.jpg)
Central AC Plants with Water Cooled/Air Cooled/VAM Chillers
Water-cooled chiller systems have a cooling tower, thus they feature higher efficiency than air-cooled chillers. Water-cooled chillers are more efficient because they condense depending on the ambient temperature bulb temperature, which is lower than the ambient dry bulb temperature. The lower a chiller condenses, the more efficient it is. This system has several essential components including:
- Cooling towers
- Condenser water pumps
- Make-up water pumps
- Chillers
- TES reservoirs
Air Cooled Chiller
Where aesthetics and environmental conditions or water access restrictions exist, the air-cooled chiller may be applied. Both air-cooled and water-cooled chillers depend on an air stream as a means of heat transfer. The difference is that the water-cooled chillers or rather the cooling towers use a humid air stream (ambient air stream + water spray) while the air-cooled chillers use a current of ambient air. Normally water-cooled chillers are cheaper and more efficient, with the disadvantage of high water consumption.
The benefits of using air-cooled chillers:
- No cooling towers
- Better environmental stability-no water wastage
- Low maintenance costs
- Easier to operate and control-tower freezing and tower bypass absent
- Chemical costs avoided
- Water costs avoided, especially in cities
- No water problems to deal with in case of disaster