Analysis and Discussion There are a few different steps in analyzing the results obtained from the cooling

tower experiment as stated in the laboratory manual. Firstly, is the calculation of the air flow rate through the cooling tower. There are two different methods in measuring the air flow rate, the first by performing the mass balance and the second by the orifice equation. The mass balance is governed by the equation below: Rate of Evaporation = (air flow rate)(change in humidity) The rate of evaporation can be determined easily from the results obtained. The volume of the water loss divided by the time taken of the process gives the rate of evaporation. The height of the water is recorded at the beginning and the end of the 10 minutes interval. The mass flow rate of air can be obtained by multiplying the volumetric with the density of water. The change in humidity on the other hand can be obtained from the psychometric chart. From the results, we obtained the rate of evaporation for the three runs 1.5kW(no heated air), 1.0kW(no heated air) and 1.5kW(heated air) is

It can be deduced that the rate of evaporation is higher when the power is set at 1.5kW. The higher water temperature, the higher the rate of evaporation. The second method is by applying the orifice equation, mair= 0.0137(X/(Vb))0.5 . mair = dry air mass flow rate (kg/s) X = orifice differential (mm H2O) Vb = specific volume of exiting air (humid air basis) (m3/kg)

From the calculations of the air flow using both methods we obtained the results as in the table below.

Air flow by mass balance kg/s Air flow by orifice equation The results obtained by applying both the methods should be approximately the same. But the discrepancies are due to human errors such as errors made during observing and recording the readings taken and errors made during calculations. Second part is performing the energy balance to obtain the energy lost by the water due to cooling. This is calculated using the equation Q=mCpT, where Q = heat energy loss, m = mass of water, Cp= specific heat capacity and T = change in temperature of water. The heat loss should correspond with the wattage(the power set). It should be approximately the same. From the calculations done, the heat energy loss obtained is as below. Energy loss 1.5kW(no heated air) 1.04 Energy loss 1.0kW(no heated air) 1.38 Energy loss 1.5(heated air) 1.01

From the above table, it can be concluded that the heat energy loss does not correspond with the power used to heat the water. This is due to errors made during the calculations of the energy balances or during the recording the change in height of water in the tank.

The third part in the results was to plot a curve of enthalpy of dry air versus temperature of air and water. One of the curves plotted is the equilibrium curve also known as the air-water saturation curve, air enthalpy against the dry bulb temperature. As the temperature of the air increases, the enthalpy also increases. It is not unusual because air absorbs heat from the water and thus reduces the temperature of the water and is govern by the equation Q=mCpT. A plot of enthalpy against water temperature gives a similar relationship as the plot of enthalpy against temperature of air. The operating line is linear. This line is created using the balance on the differential section of the tower. The energy that is absorbed by air must be equal to the energy that water loses. From the equilibrium curve and the operating line, the performance of the cooling tower can be assessed. The method is known as Approach to Wet Bulb= ATWB. The ATWB can be calculated by applying this formula ATWB = TH2O Exit - TWB, inlet air. The ATWB for the 1.5kW(no heated air) , 1.0kW(no heated air) and 1.5(heated air) is 2.2oC, 4.6oC and 0.4oC respectively. Graphs of column heights versus water temperature, air temperature and humidity of air are plotted. This is to study the relationships between those variables. From the plots, it can be deduced that the temperature of water and air increases as the column height increases. This explains the principle of the counter current cooling system. The air is inserted to the tower from the bottom and the water is inserted from the top and as a result heat transfer occurs when the air absorbs heat energy throughout the flow from the bottom. Inversely, as the water flows down the column, the temperature decreases, representing a loss of heat to the surrounding air. The concept of the AQ cooling tower applies the principle of liquid cooling with gas heating and humidification which is observed in Run 1 and Run 2 where no heated air is used. From the plot of column height with humidity, the observations made are as the height of the column increases

the humidity of the air increases. This seen in run 3, where the heated air becomes more saturated with water vapour as going up the column from the vaporizing of water to water vapour. Lastly, is the analysis of the tower characteristic denoted by CH, which is obtained from the plot of Cp/Hi-Hy) versus temperature. The area under the graph is the tower characteristic. The CH for the first run, second run and third run of this was experiment were calculated to be 3.05, 1.74 and 29.82 respectively. The mass transfer coefficient can be determined after calculating the tower characteristic. The governing equation is CH = kyMWgaZ/Gx . While the mass transfer coefficient can be determined by the equation hy= Cs(MWg)ky. The heat and mass transfer coefficient for all the three runs can be seen in Table 4.5 in the results section.

Conclusion The Cooling Tower experiment applies the principle of a liquid cooling and gas heating and humidification. This technique also known as the counter current cooling tower, inserts a heated water stream at the top of the tower and air from the bottom of the tower where the inside part of the tower with packing material that increases the surface area. Both the water and the air contact and at the point where it contacts heat is exchanged between the water and air. Once in contact, the humidity of the air increases as the water flow rate and the water temperature decreases. There were three runs of the experiment conducted, with settings at 1 kW and 1.5 kW with unheated air, then 1.5 kW with heated air. This cooling tower is equipped with thermocouples at different heights. By measuring the temperature of water and air at those heights, it can be deduced that the temperature of the water decreases as it flows down the tower and inversely the temperature of the air increases while going up the tower. In the third run, the principle of liquid cooling and gas cooling and humidification is studies. It can be seen that the water temperature decreases as it progresses down the tower and the temperature of the heated air decreases as it goes up the tower. These changes in temperature indicated an exchange of heat between the two components. The psychrometric chart was used to determine the humidity and enthalpy along the different heights of the column. It can be observed as the temperature of the air increases its enthalpy increases too. It shows that the mass and energy transfer occurs between heated water downwards and the air flowing upwards. The Approach to Wet Bulb, ATWB is calculated for each run to determine the performance of the cooling tower.