Abstract :
Cooling towers generally represent the most economical atmospheric heat
disposal systems. In normal operation, water constantly circulates by taking the heat
contained from the heat transfer process. After water gets the heat, the hot water will
be pumped towards the top of the tower and dropped downwards towards the
container. The evaporative action aims to remove heat from the water by using air
support. This study used corrugated plastic filler material so that water and air contact
became longer. It is expected to increase the range value, approach and effectiveness
of cooling tower.
The purpose of this research was to find out the performance of mini cooling
tower with variations in test time conducted against the effectiveness of cooling tower
and to know the results of comparison of cooling tower performance testing that uses
filler and without filler in the difference in test time. The mini cooling tower size is
40cm x 30cm x 90cm, and the water temperature ranges from 40°C.
The results showed that the cooling tower performance effectiveness using filler
was 78.34 % in the morning, 65.22 % in the afternoon, and 80.93 % in the evening.
Meanwhile, the effectiveness without filler was 36.51 % in the morning, 31.32 % in the
afternoon, and 42.38 % in the evening. The highest performance occurred at the
cooling tower using filler material conducted in the evening with 14.83 °C range value,
3.43 °C approach, 80.93 % effectiveness, and 2,578 kJ/s cooling capacity. The lowest
performance occurred at the cooling tower without filler conducted in the afternoon
with 3.44 °C range, 7.54 °C approach, 31.32 % effectiveness and 0.598 kJ/s cooling
capacity. Conclusion, the best performance is done in mini cooling tower using filler
with test time at night because low temperature at night supports the process of
maximum heat transfer. Because mini cooling tower using filler with test time at night
has a range value of 14.83°C, approach 3.43°C, effectiveness 80.93%, and cooling
capacity of 2,578 kJ/s.