Overview
Usually, we remove heat from the building via cooling tower. We can accomplish this by using evaporation to cool a stream of water to a lower temperature. We use commonly large cooling towers in sectors such as power plants, oil refineries, and various manufacturing facilities.
Since industrial processes and machines produce too much heat, we need to do continuous dissipation for efficient operation. The heat must be directed at the setting. We can accomplish this by a heat exchange mechanism. That is the fundamental principle behind cooling tower technology.
Categorization of Cooling Towers
After several years of research and development, cooling towers are now available in various shapes and sizes. Each of these applies to a specific load configuration, so it is necessary to detail the options available. Here are some categorizations.
- Mechanical draft cooling tower
- Atmospheric cooling tower
- Hybrid draft cooling tower
- Air flow-characterized cooling tower
- Construction-characterized cooling tower
- Shape characterized cooling tower
- Cooling tower based on the method of heat transfer
What are the types of cooling towers by build, heat transfer methods, and airflow generation methods?
We categorize the cooling towers commonly according to their build, heat transfer methods, and airflow generation methods. We will look at each kind of cooling tower:
Cooling towers by build:
- Packaged cooling towers: Packaged cooling towers are pre-fabricated. The shell is usually constructed of a corrosion-free, heat-resistant, and long-lasting material such as fiberglass-reinforced polyester. They are readily transportable to a facility of choice since they are pre-assembled. Since they are lightweight, they also favour in facilities with low heat rejection criteria.
- Field erection: We often find these massive units in power plants and extensive industrial facilities. When comparing to package type, these are large structures. We can manufacture or build them according to custom specifications.
Heart transfer methods:
- Dry cooling towers work by transmitting heat across a surface that separates the working fluid from the surrounding air. This works on the theory of heat transfer through a heat exchanger with extended fins. The fan is driven by an electric motor. As a result, dry cooling towers use no water.
- Wet cooling towers or open-circuit cooling towers: These are the most common cooling towers due to their low cost and sustainable nature. They use water to cool the plant, and we can determine heat transfer by a decrease in process temperature and a rise in the moisture content and wet bulb temperature of the air flowing through the cooling tower.
- Drift pollutants are common in wet cooling towers: We use multiple drift eliminators to mitigate cooling tower drift, even though they are not environmentally harmful. As compared to other forms of cooling towers such as dry or fluid, the evaporation of water in a wet-mechanical draft is inherently more energy efficient.
- Closed-circuit cooling towers or fluid cooling towers: In closed circuit cooling towers, we often combine water with glycol to create a fluid. This fluid circulates in the tower in a coil that is not in direct contact with the air. We usually use them where the soil must be sterile and free of pollutants. The benefit is that there is no scale formation, resulting in higher efficiency and reduced downtime.
Airflow generation methods:
- Natural draft cooling towers use the tower’s form and shape to transfer air up the tower using fans naturally. They employ the rule of varying densities between the ambient air and the warm air in the tower. As a result, these towers are tall in order to induce airflow, and it looks as a hyperbole.
- Mechanical Draft towers usually use a fan to move air into the structure. We pump the air inside the tank using a propeller or centrifugal fans. Regular draft towers have a much narrower design. Since the fan speed can be controlled, capacity management is simple in these towers.
- We design Cross Flow cooling towers, so that air flows horizontally and water flows vertically. We can accomplish this using open trough systems equipped with nozzles in the fan deck. Since the airflow contact time is shorter, more air is available for heat transfer. This cooling tower style has many drawbacks, including higher power consumption due to the requisite airflow.
- Counterflow employs hot water that arrives at the top and leaves at the bottom, while air is added at the bottom and exits at the top. They use both forced and induced draft fans. The water distributes through a channel of lateral pipes outfitted with splash spray nozzles. Their power demand is smaller than that of cross-flow units, and they are easier to maintain.
Maintenance of cooling towers
It is essential to perform routine structural maintenance on your cooling towers in order to ensure reliable throughput. We at Jateen Trading Co. provide both good repair manuals and maintenance plans that will help you save both time and money on your operating expenses. Our procedures and high-quality products can avoid heat transfer segment quality loss by ensuring sufficient water flow and airflow and preventing cooling tower corrosion. Check out our website to know more about our services and products. You can contact us if you have any questions regarding your cooling towers and our service.
We can determine the level of maintenance by the form of the tower, its height, and external factors such as your building’s geographical position.
The following are some of the activities that you can do:
- Using strainer devices as filters to collect waste and eliminate interaction between airborne and waterborne pollutants.
- Wash the nozzles daily to avoid clogging. Since nozzles increase even water delivery, they should be mounted in places where they can be quickly viewed, tested, washed, or removed.
- Water treatment options such as water simulation, green chemical use, filtration, and softening ensure that the cooling tower system works optimally and satisfies the necessary cooling specifications. This is recommended to do monthly for increasing your cooling towers life span.
- Deep cleaning of cooling towers entails using a cleaning chemical that circulates and flushes through the structure. We use both both pressure washing and vacuuming in the deep cleaning process.
- Mechanical components such as fans, engines, and belts must be tested, washed, and modified appropriately.
- Electrical devices such as capacitors and wiring should be tested and, if possible, removed.
Bottom Line
Finally, cooling towers are a critical part of any type of industry. It varies in scale, form, and style based on the needs of the building. The routine or regular servicing of cooling towers is crucial in order to increase their utilization. If you find this blog helpful, then please do check our rest blogs too.