Choosing a cooling system: cooling tower and drycoolers

Free cooling is a reduction in the temperature of the working fluid without energy consumption. Cooling occurs to the ambient temperature. If this temperature is sufficient, then it is advisable to use inexpensive cooling systems such as cooling towers or dry refrigerators.

Open type cooling towers

Dalgakiran cooling towers are open-type evaporative cooling towers. Our Dalgakiran cooling towers are used in both civil and industrial construction. The reason for their popularity lies in their efficiency. With moderate energy consumption, they provide cooling water used for cooling purposes at a temperature 4°C above the wet bulb temperature of the outside air. In the industrial sector, cooling towers are used in technological operations that require efficient and non-energy-intensive heat dissipation that occurs during the operation of compressors, refrigeration machines and stations, metallurgical plants, plastic molding machines, chemical purification of substances, recovery of pure chemical solvents, etc. The Dalgakiran cooling tower has undeniable advantages: low cost, simple design and high coolant cooling rate. Among the limitations of the cooling tower, it should be noted that a water tank – a pool or a cistern – and a water filtration system are required.

Corrosion is the main enemy of a cooling tower. In the summer, the warm and humid atmosphere and stagnant water in some parts of the cooling tower provide an ideal environment for bacterial growth. As a result, the ever-growing biomass has to be combated. In winter, the nozzle and fan of the cooling tower freeze due to high humidity. Don’t forget about evaporation. It is necessary to regularly replenish the supply of recycled water. The disadvantages include noise from falling drops.

Application of the closed type cooling tower

If it is necessary to use pure water or a special solution as a working fluid, a closed-type wet cooling tower is used. In them, the process fluid circulates without access to air, which ensures its purity and absence of impurities. The working process fluid is cooled by an external circuit in which water passes over the coil. In the internal circuit, the cooling process fluid circulates inside the coil. During operation, the system transfers heat from the heated liquid in the inner circuit to the water in the outer circuit and then to the atmosphere. The advantages of a closed cooling tower are low cost and no contact between the coolant and air. Dry cooling towers differ in the way they are installed – vertical or horizontal. The installation method is determined based on the design of the cooling system and the specifics of its application.

The main disadvantage of this cooling system is the corrosion of the irrigation circuit. In addition, the heat exchanger coil itself often gets dirty and needs to be cleaned. Evaporation of water in the external circuit also requires constant replenishment and control.

Dry refrigerator, dry cooling tower or dry coolers

A dry cooling tower or dry cooler, as it is also called, carries out energy exchange between the coolant and the external environment, excluding direct contact. The dry cooler has a simple design and a small number of elements. The main functional element of a dry cooler is a heat exchanger, inside which coolant flows. The heat exchanger itself is a coil with a special ribbed body shape. Aluminum lamellas are used as fins.

The main characteristic of a drycooler heat exchanger is its heat exchange area. The larger it is, the faster the heat transfer takes place. The heat carrier is cooled by circulating through thin tubes with plate fins. To increase the cooling intensity, the drycooler is equipped with fans that drive air between the plates. As a rule, dry cooler fans are equipped with speed controllers that change the fan speed. The dry cooler is constructed in a single case, the shape of which can be flat or V-shaped.

When a consumer is going to buy a dripline, he or she makes a choice in favor of its advantages. These include relative cheapness, simplicity of design, ease of use, no water loss, and low noise. The only drawback of this cooling system is the need to use expansion tanks as part of the hydraulic module.