The Marley Cooling Tower Company

The Marley Company LLC

Robert E Cates

A low cost, preformed, synthetic resin, indirect air cooled atmospheric heat exchanger especially adapted for use in water cooling towers is provided which exhibits enhanced water cooling properties notwithstanding fabrication thereof from relatively inexpensive, corrosion-free polyvinyl chloride or like materials heretofore thought to have insufficient heat conductivity for practical use in heat exchangers. These improved results stem principally from the use of a plurality of spaced, elongated, hollow, open-ended, thin tube-like hot water receiving structures having vacuum-formed sidewalls configured with a multiple-chevron corrugation pattern to rigidify the exchanger and present series of continuous, vertically extending serpentine paths which maximizes the prime heat exchange area of the sidewalls and causes the descending water to follow the tortuous internal sidewall flow paths to slow the descent of the water and thereby facilitate cooling thereof; moreover, the corresponding, undulating outside wall surfaces of the exchanger increase the turbulence of external cooling air currents flowing therepast to further enhance the overall cooling efficiency of the exchanger. The latter is advantageously positioned below a hot water distribution basin so that quantities of air are siphonically entrained within the descending water to further slow the travel thereof through the exchanger and also preclude build-up of the normally slight, negative pressures therewithin to a level sufficient to collapse the relatively thin sidewalls of the exchanger. In preferred forms, the exchanger is fabricated from a plurality of elongated, inverted, substantially U-shaped, preformed members interconnected along respective vertical margins to present a pack adapted to be tensionably supported in a water cooling tower structure. In addition, the packs are nestably stackable to permit easy installation and use thereof in a variety of cooling tower applications, for example in those employing both a wet and dry fill in combination.

Air cooled atmospheric heat exchanger

A high efficiency, induced draft, combination counterflow-crossflow fluid cooling apparatus and method is provided which gives unexpectedly enhanced cooling of hot fluid by causing the fluid to pass upwardly through a series of serpentine heat exchange conduits in primarily countercurrent, indirect sensible heat exchange relationship with external cooling water gravitating from an overlying evaporative water cooling section. Crossflowing air currents are pulled through the apparatus to evaporatively cool the water not only in the upper cooling section but also in the sensible heat exchange area as well. Countercurrent flow of coolant water and fluid to be collected ensures that the coldest water and coldest fluid are in thermal interchange during the final stages of fluid cooling at the upper ends of the heat exchange conduits, so that the fluid temperature can approach that of the cold water as opposed to approaching the temperature of heated water found adjacent the lower ends of the conduits, which is conventional in cocurrent fluid units of this type. The fluid conduit system is preferably arranged for causing increased fluid residence time, and thereby greatest temperature difference and longer heat exchange between the fluid and coolant water adjacent the air inlet of the apparatus where air and coolant water temperatures are lowest relative to the fluid to be cooled, so that an ideal countercurrent flow relationship is obtained and maximum heat transfer is assured. An underlying water collection basin is also employed in the apparatus which is constructed to permit collection of cooling water to a level above that of the lowermost portions of the hot fluid conduits, in order to allow the hot fluid traveling through the conduits to heat the collected water to prevent freezing thereof during wintertime operations when the internal water pump is shut down causing the stoppage of all evaporative cooling and hence a raising of the lower water basin level.

Method for indirect evaporative cooling of upflowing fluid by contact

A low cost, preformed, synthetic resin, indirect air cooled atmospheric heat exchanger especially adapted for use in water cooling towers is provided which exhibits enhanced water cooling properties notwithstanding fabrication thereof from relatively inexpensive, corrosion-free polyvinyl chloride or like materials heretofore thought to have insufficient heat conductivity for practical use in heat exchangers. These improved results stem principally from the use of a plurality of spaced, elongated, hollow, open-ended, thin tube-like hot water receiving structures having vacuum-formed sidewalls configured with a multiple-chevron corrugation pattern to rigidify the exchanger and present series of continuous, vertically extending serpentine paths which maximizes the prime heat exchange area of the sidewalls and causes the descending water to follow the tortuous internal sidewall flow paths to slow the descent of the water and thereby facilitate cooling thereof; moreover, the corresponding, undulating outside wall surfaces of the exchanger increase the turbulence of external cooling air currents flowing therepast to further enhance the overall cooling efficiency of the exchanger. The latter is advantageously positioned below a hot water distribution basin so that quantities of air are siphonically entrained within the descending water to further slow the travel thereof through the exchanger and also preclude build-up of the normally slight, negative pressures therewithin to a level sufficient to collapse the relatively thin sidewalls of the exchanger. In preferred forms, the exchanger is fabricated from a plurality of elongated, inverted, substantially U-shaped preformed members interconnected along respective vertical margins to present a pack adapted to be tensionably supported in a water cooling tower structure. In addition, the packs are nestably stackable to permit easy installation and use thereof in a variety of cooling tower applications, for example in those employing both a wet and dry fill in combination.

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Leawood, KS, United States of America

Robert E Cates