Energy conservation improvement and ON–OFF switch times reduction for an existing VFD-fan-based cooling tower

Chun-Cheng Chang, Shyan-Shu Shieh, Shi-Shang Jang, Chan-Wei Wu and Ying Tsou

Applied Energy, 2015, vol. 154, issue C, 499 pages

Abstract: The increasing economic advantage of replacing traditional two-speed fans with variable-frequency drive (VFD) fans has been gaining popularity in the industry. However, concerns regarding frequent ON/OFF switching and the lack of a well-devised controller have discouraged widespread adoption. In this study, a temperature zone method is proposed to replace the set-point method of fan control. Additionally, the highest output water temperature allowed in the process is set as the upper limit of a zone in order to further conserve energy. Both strategies are comprehensively analyzed for a virtual cooling tower that uses operational data from an existing VFD-fan-based cooling tower system in Taiwan. The results show energy savings of 38% for a 0.75°C zone without increasing the ON/OFF switching frequency. The proposed strategies were further verified via an on-line field experiment. The proposed methods can be universally and easily applied to any existing cooling tower, and have significant implications for energy conservation if adopted globally.

Keywords: Cooling tower; Energy conservation; Variable-frequency drive; Zone control; Approach (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2015.05.025

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