Cooling Tower Operation

Cooling Water Systems
Introduction
The cooling system is an integral part of a plant's overall process. Cooling systems are designed primarily for one function, that is, to remove heat from the process systems. The water treatment program plays a major role in the operation and maintenance of the cooling system. Therefore an understanding of how the water treatment program works to protect the system is extremely important. The cooling action of a plant's system is analogous to the processes of a car's radiator in that heat is removed by conduction between the water and air as they contact each other. In a cooling tower system, evaporation is the primary means of heat removal from the water. In your car, only the conduction of heat to the air through the radiator controls the temperature. In the cooling tower, conduction and evaporation occur to remove heat from the cooling water so that the water can return to the system, thus repeating the process. As water is evaporated from the system, that water must be replenished as make-up. . The addition of make-up water creates a number of potential problems related to corrosion, scale or fouling which can occur within the cooling system. These problems are what a water treatment program targets to solve.
Once Through Systems

Industry uses large amounts of water to remove heat from process streams. Initially plants were built near rivers so large volumes of water could be taken from the river, circulated through the process systems to remove heat from the plant and then discharged to the river at a point further downstream. These types of systems are called once-through cooling systems. The river water passes through the units only once and is discharged to the river, expelling the heat taken from the process systems. These types of systems are still extensively used in the power generation industry. However, due to the environmental regulations and the desire to control thermal pollution, these types of systems are not as widely used as in the past.
Pond Systems
Steam Generation Systems, Inc.
1108 Lavaca St., Suite 110-309 Austin, Texas 78701 USA 832-725-7662 www.SteamGenerationSystems.com
When flowing water from sources such as streams and rivers is not readily available, cold water can be taken from ponds or lakes, circulated through the process systems and returned to a pond or lake as hot discharge. Convection and conduction disperse the heat throughout the body of water and evaporation at the surface cools the water. To provide sufficient conduction, convection, and evaporation to cool the water, the volume of water within the pond or lake must be quite large, compared to the volume of water used in the process. So that evaporation and sufficient and efficient cooling can take place, air must be mixed with the water. The introduction of sprays within the pond increases the surface area of the water exposed to the air by breaking the water into small droplets. This increases the evaporation rate and boosts the amount of cooling and therefore substantially reduces the required volume of water compared to a pond without sprays. Spray ponds depend on air passing over the pond to bring dry air in contact with the water droplets. Water carried away by the air called - drift - can become a significant problem. To control drift fencing can be erected around the spray pond. This is effective, but often reduces the efficiency of the pond by trapping humid air over the pond surface and lessening the driving force of evaporation.
Evaporative Cooling Towers

. Compared to once -through and pond systems, cooling towers on the other hand require substantially less space and have higher efficiency. Cooling towers such as atmospheric towers, induced draft towers, forced-draft towers, naturaldraft towers all have a number of parts in common. The attached figure illustrates the primary components of a typical tower system. Sump: The cooling tower sump is the collection basin from where water is drawn and circulated to the system.

Screens: Cooling tower screens are designed to prevent large debris from going through the pump suction and circulating through the system and potentially reducing heat exchange.
Typical Evaporative Cooling Tower

Air Out Mist Eliminators Water In Drift Eliminators Fan Distribution Deck
Packing
Air In
Air In
Circulation Pump
Sump
Pumps: The circulating water pumps move the water through the system, where heat is removed from the process and return the water to the tower. Tower Distribution System: Tower distribution is accomplished through nozzles, sprays or a distribution deck. Tower Fill: Tower fill is made up of splash bars which break up the water particles within the tower so intimate air and water contact is accomplished. Mist Eliminators: Mist eliminators are used to reduce the amount of water lost due to entrainment in the humid hot air leaving the tower. Drift Eliminators: Drift eliminators control the water droplets from blowing out of the tower due to air movement within the tower.
Atmospheric Tower
To optimize cooling efficiency, water must be broken into the smallest size possible in order to increase the surface area exposed to air. Cooling towers, by their design, break water droplets into small particles multiplying the amount of water surface in contact with the air. This increases evaporation and improves the cooling process. In an atmospheric tower, water is sprayed through nozzles at the top of the tower. The function of this kind of tower depends on wind and humidity. The water cascades down through a series of splash bars, called fill, which break up the water into small droplets. Air passing through the tower contacts the water droplet, resulting in evaporation and the cooling process. Louvers along the sides of the tower allow air to pass into the system, but limit the unwanted carry-off of water droplets called drift. As water evaporates, a hot air draft rises out of the tower. This hot air draft can carry water droplets out of the top of the tower, creating additional water loss. Mist eliminators are added at the top of the tower to catch entrained water and drop the water particles back into the system. In every cooling tower system there will be some drift and water losses. These kinds of losses add to total tower blowdown and affect the number of cycles.
Atmospheric Cooling Tower

