Experimental study of pressure loss in hybrid cooling tower with finned tube radiator

Abstract

The paper deals with the problem of enhancement of cooling of recycled water in industry. The authors developed a new design of a hybrid cooling tower with a fill pack consisting of inclined-corrugated contact plates and a tube radiator. The water flow during the cooling process flows inside the radiator to avoid direct contact with air, preventing the biofouling process. In addition, the external surface of the tube radiator is modified by finning for heat transfer intensification. The purpose of the work was an experimental study of the pressure losses in the developed hybrid cooling tower. The relationship of the pressure drop through the dry fill pack from the average air velocity was determined. The maximum increase in hydraulic losses for the dry fill pack with finned tubes of the radiator is less than 4.5% at the average air velocity of 7 m/s compared to the smooth tubes. Furthermore, it was found that when the wetting density is less than 28.3 m3/(m2·h), a drift of water droplets from the hybrid cooling tower can be decreased.