Effect of different water flowrates and air velocity on a cooling tower / Muhammad Amirul Norman

Mechanical draft cooling tower is a specialized type of heat exchanger that allows water and air to interact in order to reduce the temperature of hot water. Small amounts of water evaporate during this process, reducing the temperature of the water circulating throughout the cooling tower. The working fluid is important to the cooling tower where the air circulated through the cooling tower helps the process of evaporation of the working fluid affected by the mass flow rate of the working fluid and air velocity. The objective of this study is to identify the effect of different water flowrates and air velocity on a cooling tower. The experiment will be conducted with mass flow rate ranging of from 1 LPM (Litres Per Minute) to 5 LPM and speed of air velocity which is 30mmH2O and 50mm H2O. The type of working fluid also will be compared to see which working fluid has the highest cooling rate. The 10% coolant and water will be used as working fluid. The mass flow rate of the water that will flow through the tower is controlled by a valve. Dry and wet bulb temperature will be recorded to compare cooling effect between coolant 10% concentration and water. It is expected that low concentration coolant has better cooling rate compared to water and higher velocity. It also expected that the lower the water flowrate and the higher the air velocity the cooling tower will work better.