Natural Draft Towers

In the natural draft tower, water heats the air inside and causes it to rise in the tower. As the warm, less dense air rises, it reduces the pressure at the bottom of the tower, drawing cool drier air through the air inlets at the base of the tower. This air is then warmed and rises, as in a chimney, drawing the air through the water and enhancing evaporation. In a natural draft tower, as in most tower designs, water is sprayed across the area of the tower. The height of the tower reduces the potential for water loss due to entrainment and allows the counter flow of air through the water to effectively remove heat as the water falls to the basin. Natural draft tower efficiency depends on the temperature difference between the hot humid air within the tower and the cool drier air outside the tower. The smaller this difference is, the less the driving force and the less efficient the operation of the tower. So, humidity and temperature play a major factor in the performance of a natural draft tower.
Natural Draft Tower

Forced Draft Towers

Cooling towers which use fans are called mechanical draft towers. As can be seen in the drawing, air is forced through the side of the tower counter flow to the water, intimately mixing the water and the air, thereby causing evaporation. This type of tower is called a forced draft tower. Air is forced through the tower by the fans. Forced draft towers have a water distribution system, fill and mist eliminators as have been described in the tower design. To maintain the counter flow of air in a forced draft tower, the sides are enclosed. The fans are equipped with variable speed drives and blades are pitched to control the volume of air which passes through the tower.
Forced Draft Tower
Mist Eliminators
Water In Fan Fill Air In
Water Out

Induced Draft Towers

In mechanical draft towers air is forced to mix with the water flowing through the cooling tower by fans. In the induced draft cooling tower air is drawn up the tower with a fan located at the top, pulling the moist warm air out of the tower. This reduces the pressure in the tower and draws cool dry air through the sides of the tower producing a cross flow of air through the water allowing for evaporation. Cooling within induced draft towers can be controlled by fan speed and/or blade pitch. Some induced draft towers are designed for counter flow operation. These draw air in at the bottom and, as can be seen in the drawing, are constructed to provide for airflow counter-current to the water dropping to the basin.
Induced Draft Tower

Fan Mist Eliminators
Fill
Water In
Air In
Air In
Water Out

Tower Approach
Evaporative cooling tower efficiency depends largely on the relative humidity within the area of the cooling tower. Evaporation is the means by which cooling takes place and the rate of evaporation plays a major rile in the cooling efficiency of the cooling tower system. If the relative humidity is high, the evaporation is not as great as if drier air were available to absorb more moisture from the system. The measure of this driving force is called the tower approach. With the use of a sling psychrometer, the wet bulb temperature can be determined. This difference between the dry bulb and the wet bulb temperature can be used to determine the relative humidity and an indication of the driving force for evaporation. The cooling tower, with water being intimately mixed with air causing evaporation, is similar to the wet bulb situation in the psychrometer. The closer the tower water basin temperature approaches the wet bulb temperature, the more efficient the tower. The difference of the two is called the tower approach.
Evaporation and Cycles

Evaporation, as it takes place in the cooling tower system, is the prime source of heat removal. But, as evaporation takes place, solids remain in the bulk water system while pure water is Blow Down carried off with the heat escaping to the atmosphere. As solids concentrate in the system and water is removed, additional water must be added to the system through makeup. Makeup brings additional solids to the system, continuing the cycle and increasing the total dissolved solids in the bulk water systems. Each time the total amount of solids in increased equal to the amount of solids in the makeup water we indicate this as a cycle of concentration within the tower.

