Water supply channel for evenly wetting a hybrid dry cooler

Abstract

A hybrid cooler with selectively applied water to one or more heat exchangers has one or more water feed channels above each heat exchanger to which water is to be applied constructed to provide a smooth film of water by a feed channel overflow edge and with means for suppression of waves, if any, in the channel.

Description

FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]The present invention relates to hybrid coolers utilizing a combination of direct heat transfer via pipe / fin arrays and evaporative cooling and more particularly concerns the even supply of water from a water supply channel. The concept of “hybrid” here comes from the split operation method of the air-cooled heat exchanger, namely once without wetting the heat exchanger with water and for the other with wetting. Hybrid dry coolers can be wetted using water on the air side of the heat exchanger surfaces, in order to increase efficiency or to achieve temperatures of the cooling medium which are 4 to 5 K below the dry air temperature.[0002]European Patent No. EP 0428647 shows it is known to feed water for wetting to the air-side outer surfaces of the heat exchanger by an overflow from an open channel and over fitted with a guide plate and a semicircular, inner catalyst tube fitted above the cooling fins. In order to improve the flow of the wat...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0016]An object of the invention, is to provide water required for wetting a fin-heat exchanger across the full length and above the heat exchanger as a single, even film of water. It is a further object to largely eliminate the influence of the surface tension of the water on the water overflow edge, so that even if the surface has grease or dirt in some way, or if the ove

Problems solved by technology

The greater the sag between two supports, as a consequence of changes in the weight of water, the more difficult it will be to achieve an even overflow.

Beneath these areas the fins remain dry and there is a loss of efficiency.

The manufacture and use of semicircular guide pipes for the “stream”—section is very difficult with the accompanying increase in length and is hardly ever used.

Between the supply channel and the fin set of the heat exchange, plates are installed to work against the sagging However, such plate installations usually hinder cleaning and maintenance.

There are further problems with fixing the guide plate, which is shaped with grooves, to the supply channel.

In the region of the rivets there is a slight increase in the flow, caused by raised material, which additionally hinders the overflow.

In addition, uncontrolled water can run between the wall of the supply ch

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