Turbin

HPT IPT
Superheater

Steam

Reheater
drum

Economizer
Feedwater

Boiler
Heater Boiler
feed pum

Flue gas
Fly ash
Burners
Coal
Flue + fly a

Air
heater

INGM 427 Mills

Headers
Forced
fan

Termovloeierstelsel Ontwerp Primary air

fan
Bottom
ash

Thermal-fluid System Design

Leereenheid 10: Hulpstelsels

Study Unit 10: Auxiliary Systems

2018-09-18
Mr Marinus Potgieter
20268890@nwu.ac.za
INGM 427

PIPING AND AUXILIARY SYSTEM DESIGN

• Standard pipe diameters and classification
• Pressure vessel and pressurised system considerations
• Valve selection
• Pump selection
• Cooling tower selection
5 COOLING TOWER SELECTION
Cooling Towers
• A cooling tower is a type of heat exchanger, namely a direct contact
heat exchanger. This means the two process fluids are in direct contact
and not separated by some solid material.
• Cooling towers can be either:
• Forced draught
(a mechanical fan induces flow)
• Natural draught
(natural flow is induced by density changes
in air and from tower geometry)
Cooling Tower Operation
• These direct contact towers are commonly referred to as “wet” cooling
towers. The counterpart “dry” cooling tower would simply be treated
as a water-to-air indirect heat exchanger.
• Due to the latent heat or enthalpy of evaporation for water being so
large, a wet cooling tower is able to cool water to below the ambient air
temperature.

Saturated
air

Heat
Exchanger
Makeup
water
 Cooling Tower Thermodynamics
• As with any heat exchanger there are two fluid streams, one removes
energy from the other
• Warm water is fed to the cooling tower, this is the “hot fluid inlet”
• Dry atmospheric air flows into the tower, this is the “cold fluid inlet”
• The water is sprayed on a packing medium and as it makes contact with the
moving air some of this water evaporates in the process
• Wet saturated air leaves the cooling tower, this is the “cold fluid outlet”
• Cooled water is removed by an extraction pump, the “hot fluid outlet”
• The water which was evaporated in the process is refilled as makeup water from
some source
mmakeup
Makeup water
hmakeup

mair ,out + mvapour ,out + mevaporation mwater ,out = mwater ,in − mevaporation + mmakeup
hair ,out hwater ,out
Air Cooling Tower Water
mair ,in + mvapour ,in mwater ,in
hair ,in hwater ,in
 Cooling Tower Thermodynamics
• Mass conservation

Dry air Water vapour Water

mair ,out = mair ,in mvapour ,out = mvapour ,in + mevaporated mwater ,out = mwater ,in − mevaporated + mmakeup

mvapour
• Energy conservation Eout = Ein Specific humidity  =
mdry air

mair (1 + in ) hair ,in + mwater hwater ,in + mmakeup hmakeup = mair (1 + out ) hair ,out + mwater hwater ,out

The above assumes mmakeup = mevaporated

mmakeup
hmakeup

mair ,out + mvapour ,out + mevaporation mwater ,out = mwater ,in − mevaporation + mmakeup
hair ,out hwater ,out
Cooling Tower
mair ,in + mvapour ,in mwater ,in
hair ,in hwater ,in
Cooling Tower Thermodynamics
• Mass conservation
The mass of dry air is therefore constant as well as the water flowrate
when it is assumes the makeup water fully replenishes any evaporated
water.

• Energy conservation
To calculate unknown inlet / outlet conditions rely on enthalpies. For the
water side the specific heat cp value remains fairly constant and we
therefore may use temperatures difference and a constant cp

• Momentum conservation
The pressure drop for an air stream through a cooling tower may be
modelled simplyas a secondary loss using a K-factor
p0 = K 12 V 2
Cooling Tower Thermodynamics
• The final and most important assumption is that the air leaving the
cooling tower is completely saturated, at the bulk water droplet
temperature
mmakeup
Makeup water
Tmakeup c p , water

out ; hair , sat Twater ,out

mair Air Cooling Tower Water mwater
in ; hair ,in Twater ,in

Specific humidities and enthalpies of air may be determined by taking wet and
drybulb temperature measurements and using a psychrometric chart.

The water temperatures can be measured.

