The Benefits of VFDs

on Cooling Towers
Variable-frequency drives can adjust fan speed, reverse fan rotation

U
sed on large industrial projects, One of the most beneficial ways to increase
such as nuclear power plants, and efficiency and lower energy costs in a cooling-
countless HVAC applications rang- tower design is to utilize a vari-
ing from 15 to 700,000 gpm, able-frequency drive (VFD). This
By JOE KOEPKE
cooling towers are everywhere. Yaskawa Electric America article will discuss the different
Because of their increasing pop- Inc. aspects of designs in which VFDs
ularity and considerable number Waukegan, Ill. are used to improve performance
of applications, cooling tow- and how this performance differs
ers are available in many different sizes and from conventional cooling-tower designs.
designs. This is especially true in the HVAC
industry, in which the demand to increase ef-
ficiency and lower energy costs is great. Air out

Air out

Water in
Water in

Air in Air in

Water out
Water out
Air in

FIGURE 1. A mechanical forced-draft cooling tower. FIGURE 2. A mechanical induced-draft cooling tower.

A building-automation application engineer for Yaskawa Electric America Inc., Joe Koepke has a
bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Milwaukee School of Engineering. He has a
Koepke Figure 2. (Induced draft.tif) (Width: 17 picas.)
decade of Koepke
experience
Figure 1.in(Forced
variable-frequency-drive
draft.tif) (Width: 17 picas.) technical support and application engineering.

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 T h e b e n e f i t s o f V FD s o n coo l i n g t o w e r s

applications
resources &
MOTORS & DRIVES

100 crease fan speed above 60 Hz to

90 provide additional cooling capac-
ity should the need arise. VFDs
Flow, torque, or output power, percent

80
have built-in proportional-integral
70
capabilities to automatically adjust
60 Flow rate fan speed to maintain a given set
50 point, eliminating the need for
40
an external set-point controller or
Torque
(pressure)
Output power variable-pitch fan. VFDs can re-
30
duce the energy consumed by a
20 fan just by slowing the motor. As
10 shown in Figure 3, a fan’s power
0 varies proportionally with the
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 cube of its speed, so a small speed
Speed, percentage of revolutions per minute reduction causes a large power re-
duction. For example, if a fan mo-
FIGURE 3. Affinity laws.
tor runs at 80-percent speed, its
Cooling-tower types Vfd benefits energy consumption decreases by
A mechanical-draft Koepke tower Fans regulate airflow to com-
Figure 3. (Width: 27 picas.)
50 percent.
is a common type of cooling pensate for changes in ambient air Fan motors consume a large
tower used in HVAC applica- and load conditions. In the past, amount of energy because a high
tions. Mechanical-draft tow- this was achieved by cycling fans inrush of current is required to
ers can be broken into two main on and off, manipulating fan ca- start the motor every time it is cy-
categories: forced draft and induced pacity by varying the pitch of fan cled. VFDs eliminate this problem
draft. A forced-draft tower has a blades, or using two-speed motors. by acting as soft starters, increas-
fan mounted on its side, located These methods can have consider- ing/decreasing speed at a program-
in the path of entering ambient air able drawbacks and do not leave mable rate. This feature reduces
(Figure 1). The fan draws ambient much room for error. mechanical wear by eliminating
air in, pushing/forcing it through Across-the-line motor operation stress on the power train caused
the tower and out of the top. can be efficient if a system is de- by across-the-line motor starting.
Forced-draft towers generally have signed for a fan to operate at full This can increase system life and
high air-entrance velocities and speed 100 percent of the time. save maintenance costs.
low air-exit velocities. An induced- However, that rarely is the case. As Fan rotation. VFDs not only
draft tower has a fan mounted on conditions change, flow needs to save on energy and increase system
its top, located in the path of exit- change as well. As a fan cycles on efficiency, they perform numerous
ing air (Figure 2). The fan draws and off, its speed alters dramati- other functions that eliminate the
ambient air in from the sides and cally, causing leaving-water tem- need for additional equipment.
blows it out of the top. Both de- perature to fluctuate, leading to For example, VFDs can sense fan
signs use one or more fans to pro- inefficiency and control difficulty. rotation. If a fan is rotating in re-
vide the flow required to extract Fan speed. VFDs are able to ad- verse because of windmilling, a
heat from process cooling water. just fan speed as conditions change VFD can catch it, slow it down,
VFDs have proved to be beneficial while maintaining the exact flow and ramp it back up in the correct
on these fans. required. They also are able to in- rotation. A VFD’s ability to reverse

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 t h e b e n e f i t s o f v f d s o n coo l i n g
fan rotation can be beneficial in Retrofits. Although it is best to
cold-weather conditions. Revers- consider VFD capabilities during
ing a fan can cause warm air to be a tower’s initial design, VFDs can
blown back into a tower, melting be implemented into existing ap-
any ice that has developed. These plications effectively. Many, if not
VFD functions typically are per- all, of the benefits mentioned pre-
formed using mechanical brakes viously can be utilized; however,
or reversing contactors, which can there are some considerations to
increase costs and wear while add- note in retrofit applications. Be-
ing mechanical components that cause many parameters are fixed,
can fail. there may be tower-design char-
Automation and motor acteristics that need to be worked
protection. Using a VFD on around rather than avoided com-
a cooling-tower fan also is pletely.
valuable for automation and For example, cooling towers
have fixed locations, and fan mo-
tors may not include inverter-duty
Some utilities features. Depending on where a
VFD can be mounted, long lead
offer rebates lengths can be a problem and could
for installing damage motor insulation. To pro-
tect the motor, an output load
VFDs in new reactor or a dv/dt filter can be
added to the VFD output. How-
or retrofit work. ever, it may be more cost-effective
to mount the VFD to the side of
motor protection. VFDs have the cooling tower in an outdoor-
digital and analog inputs, outputs, duty enclosure. This can solve the
p r o g r a m m a b l e r e l a y s , a n d long-lead-length issue, making it
numerous serial-communication possible to use the existing motor
options that allow for flexibility for the remainder of its life.
in tower automation and Gearboxes also can be considered.
performance monitoring. Many times a gearbox requires a
Copyright © 2009 by Penton Media, Inc.
3083_HPAC_YAS.indd 40
t o w e r s
applications
& resources
MOTORS & DRIVES
minimum speed to stay effectively
lubricated. If this is the case, a
VFD can be programmed with a
minimum speed, thus protecting
the gearbox.
Because these are just a few of the
considerations that may arise in a
typical retrofit application, it is best
toconsulttheVFDmanufacturerfor
assistance.
Conclusion
VFDs not only can save money,
they can make money. Some
utilities offer rebates for installing
VFDs in new or retrofit work. In
many cases, a VFD can pay for it-
self in less than a year. Upgrading
with VFDs is a major part of the
U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency’s effort to improve energy
efficiency. Many resources offer
comprehensive information on
state, local, utility, and federal
incentives that promote renew-
able energy and energy efficiency.
Whether in a new design or an
existing application, VFDs offer
numerous advantages when used
on cooling towers.
For past HPAC Engineering fea-
ture articles, visit www.hpac.com.
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