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How to Determine the Cooling Tower Temperature Profile

Industrial cooling towers are used to remove heat by utilizing a circulating flow of water. Cooling towers are ubiquitous in petroleum refineries, chemical plants and food processing plants. The water absorbs the heat from the process and that heat is removed through the evaporative cooling effect of the cooling tower. Water is cascaded down a series of slats that breaks it up into droplets. Large fans pull air through the cascading water, removing the heat. The water is then circulated back through the process. The temperature profile in a cooling tower can vary with varying ambient air temperatures, and is generally referred to as cooling tower efficiency.

Things You'll Need

Pen
Paper
Calculator

Instructions

- 1
  Determine the approach of the cooling tower. This is the difference between the cooling water supply and the air wet bulb temperature. The wet bulb temperature is the temperature at which air is saturated with water vapor. For instance, assume the cooling water supply (Ti) is 95 degrees Fahrenheit and the wet bulb temperature of the air (Twb) is 75 degrees Fahrenheit. The approach is therefore 20 degrees Fahrenheit.
- 2
  Determine the range of the cooling tower. This is the difference between the water supply into the cooling tower (Ti) and the water temperature leaving the cooling tower (To) after evaporative cooling. If the inlet temperature is 95 degrees Fahrenheit and the outlet temperature is 85 degrees Fahrenheit, then the range of the cooling tower is 10 degrees Fahrenheit.
- 3
  Determine the cooling tower efficiency or profile (u) using the following formula: u = (Ti-To)/(Ti - Twb) x 100. This equates to: 10/20 x 100, which is 50 percent. The profile can be further expanded by generating the tower efficiency over the course of a year. The approach and ranges will change slightly due to seasonal changes.

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