M.M.A. Sarker

Performance Characteristics of a Closed-Circuit Cooling Tower With Multiple Paths

The performance of a closed-circuit wet cooling tower (CWCT) with multiple paths having a rated capacity of 9 kW has been studied experimentally. When the CWCT has to operate with a partial load, the required quantity of cooling water reduces and thereby the velocity of the process fluid inside the tubes decreases. The velocity of the process fluid can be increased by installing blocking tubes in the heat exchanger. The test section in this experiment has multiple paths that have been used as the inlet for cooling water that flows from the top part of the heat exchanger. The heat exchanger consists of eight rows and 12 columns and the tubes are in a staggered arrangement. Heat and mass transfer coefficients and temperature drops were calculated with several variations including multiple paths. The results obtained from this study were compared with those reported and found to conform well. The investigation indicates that a CWCT operating with two paths has higher heat and mass transfer coefficients than with one path.