How Cooling Towers Help Water Conservation

Many thousands of facilities are currently using large quantities of water to help cool industrial plants. Cooling towers are a technology used by many of them, no matter what their size, to help reduce water usage. In fact, cooling towers are able to recycle 98% of water usually wasted. Evaporative cooling towers are often the most cost effective option, but they use millions of gallons of water every year, which is not ideal or even possible in some areas of the U.S. that have been hit by drought.

Now, cooling tower technology is becoming more focused on conserving water when possible. Right now, this means using alkaline and high pH water treatment processes. But these processes destroy metal cooling towers thanks to the chemicals used. This leaves facility owners scratching their heads and hoping for better technology that won't force them to replace a cooling tower after just five to eight years of use.

Engineered HDPE plastic towers are becoming more popular in an effort to combat this problem. The plastic is specifically engineered so that the pH levels and chemicals in the water don't affect the cooling tower itself. They last decades, rather than five to eight years.

The evaporative processes that the water goes through in the tower mean that water loss is expected, and drift is also unavoidable. But these engineered plastic towers help to conserve some of the water that was being lost.

Water loss is prevented with these towers, and water conservation efforts are focused on achieving zero blowdown status in order to reduce the water necessary to run.

Another improvement cooling technology is reducing corrosion within systems. Engineered plastic cooling towers discharge cool water into a well residing in the plant before putting it through a heat exchanger and sending it back to the tower. Closed-loop cooling towers pump the water back through the system to circulate it through the plant again.

A big advantage to these towers is easy installation compared to older versions. Their lightweight plastic shell makes them ideal for rooftops, since they weight 40% less than steel versions.

The largest cooling tower system in the world resides at the Kalisindh Thermal Power Station in Jhalawar, Rajasthan, India. Standing at 663 feet tall, it is absolutely huge. But you don't need a huge system to make a huge difference in your business. Small to mid-size models work incredibly well too! Contact Delta Cooling Towers to learn more.