fan circulates air in the opposite direction of the heated condenser water at the unit’s apex. The cooling tower’s evaporating water will transfer heat into the surrounding air.
A cooling tower is a critical part of many refrigeration systems. It may be found in sectors such as power plants, chemical processing, steel mills, and many manufacturing firms where process cooling is required. Industrial water cooling towers are also used to cool large commercial facilities like airports, schools, hospitals, and hotels.
Power plants, refineries, petrochemical plants, natural gas processing plants, food processing plants, and other industrial facilities employ circulating cooling water systems to remove heat that has been absorbed.
As the global population has grown, it has even impacted the world’s need for produced goods. Industrial companies are now compelled to produce an increasing number of items each day, resulting in higher levels of manufacturing process heat. Industries that produce a lot of heat need to keep their machinery and processes cold to keep working effectively. The erection of a cooling tower is the most cost-effective, efficient, and effective way to remove this heat.
Industrial operations frequently require cooling towers. These towering, open-topped cylinders are used to cool the exhaust air from industrial or HVAC comfort conditioning systems. Type of draught (natural or mechanical) and direction of airflow are used to classify them (counter or cross).
Here are different types of cooling towers as explained by Towertech –
Natural Draft Cooling Tower Systems
These are often found in major power plants and manufacturing facilities with an endless cooling water supply. The tower uses rising hot air to remove waste heat and then releases it into the atmosphere. To ensure optimum airflow, these towers are both tall and hyperbolic in form.
Mechanical Draft Cooling Tower Systems
A fan circulates air through the tower, forcing it through the structure. Propeller and centrifugal fans are common in these towers. In the end, mechanical draught towers are superior to natural ones because they use less energy but are more expensive to run.
Crossflow Cooling Tower Systems
They feature a design that allows air to flow horizontally through the fill and the tower’s construction into an open plenum. From the distribution basins, hot water is pumped down to the ground. However, fans and motor drives need to be weather-proofed against moisture, leading to freezing and reducing efficiency.
Counterflow Cooling Tower Systems
They’re built with an upward-moving air stream and a downward-falling counter-current with hot water to cool the air. This helps maximize the performance of each part of the design while minimizing the amount of pumping power needed. In cold weather, counterflow cooling towers are less prone to freeze, saving energy over the long term.
Induced Draft Cooling Tower Systems
In most cases, a fan installed on top of the cooling tower dissipates hot air and circulates cool air throughout the facility. As a result of the high exit air velocities, re-circulation is less likely. A drift eliminator device is used to keep water droplets from being entrapped in the air as they exit the stream. Compared to forced draught towers, induced draught towers consume 30 to 75 percent less energy. Induced draught towers are more energy efficient.
Forced Draft Cooling Tower Systems
Induced draught cooling tower systems are similar, but the main distinction is that the air moving fan is located at the bottom of the cooling tower, allowing the air to blow through from the bottom. Water distribution problems, high-horsepower fans, and the likelihood of re-circulation limit their application.
There are a few requirements to examine in light of the growing need to achieve green standards and improve the return on capital equipment investments. Sustainable, energy-efficient, water-conserving cooling towers will reduce their carbon footprint while also improving certain financial consequences of attaining such green aims. Businesses may save up to 40% on energy expenses by implementing energy efficiency measures. Conventional cooling towers, generally made of sheet metal cladding, are ecologically harmful and expensive to maintain. The use of cooling towers made of moulded seamless plastic, on the other hand, benefits the environment and the bottom line right away.
When using traditional metal towers, which only last a few years in many situations, you’ll run into environmental and economic concerns, including more chemicals used and greater cost of maintenance, as well as higher expenses for replacement and disposal. Cooling towers constructed from engineered HDPE plastic allow for the most severe water treatment methods. Due to this, users can utilize less makeup water by running at higher concentration cycles. By doing this, you might work on saving a lot of water each year. Even little reductions in the use of water or chemicals have a significant impact on the bottom line. Cooling towers with a counterflow design keep water completely contained and out of direct sunlight, reducing the chance of biological development and the resulting need for harsh water treatment chemicals. Learn more from the cooling tower manufacturer, Towertech, about its environmentally friendly technologies and products by visiting this page.