For example if the makeup water has a hardness of 50 ppm, and the cooling tower bulk water has a hardness of 100 ppm, the water in the tower has cycled twice. If in this same water, the tower water has a hardness of 200 ppm, the water in the tower has cycled four times. If the cycles were allowed to continue to increase, the dissolved solids in the water would no longer remain soluble, solids and materials would drop out, usually in the hot exchange systems, reducing the efficiency of the operation and creating problems in the operation of the plant. To control the concentrations of total dissolved solids in the bulk water system, some of the cycled tower water is removed. This constitutes blowdown. Blowdown is the removal of any tower water from the system whether it be intentional through the use of opening a valve or unintentional as through uncontrolled loss (for example water in pump glands, leaks, or drift). Any loss of water reduces the total dissolved solids and consequently reduces the number of cycles the tower is experiencing. Blowdown is monitored and controlled based on the number of cycles desired in the cooling tower system.
Evaporative Cooling Water Loss Rate
3
For each 10oF drop between the return water from the process and the sump water temperature, approximately 1% of the circulating water is evaporated and removed from the system. For example, 1% of 5,000 correspond to 50 gallons of make-up per 10 deg F drop in temperature drop across the tower. This volume of water must be replenished in addition to any water losses. Total blowdown can be calculated based on the amount of evaporation in the system divided by the number of cycles in the tower units minus 1.
% Water Loss
0 0 10 20 30 Temperature Drop, deg F
Blowdown
Evaporation Cycles - 1
Cycles must be controlled to maintain the total dissolved solids in the system. Cycles in the cooling tower system can be determined by picking a non-precipitating ion such as chloride and measuring this ion concentration in the makeup and in the tower basin. By dividing ion
concentration in the tower by the in concentration in the makeup, the number of times that ion has concentrated or cycled in the tower can be calculated. Cycles = Chloride in Tower Chloride in Makeup
Evaporation, blowdown, cycling and total dissolved solids are all interdependent as can be seen by the calculations. By watching these variables closely, control of the impurities which potentially create the problems of corrosion, fouling and scale can be minimized.
Parameter pH Sp. Cond, us M Alk, ppm Sulfate, ppm Chloride, ppm Total Hardness, ppm Calcium, ppm Magnesium, ppm SiO2, ppm Phosphate, ppm Iron, ppm Manganese, ppm Turbidity (JTU) CO2, ppm O2, ppm
Well 8 457 203 38 5 243 259 84 13 < 0.2 0.17 0.37 < 1.0 4 50
Surface 7.2 314 91 57 26 159 80 79 9 < 0.2 0.1 < 0.1 50 11 4.7
Reclaimed 7.4 1056 120 189 185 160 25 9.4 21.9 0.31
Hardness pH and conductivity are some if the parameters used to control cooling water operations. Understanding the interrelationships of blowdown, evaporation, and the effect that impurities have on the cooling water system is important to the overall operation and efficiency of the units and the cooling tower.
Typical levels of impurities in make-up water from various 7.3 sources are shown in the adjacent table. All of these 8 materials exist in the water as dissolved solids in the form of ions. These ions can combine to form compounds within the system that in turn cause scale, corrosion and fouling. Calcium and magnesium are the cation salts represented hardness. At increased cycles of concentration, anions such as sulfate, silica and carbonate can combine with these cations to precipitate as solids and cause potential problems. All the ions, which make up the dissolved solids in the water are electrically charged and consequently conductive. Conductivity is directly related to the amount of total dissolved solids within the water solution.
In addition to impurities contained in the make-up water, iron, copper and other metal species are released by corrosion of the systems components are also present in the cycled tower water
Heat Exchange
In the cooling tower system, heat from the process is removed by water passing through a heat exchanger. The heated water then returns to the cooling tower where the heat is removed to the atmosphere through evaporation. Heat exchangers in the cooling water system come in a variety of sizes and shapes. The workhorse of the industry is the shell and tube heat exchanger. The most common design is the two-pass exchanger with water on the tube-side and the hot process stream on the shell-side. As can be seen in the drawing, water flows in the inlet at the bottom of the exchanger to an area called the channel head. Water is distributes evenly to all the tubes, flowing the length of the exchanger into another head generally called the floating head; the water is then allowed to
Typical Two-Pass, Shell in Tube Heat Exchanger

Water Out Process In
Water In
Process Out
return through the remaining tubes back to the channel head and out the top of the exchanger. Consequently, the water makes two passes through the bundles, drawing heat from the process side, thus giving the exchanger its name-a two-pass exchanger.