The local bulk water temperature of the droplets is also an important value to take
note of, it will lie somewhere inbetween the inlet warm water and outlet cold water
temperatures.
Cooling Tower Merkel Number
• For a cooling tower the transfer coefficient is known as the Merkel
(Me) number

Twater ,in c p dTwater c p (Twater ,in − Twater ,out )

Me =  
Twater ,out hair , sat − hair ,in hair , sat − hair ,in

It is usually approximated by a 4-point integral due to the

change in bulk water temperature throughout the height
of the tower.
mmakeup
Makeup water
Tmakeup c p , water

out ; hair ,out Twater ,out

mair Air Cooling Tower Water mwater
in ; hair ,in Twater ,in
Cooling Tower Merkel Number
• The number is usually larger than 1 and is dependent on the ratio
of air / water flowrates
10

Design
approach
Merkel number
KaV/L

1 Characteristic
curve

0.1
0.1 1 10
L/G
Liquid-gas ratio
 Enthalpy of saturated water
Psychrometry at 25 °C DB

Psychrometric chart given at

sea level 101.325 kPa

Processes indicated on
this chart are therefore
isobaric
Psychrometric chart Warm water inlet

Remember that at 100% RH

the DB and WB temperatures
are equal to each other

Air
saturated
outlet

Cold air inlet

 Example 1

• Water at 40 ºC flows to a cooling tower at 1.2 kg/s where it is brought

into contact with atmospheric air at 20 ºC.
• The air is completely dry (ω = 0) and flows at a rate of 1 kg/s.
• A small amount of the incoming water evaporates such that the
moisture content of the dry air rises to 0.03 kg water vapour per kg dry
air.
• This moist air mixture flows out of the top of the tower at 30 ºC
• The system pressure is 85kPa.
 Example 1

• Determine (using EES)

• What is the flow rate of the cold water leaving the cooling tower?
• Determine by means of an enthalpy balance the temperature of the
water leaving the tower.
• Calculate the makeup water flowrate.

Moist air out

Warm water in

Atmospheric air in

Cold water out

 Example 1

• What is the flow rate of the cold water leaving the cooling tower?
mw,out = mw,in −  ma ,in ma ,out = ma ,in = ma mw,out = 1.2 − 0.03 1 = 1.17 kg/s

• Determine by means of an enthalpy balance the temperature of the

water leaving the tower.
mw,in hw,in + ma ha ,in = mw,out hw,out + ma ha ,out + mv hv

mw,in = mw,out + mv hw,in = f (T = 40 °C, x = 0 )

ma ha ,in − ma ha ,out = ma c p (Ta ,in − Ta ,out ) hv = f (T = 30 °C, x = 1)

hw,out = 97.74 kJ/kg Tw,out = 23.295 C

• Calculate the makeup water flowrate.

mmakeup = mv =  ma = 0.03 1 = 0.03 kg/s
or mmakeup = mw,in − mw,out = 1.2 − 1.17 = 0.03 kg/s
 Example 2
• A cooling tower situated at Duvha power station close to Emalahleni
needs to be replaced with a similar tower. You are tasked with designing
and specifying the Merkel number for a replacement wet cooling tower.
• Atmospheric pressure may be taken as 100 kPa
• Water from the condenser arrives at 45ºC
• The water temperature in the collection dam should not exceed 25ºC under all
conditions. Assume the average water bulk droplet temperature is 38ºC
• The average specific heat capacity of water may be taken as cp = 4.18 kJ/kg∙K
• The tower should be able to acommodate a thermal load of 1 850 MW
• The yearly maximum atmospheric temperature should be taken as 35ºC dry
bulb with a relative humidity of 70% ( hairsat@38ºC = 151.8 kJ/kg∙K )
• Process water at 20ºC is available for makeup (hwater@20ºC = 104.9 kJ/kg∙K )
• Determine (try to do by hand)
• The required Merkel number
• The air and water flowrates as well as makeup required
• The air outlet temperature
 Example 2
• Water flowrates required
q = −1 850 000 [kW] −1850000 = mwater 4.18 ( 25 − 45 )
q = mwater c p (Twater ,out − Twater ,in ) mwater = 22 129 [kg/s]
mmakeup = 645.7 [kg/s] mmakeup = mair (out − out )
• Air flowrate
mair (1 + in ) hair ,in + mwater hwater ,in + mmakeup hmakeup = mair (1 + out ) hair ,out + mwater hwater ,out

mair = 34 677 [kg/s]

• Air outlet temperature

Tair ,out = 38 C (why?)

• Required Merkel number

c p (Twater ,in − Twater ,out ) 4.18 ( 45 − 25 )
Me  =
hair , sat − hair ,in 151.8 − 100.6
Me  1.634