Simultaneous Heat and Mass

Transfer (SHMT)
CHE-402
Date: 08/11/2016
Today’s Topic
Cooling Tower Design
Number of humidity transfer Unit ‘Nt’
Height of one humidity transfer unit
‘Ht’
Height of overall column
Cooling tower design
 Cooling tower is used to cool down the utility water of
plant except in cases where is the humidity of air is too
high.
 To do this, there is a continuous counter diffusion of water
and vapor gas mixture. It is achieved by throwing the water
from the top of the tower and air is passed from the
bottom.
 Here packing is provided for their continuous contact.
When they are in contact, process of mass and heat transfer
takes place.
Cooling tower design
 Basic problem which comes during the designing
of cooling tower is to calculate the height of
column.
It is obtained by applying the material balance,
energy balance and rata of mass and heat
transfer.
Let we have a situation which warm water is in
contacted by a coolant gas vapor mixture in which
heat and mass transfer towards a gas phase takes
place as shown in figure in next slide.
Figure
Deriving equations for Nt &Ht
Difference between am & ah
am = mass transfer area per unit contact volume
ah = heat transfer area per unit contact volume

ah is usually greater than am

This is due to the part of the column remain dry or
the packing is not totally wet.
Deriving equations for Nt &Ht

Similarly
Deriving equations for Nt &Ht

Comparing these two equations we get

Now multiply the following equation by And add the next equation to it

We get
Deriving equations for Nt &Ht
We know that

Using Lewis relation

Deriving equations for Nt &Ht

Comparing these two equations we get

Deriving equations for Nt &Ht
Deriving equations for Nt &Ht
Adiabatic Humidification
Two assumptions are used
 Make up water enters at same temperature as adiabatic
saturation temperature .
 Volumetric area factors are identical.

Hence, here
Deriving equations for Nt &Ht
Deriving equations for Nt &Ht
Similarly we can develop

By definition
Graphical Representation of Countercurrent Air/Water Cooling
Towers

The entire humidification process can be represented graphically. This is done by

plotting humidity vs. gas temperature. There are several different situations
that can occur during the countercurrent contact of air and water, each is
shown in Figure (next slide). The curves on this diagram illustrate the
conditions of the gas as it flows from the bottom of the tower (A) to the top of
the tower (Q,R,E,S or P depending on the condition) . Although the relative
humidity increases in each scenario, the processes are dramatically different.
AQ liquid cooling with gas heating and humidification
AR liquid cooling with gas cooling and humidification
AE adiabatic cooling of water and gas humidification (Figure see next )
AS gas cooling and humidification, but less humidification than adiabatic
cooling
AP liquid heating and gas dehumidification
Remember, Figure 1 illustrates the changes in the air as it rises through the
column. Although the conditions of the water are not shown on this diagram,
the following descriptions discuss the temperature and heating requirements
for the water stream.
The figure-1
Figure 2b: Liquid cooling with gas heating and Humidification
(Line AQ figure1)
AQ: Liquid cooling with gas heating and humidification
The water that enters the column is very hot and exits at a lower
temperature. This is a result of the evaporation of water by the air
stream. The air, which exits the column at a higher temperature then
which it entered, will also exit at a higher humidity. In this case, the
temperature of the entering water will be higher than the temperature
of the entering air.

Figure. illustrates the conditions at the top of an AQ cooling tower. Water

vapor diffuses from the interface to the bulk air phase with humidity as the
driving force in the air phase (Hi-Hg). The temperature driving force is (Tx-Ti)
in the water phase and (Ti-Ty) in the air phase. Sensible heat flows from the
bulk water to the interface since the temperature of the water is higher than
the temperature of the interface. Latent heat in the water vapor diffuses into
the bulk air and the sensible heat in the air at the interface diffuses to the bulk
air since the temperature of the interface is higher than the temperature of the
bulk air.
 AR: Liquid cooling with gas cooling and humidification

Once again, hot water is cooled in this column . Unlike the last situation,
the air entering the column must be at a higher temperature than the
entering water in order for the gas humidification and cooling to occur.
Can you draw a figure like in Figure 2b for a position in this column
where the air is hotter than the water?
AE: Gas humidification with adiabatic cooling

In this process, the primary function of the column is for air

humidification. The water is recycled through the column without
being heated or cooled. Since adiabatic cooling occurs when no heat
is gained or lost by the liquid (Figure 2a), the water temperature
reaches a steady state value throughout the column. The air follows
the adiabatic saturation line, which intersects the equilibrium line at
the wet bulb temperature. This is the simplest case to model,
Figure 2A Gas humidification with adiabatic
cooling( Line AE on figure-1
AS and AP
AS and AP are not viable for liquid cooling. Further,
dehumidification occurs in AP. With respect to the dry
bulb, wet-bulb or dew point temperature of the
entering air, what can you say about the temperature
of the water entering the column for these cases?