In some applications water is circulated to the shell side of the exchanger and process flows through the tubes. In these types of exchangers, water flow rates through the shell becomes extremely important since low flow areas on the shell side can cause deposition of suspended solids and contribute to the three basic enemies: corrosion, scale and fouling. Heat transfer takes place because of the difference in temperatures between the process and the cooling water. heat is passed from the process fluid through the metal walls of the tubes and to the water being circulated through the system. The heat is then removed in the cooling tower through evaporation. It should be noted that the coolest water generally is designed to see the hottest process steam in the exchanger. When operational problems are encountered it is often the result of drastic changes in water or process fluid flow rates through the exchanger and deviations from design load. If these parameters change substantially, exchanger efficiency can be greatly reduced. If deposition or corrosion takes place, metal surfaces become distorted and rough, like the edge of a file. As silt and debris pass through the cooling water system, suspended solids are trapped, increasing the fouling on heat transfer surfaces and reducing exchanger efficiency. As you can see, corrosion, fouling and scale are all interdependent. One can easily lead to potential problems with the other two, so care must be taken to protect the entire system against each of the problem trio.

Tower Operation
In cooling tower operations, many cooling water problems are caused by neglect after startup. Poor or diminished tower performance can reduce cooling efficiency in the heat exchangers, resulting in loss of availability and expense. A preventive maintenance schedule should be outlined and implemented for key tower components. Such schedules are usually provided by tower manufacturers and include weekly, monthly and seasonal checklists. Screens, pumps, decks, and sump all require inspection and maintenance through out the year. The major factors which influence the efficiency of the cooling tower: Water flow rate, Airflow rate, Air-to-water distribution ratio, and Heat load.
Any water flow rate changes have a direct, but inverse, effect on air flow rates. Increasing the water flow rate over the tower will decrease the airflow, resulting in increased sump temperature. If air-to-water distribution is changed substantially, tower efficiency will also change.
Cooling Water Problems

In the cooling system, the heat exchanger is the workhorse of the entire operation. Heat is transmitted through the metal surfaces of the tubes to the water, carried back to the cooling tower and discharged to the air. Corrosion, scale and fouling can all create problems in heat transfer efficiency. The efficiency relates to the heat transfer rate of the exchanger and depends upon the cleanliness of the exchanger, water velocities, and temperatures throughout the unit. Changes in any of these parameters can drastically affect the overall heat transfer coefficient (heat transfer rate) in the heat exchanger. Corrosion, scale and fouling are all interdependent. Each of these three independently, or in combination, can significantly reduce cooling efficiency. The understanding of the interrelationships of all these parameters and how they affect the overall corrosion rates in a cooling tower system is an integral part of the water treatment program.
Corrosion . Corrosion is a series of complex electrochemical reaction between oxygen, water and exposed metal surfaces mechanism and can be affected by pH, conductivity, temperature and velocity. In the cooling tower operation, oxygen is absorbed in the water as the tower water splashes through the fill and is intimately mixed with air. Corrosion in the cooling system can take the form of both general thinning (uniform overall corrosion) and/or pitting. Oxygen produces an easily identified corrosion in the form of small pits or depressions. Intense corrosion at a single point causing a deep penetration of the metal is called pitting. When pitting corrosion occurs, loss of metal can be more detrimental than if the loss is uniform over a large area. Pitting is more severe than general corrosion since this type of corrosion can cause failures in a short period of time. Scale Within a cooling system, scale is defined as crystalline deposit formed by combining ions in the water and depositing the resulting scale on the surface of exchangers or water lines. is defined as a deposit of a crystalline nature. It is formed by a combination of cations and anions in a fixed ratio to form a deposit. It generally forms at a metal surface in a reasonably uniform manner. In the cooling tower system, many ions can combine to form potential scales. Calcium scale is the most common. Calcium combines with carbonate or sulfates depending on ion concentrations, temperatures and conductivity. The tendency for scales to form from supersaturated solutions of ions can be described by using a saturation index. An example of a saturation index is shown below. The Langelier Saturation Index (LSI) which is intended to predict the solubility of calcium carbonate in water. This index predicts the tendency of calcium carbonate to either come out of solution or remain soluble within the framework of the cooling water control program. However, it represents a very simplified and in most systems, this is useful only as a general guide. One way of controlling potential calcium carbonate deposition problems is to maintain calcium carbonate concentrations, total dissolved solids, and pH within a negative LSI. Many times this approach is not feasible based on water characteristics and the desire to optimize corrosion control. An alternative is to add a deposit control agent capable of preventing scale formation.

