What is a cooling tower?

Cooling towers are a special type of heat exchanger that allows water and air to come in contact with each other to lower the temperature of the hot water.

In a short summary, the purpose of a cooling tower is to cool down water that gets heated up by industrial equipment and processes. Water comes in the cooling tower hot (from industrial process) and goes out of the cooling tower cold (back into the industrial process).

Principle of Cooling Tower

The hot water is usually caused by air conditioning condensers or other industrial processes. That water is pumped through pipes directly into the cooling tower. Cooling tower nozzles are used to spray the water onto to the “fill media”, which slows the water flow down and exposes the maximum amount of water surface area possible for the best air-water contact. The water is exposed to air as it flows throughout the cooling tower. During the process, small volumes of water evaporate, lowering the temperature of the water that’s being circulated throughout the cooling tower. The air is being pulled by an motor-driven electric “cooling tower fan”.

What is an HVAC System?

An HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and air conditioning system) is responsible for heating and cooling your home and includes products like furnaces, air conditioners, heat pumps as well as ductwork, thermostats and other home comfort controls. Traditional HVAC heating and cooling systems are used in schools, large office buildings, and hospital.

Applications of Cooling Towers

Cooling towers are much larger than traditional HVAC systems and are used to remove heat from cooling tower water systems in petroleum refineries, plants, natural gas processing plants, petrochemical plants, and other industrial processes.

In my earlier post, I had explained about cooling towers, working, principle and its applications. During the process of cooling towers, the water has to be filtered because in the cycle it carries solid particles which will harm the condenser, evaporators and all parts of machinery coming in contact with dirty water.