Water Cooled Chiller
About
Water-cooled chiller systems have a cooling tower, thus they feature higher efficiency than air-cooled chillers.Water-cooled chillers are more efficient because they condense depending on the ambient temperature bulb temperature, which is lower than the ambient dry bulb temperature. The lower a chiller condenses, the more efficient it is.
Essential components including:
- Cooling towers
- Condenser water pumps
- Make-up water pumps
- Chiller
- TES reservoirs
The Benefits of a water-cooled chiller
- smaller size they occupy as compared to air-cooled chillers.
- These chillers also feature higher efficiency and last longer than the mentioned alternative.
- Those who would like the equipment to be placed indoors may find the water-cooled machine desirable.
Parts & Process
In The Evaporator
- The role of the evaporator is to produce chilled water. The device releases the water at about 6°C (42.8°F) and pushes it throughout the facility with the help of a pump.
- A network of pipes passes the chilled water through every necessary section of the building. After exchanging coldness with room air, which blows across the Air Handling Units (AHU’s) and fan coil units (FCU’s), the water is now warmer at about 12°C (53.6°F).
- It returns to the evaporator where the refrigerant absorbs the unwanted heat and directs it to the condenser. The chilled water is cool once again and it can now continue to cool the facility. Note how this is called “chilled water” throughout no matter the temperature.
In The Condenser
- A refrigerant brings unwanted heat from the evaporator and passes through the condenser. There is another loop connected to the condenser- the condenser water loop, which is between the cooling tower and the condenser.
- After entering the condenser at about 27°C (80.6°F), the water leaves at 32°C (89.6°F) and heads to the cooling tower. Note that at no time do the refrigerant and the condenser contact directly. Heat exchange is only through a pipe wall.
- The condenser water, with the unwanted heat, goes to the cooling tower for further heat rejection.
In The Cooling Towers
- This is where the unwanted heat in a facility ends up. A large fan feeds the unit with air. The air meets with the oncoming condenser water. From the direct contact, the condenser water loses heat to the air. The condenser water goes back to the condenser the cycle continues.
- These open-topped devices come in many designs depending on many factors. Examples are cross flow, counter flow, natural draft and mechanical draft.
- Stay with us for a coverage of these designs in upcoming posts.
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