By: Engr. Yuri G.

Melliza

A Cooling tower is a wind braced enclosure or shell usually made of wood, concrete or metal with fillings
on the inside to aid water exposure. The water to be cooled is pumped into a distributing header at the top
of the tower from which it drops in sprays to the filling. The water spreads out in the filling thus exposing
new water surfaces to the air circulating through the tower. The cooled water drops to the bottom of the
tower called the catch basin. The air circulating through the tower becomes partially saturated with
moisture by evaporating some amount of water. This evaporation is mostly what cools the water.

Air out
ma
B

Hot Water in 1
m1

m
er as
co
eH w
A Air In

o.
Make Up water rs e 3
m3 ma
ou urc
Cold Water out
m2
2
o
aC s

1. Actual Cooling Range

vi y re

ACR  t 1  t 2
Where:
ACR – Actual Cooling Range
ed d

t1 – hot water temperature, C

t2 – cold water temperature, C
ar stu

2. Cooling Tower Approach

CTA  t 2  t wA
is

Where:
Th

twA – entering wet bulb temperature of air, C

3. Theoretical Cooling Range

sh

TCR  t 1  t wA

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 3. Cooling Tower Efficiency

ACR
e x 100%
TCR
t t
e  1 2 x 100%
t1  t wA
4. Total Pressure
P = Pa + Pv KPa

5. Vapor Pressure
Pv = Pw - PA(td - tw) KPa

Where:
6.66 x 10 -4
A x 100%  if tw  0C
C
5.94 x 10 -4

m
A x 100%  if tw  0C

er as
C

co
eH w
6. Specific Humidity or Humidity Ratio

o.
0.622 Pv km rs e
W
P  Pv kgda
ou urc
7. Relative Humidity
o

Pv
aC s

RH  x 100%
vi y re

Pd
8. Enthalpy
KJ
ed d

h  1.0045t d  W( 2501.3  1.86t d )

kgda
ar stu

9. Specific Volume
is

0.287( t d  273) m3

Th

P  Pv kgda
10. Degree of Saturation
sh

 P  Pd 
  RH 
 P  Pv 

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 11. By moisture balance in the tower:
a) With make up water, m1 = m2
m3 = ma(WB - WA) kg/sec
b) Without make up water available, m1  m2:
m1 - m2 = ma (WB - WA) kg/sec
m2 = m1 - ma (WB - WA) kg/sec

12. By energy balance in the tower:

a) With make up water

m 1 (h 1  h 2 )
ma  kg/sec
(hB  h A )  (WB  W A )h 3
m 1h 1  m a (hB  h A )  (WB  W A )h 3 
h2  KJ/kg
m1
h2
t2  C
4.187
b) Without make up water
m 1 (h 1  h 2 )
ma  kg/sec
(hB  h A )  (WB  WA )h 2

m
er as
m 1h 1  ma (hB  h A )

co
h2  KJ/kg

eH w
m 1  ma (WB  WA )

o.
h2rs e
t2  C
4.187
ou urc
13. Driving Pressure

gH0  i 
o

P  KPa
aC s

d 1000
vi y re

14. Mass Flow rate of air and vapor mixture

ed d

kg
m  ma (1  W )
ar stu

sec
m  ma  m v
is

15. Cooling water flow rate related to Brake Power of an Engine

Th

Brake Power
m  904.3  
 t1  t 2 
where:
sh

m1 - mass flow rate of water entering tower in kg/sec

m2 - mass flow rate of cooled water in kg/sec
m3 - make up water in kg/sec
h1 - enthalpy of hot water in KJ/kg
h2 - enthalpy of cooled water in KJ/kg
h3 - enthalpy of make up water in KJ/kg
hA - enthalpy of air entering tower in KJ/kgda
hB - enthalpy of air leaving tower in KJ/kgda
WA - humidity ratio of air entering tower in kgm/kgda
WB - humidity ratio of air leaving tower in kgm/kgda
ma - mass flow rate of dry air in kg/sec
td - dry bulb temperature in C
tw - wet bulb temperature in C
This study sourcetwas
1 - temperature of hot water,
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 t2 - temperature of cooled water, C
t3 - temperature of make up water, C
H - tower height, meters
o - density of outside air and vapor mixture, kg/m3
i - density of inside air and vapor mixture, taken at exit of the fill, kg/m3