Calcium carbonate and calcium sulfate exhibit an unusual chemical characteristic. Usually salts become more soluble as the temperature is increased. In the case of calcium carbonate and calcium sulfate, however, as the temperature increases their solubility decreases . This means the potential for problems is greater in the hottest part of the system - heat exchange units, where it is critical to maintain clean heat transfer surfaces. Fouling Fouling in the cooling water system is defined as the accumulation of organic or inorganic materials on internal surfaces. Biological slimes or algae, corrosion products, and other suspended materials can foul heat exchangers and service to bind together other solids in the system. Suspended solids can enter the tower in a number of ways. If makeup water contains suspended solids, these become concentrated during the cooling tower operation. As air passes through the tower, it is scrubbed into the water. In addition, microorganisms carried by the air have a rime breeding area in the cooling water system because of its warmth and humidity.

Fouling caused by inorganic deposits is subject largely to flow velocities since these materials are carried in the water and any decrease in velocity, as may be seen in a shell-side exchanger, allows these materials to deposit out in the system. In the case of organic, microbiological activity, these particles can be found throughout the cooling water system..

REVIEW QUESTIONS 1.Water taken from a source, passed through heat exchange equipment and returned to the source or discharge is generally referred to as a system. 2.Cooling towers are designed to accomplish one primary function. This function is the of from the process system. The cooling tower is the collection basin from where water is drawn and circulated to the cooling tower system. 3.The tower fill breaks up the water particles in the tower so can be accomplished. and contact
4.In atmospheric towers water is distributes and falls through fill. and the atmospheric conditions, which greatly affect this kind of tower's efficiency. 5.Natural draft towers employ the bottom of the tower to draw cool air in. 6.Forced draft towers air through the tower.
are
effect to create a reduced pressure at the
air through the tower where induced draft towers
7.To determine the tower approach, subtract the the temperature.
temperature from
8.If the ambient air temperature is 80oF and the wet bulb temperature is 60oF, the relative humidity is . 9. is the primary means of heat removal from the cooling tower system to the atmosphere. 10.To reduce the total dissolved solids created in the bulk water system due to evaporation, is required. 11.In a shell-side exchanger, deposition due to suspended solids. becomes critically important to control

12.Four major factors which influence the approach and the efficiency of a cooling tower operation are: (1) Water (2) Air (3) (4) to . rate. rate. distribution ratio, and


Cooling Tower Operation

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Cooling Water Systems

Once Through Systems

Cooling Water Systems

Evaporative Cooling Towers

Steam Generation Systems, Inc.

Cooling Water Systems

Typical Evaporative Cooling Tower

Cooling Water Systems

Atmospheric Cooling Tower

Steam Generation Systems, Inc.

Cooling Water Systems

Natural Draft Towers

Natural Draft Tower

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Cooling Water Systems

Forced Draft Towers

Forced Draft Tower

Water In Fan Fill Air In

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Cooling Water Systems

Induced Draft Towers

Induced Draft Tower

Steam Generation Systems, Inc.

Cooling Water Systems

Evaporation and Cycles

Steam Generation Systems, Inc.

Cooling Water Systems

0 0 10 20 30 Temperature Drop, deg F

Cooling Water Systems

Cooling Water Systems

Typical Two-Pass, Shell in Tube Heat Exchanger

Steam Generation Systems, Inc.

Cooling Water Systems

Steam Generation Systems, Inc.

Cooling Water Systems

Cooling Water Problems

Cooling Water Systems

Steam Generation Systems, Inc.

Cooling Water Systems

Steam Generation Systems, Inc.

Cooling Water Systems

Steam Generation Systems, Inc.

Cooling Water Systems

effect to create a reduced pressure at the

air through the tower where induced draft towers

7.To determine the tower approach, subtract the the temperature.

Steam Generation Systems, Inc.

Cooling Water Systems

Steam Generation Systems, Inc.

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