Water recirculation system
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cooling systems that employ adiabatic evaporative materials for air cooling face challenges in maintaining efficient water recirculation, leading to water wastage and potential system failures when the recirculation pump fails, which can result in increased energy consumption and reduced cooling capacity.
Innovation Solution
A controller-driven system that operates in both primary recirculation and once-through modes, allowing for automatic switching between the two based on monitored parameters, ensuring continuous wetting of evaporative pads and minimizing water usage by utilizing a once-through backup mode when the recirculation system fails.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of substance
If a water recirculation system is used to pump run-off water back to the evaporative pads, then water conservation is improved, but system complexity and vulnerability to pump failure increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system is divided into two independent water delivery paths: a recirculation path (pump, sump, run-off collection) and a make-up water path (direct connection to water source). This segmentation allows the make-up water system to function independently when recirculation fails, providing redundancy without requiring a complete system redesign.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system dynamically changes operational parameters by monitoring recirculation system status and automatically adjusting the ratio of recirculated water to make-up water. When pump failure is detected, the system increases make-up water flow parameter to maintain adequate pad wetting while reducing dependence on the failed recirculation path.
2Reliability
If the recirculation pump operates continuously to maintain water supply, then evaporative pad wetting is improved, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs feedback control through sensors that monitor water level in the sump, pad wetness status, and pump operation. This feedback enables the controller to adjust pump runtime and make-up water valve opening dynamically, maintaining reliable pad wetting while minimizing pump operation time and associated energy consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of continuous pump operation, the system uses periodic pumping cycles controlled by water level sensors in the sump. The pump operates intermittently to maintain minimum water levels, reducing energy consumption while ensuring adequate water availability for evaporation cooling when needed.
3Reliability
If make-up water is added frequently to compensate for evaporation loss, then pad saturation is improved, but water wastage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The recirculation system maintains continuous water supply to the evaporative pads by collecting and re-pumping run-off water, eliminating gaps in pad saturation. This continuous action reduces the frequency and volume of make-up water additions needed, thereby reducing water wastage while maintaining reliable pad saturation.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of discarding run-off water from the evaporative pads, the system recovers it by collecting in the sump and recirculating back to the pads. This recovery process eliminates the need to continuously add fresh make-up water to replace evaporated water, significantly reducing water wastage while maintaining pad saturation.
4Ease of operation
If the system operates in once-through mode to simplify operation, then system complexity is reduced, but water consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system achieves multi-functionality by integrating both recirculation and make-up water delivery capabilities into a single unified system. The controller can automatically switch between recirculation-dominated operation (water-saving mode) and make-up water-dominated operation (simplicity mode), providing the versatility to optimize for either water conservation or operational simplicity depending on conditions.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution enhances water conservation and maintains cooling efficiency by automatically switching to a once-through mode when the recirculation system fails, preventing system dry-out and reducing energy consumption while ensuring reliable evaporative cooling.
Implementation Method 1
A pump is in fluid communication with the sump and the dispenser, and is configured to force liquid there between
Implementation Method 2
As air is forced through the adiabatic material, it is cooled by the action of evaporation. As this occurs, the amount of moisture absorbed into the adiabatic material reduces as the moisture in liquid form is vaporized hence cooling the air passing through the adiabatic material by extracting thermal energy from same in order to vaporize the water
Implementation Method 3
Moisture, usually water, is deposited on an upper portion of the evaporative pads and by the force of gravity, the moisture gradually descends across the evaporative pads
Data Source
AI summary
A water recirculation system operates in a primary mode for evaporatively cooling air. When the water recirculation mode malfunctions, the controller switches a secondary once-through mode. The system includes a sump for collecting water run-off from the evaporative pads, and a pump in fluid communication with the sump. The pump transfers moisture from the sump to the distribution arrangement located at the top of the evaporative pads during the recirculation mode. An automatically operated make-up water valve delivers water to a distribution arrangement on the evaporative pads. A moisture distribution arrangement distributes moisture to the evaporative pads and an automatically operated sump drain valve retains water in the sump when closed and freely drains water from the sump when open. A water level control communicates the sump water level to a control system. A monitoring mechanism detects whether the water-recirculation system has malfunctioned or is operating correctly.