There has been an increasing demand for manufacturing goods at a higher rate with an increasing population. So, the industries are forced to manufacture more and more goods every day, which eventually increases the heat generation in the whole process. This is where the cooling tower comes into use.
The machines used in manufacturing should be continuously cooled to operate efficiently. The cooling tower has proved to be the most efficient, least expensive, and effective solution to removing heat from the system.
What is a cooling tower?
A cooling tower is a heat exchanging device that uses water to transfer waste heat from the process to the atmosphere. Hyperboloid cooling towers and round cooling towers are predominant shapes of cooling towers used in the industries.
What is the purpose of a cooling tower?
A cooling tower is designed to remove heat from the building. Waste heat from the system is brought in contact with water to lower the whole process’s temperature and remove the waste heat in the form of evaporation. Warm water is received from a chiller, and it is known as condenser water because it gets heat in the chiller’s condenser. The chiller is located at the lower level, such as a basement. Thus, the cooling tower’s role is to cool down the water, so it can return to pick up more heat from the chiller.
Cooling towers are used in various industries such as petroleum refineries, metal processing, rubber production, textile industries, sugar production, chemical industries, die casting, HVAC, and many more.
How does a cooling tower work?
Cooling tower works on the principle of evaporative cooling to cool a continuous flow of water. Overheated water from the system flows through the cooling tower, where it is recirculated and exposed to cool, dry air. Heat leaves the recirculating cooling tower system in the form of evaporation. Then, the colder water re-enters the air conditioning process to cool the system down. And the cooling system keeps on repeating again and again in the cooling tower.
The warm condenser goes into the cooling tower. Here, the water is sprayed in the form of small droplets into a nozzle. This increases the surface area of water and allows better heat loss through greater evaporation. The fan provided at the top of the cooling tower brings the air from the bottom to the top and sends it out opposite the warm condenser at the top of the unit. The air will transfer the heat in the form of evaporating water from the cooling tower to the atmosphere.
What are the different types of Evaporative Cooling Tower?
There are different types of evaporative cooling towers classified based on air draft and based on airflow pattern.
Below are the two types of evaporative cooling towers based on air draft:
1. Natural Draft Cooling Tower
The Natural Draft cooling towers do not contain any fans in them for air circulation. The radiator cools down the hot water by bringing the hot water directly in contact with the natural air. With this phenomenon, the heated air will get collected at the top of the tower, while all the cooled air gets collected at the bottom.
The construction of the Natural Draft Cooling Tower is pretty simple, but you will need a high amount of initial investment in order to build a significant height of the tower.
2. Mechanical Draft Cooling Tower
In the Mechanical draft cooling tower, the air supply is adjusted using a fan, and the air is spread in different directions to cool down the hot water quickly. It has some cool features, such as being easily installed, being cost-effective, having a low pumping head, and tight control over water pressure.
Below are the three types of cooling towers based on airflow pattern:
Counter flow: In this pattern, the air is moved upward while the water flows downward in the tower.
Cross flow: Air flows horizontally while hot water flows downward in the cooling tower.
Parallel flow: Air and water flow are in the same direction.
Cooling tower water treatment plant
Cooling tower maintenance is done using a cooling tower water treatment plant which helps in increasing the efficiency and lifespan of the cooling tower in the industry. Untreated water may develop corrosion, organic growth, fouling, and scaling. A standard water treatment plant is a combination of technologies that helps in getting rid of impurities during blowdown, feed water, and circulation water.
The dependent factors in making a water treatment plant include the type of cooling tower used, the quality of feed water, the discharge requirements, the chemical composition of circulatory water, and the heat exchanger used in the cooling tower. Typical water treatment plants include the use of corrosion inhibitors, algaecides, biocides, scale inhibitors, organic dispersants, and chlorine dioxide to reduce and eliminate contamination in cooling towers.
One of the best solutions for a cooling tower is Towertech Cooling system Pvt. Ltd. They are one of the leading manufacturers, suppliers, and a renowned cooling tower exporter in India, which provides a wide range of cooling towers based on the industry’s requirements