Wet - Cooling Tower

Wet cooling tower dissipate heat rejected by the plant to the environment by these mechanisms; (1) addition
of sensible heat to the air (2) evaporation of a portion of the recirculation water itself. When operated in the
open mode, there is a third mechanism (3) addition of sensible heat to the natural body of water as a result
of the terminal temperature difference.
Wet cooling tower have a hot water distribution system that showers or sprays the water evenly over a
latticework of closely set horizontals slats or bars called fill, or packing. The fill thoroughly mixes the falling
water with air moving through the fill as the water splashes down from one fill level to the next by gravity.
Outside air enters the tower via louvers in the form of horizontal slats on the side of the tower. The slats
usually slope downward to keep the water in. The intimate mix between water and air enhances heat and
mass transfer (evaporation), which cools the water. Cold water is then collected in a concrete basin at the
bottom of the tower where it is pumped back to the condenser or returned to the natural body of water. The
now hot, moist air leaves the tower at the top.

m
er as
co
eH w
o.
rs e
ou urc
o
aC s
vi y re
ed d
ar stu
is
Th
sh

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 Example No. 1
A cooling tower receives 3.2 L/sec of water at 46C. Atmospheric air at 16C DB and 55% RH enters the
tower at 3 m3/sec and leaves at 32C saturated. Determine:
a) the volume of water leaving the tower in L/sec (3.08 L/sec)
b) exit temperature of water in C. (25.15C)

Air out
ma
B

Hot Water in 1
m1

Make Up water
A Air In
3
m3 ma
Hot Water out

m
m2

er as
2

co
eH w
Using Fundamental formulas or Psychrometric chart

o.
At 16C and 55% RH rs e At 32C and 100% RH
kgm kgm
ou urc
WA  0.00621 WB  0.030712
kgda kgda
KJ KJ
h A  31.792 hB  110.803
o

kgda kgda
aC s

m3 m3
vi y re

 A  0.8278  B  0.9077
kgda kgda
m 1 (h 1  h 2 )
ma  kg/sec
ed d

(h B  h A )  (WB  W A )h 2
ar stu

m 1 h 1  m a (h B  h A )
h2  KJ/kg
m 1  m a (WB  W A )
is
Th

For water @ 46C

kg
  990
m3
sh

L 1m 3 kg kg
m 1  3. 2 x x 990 3  3.168
sec 1000L m sec
m 3
1 kg
ma  3 x 3
 3.62
sec m sec
0.8278
kg
Withoutconsidering make up water

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 From steam table at 25.15
2=0.001003 m3/kg
V2=3.079(0.001003)(1000)=3.09 L/sec

Example no. 2
A cooling tower is to be installed in a plant site where the atmospheric pressure is 672 mm Hg. 113 L/sec of
water are cooled from 41C to 28C. Air enters the tower at 36C DB at a vapor pressure of 5.2 KPa and leaves
saturated at 49C. Assuming make up water enters the tower at 10 C, Find:
a. weight of air required in kg/sec (39.06 kg/sec)
b. make up water required in kg/sec (2.2 kg/sec)

101.325KPa At P  89.6 KPa

P  672 mm Hg x

m
760 mm Hg t B  49C ; PdB  11.738 KPa

er as
P  89.6 KPa RHB  100%

co
KJ kg

eH w
t 1  41C ; h 1  171.75 ;  1  992 3 kgm
kg m WB  0.093931
kgda

o.
KJ KJ
t 2  28C ; h 2  117.43
kg
rs e hB  292.757
L
kgda 1m3 kg
ou urc
0.622Pv kgm KJ m 1  m 2  113 x x 992 3
Wt 3 10C ; h3  41.87 sec 1000L m
P  Pv kgda kg
0.622(5.2) kgm kg
WA   0.0383 m 1  m 2  112.1
o

(89.6  5.2) kgda m 3  ma(WB  W A )sec

aC s

h A  1.0045( 36)  0.03832501.3  1.86( 36) kg

vi y re

KJ m 3  2.173
h A  134.53 sec
kgda
ed d

m 1 (h 1  h 2 )
ma  kg/sec
ar stu

(hB  h A )  (WB  W A )h 3
kg
m a  39.06
sec
is

Prepared By: Engr. Yuri G. Melliza

Th
sh

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