Patent ID: 7364141
Filing Date: 2008-04-29
Classification: F28C,F28D,F28F,Y02B,Y10S

Abstract:
1. A cooling tower apparatus, comprising: a housing structure having an internal chamber with two sides defining its width and an upper side air inlet and a lower side air inlet and a top air outlet, an evaporative fill media having a first air path from the upper side air inlet through the fill media to the top air outlet; a supply of cooling water to the fill media; a closed circuit heat exchanger disposed below the evaporative fill media having a second air path from the lower side air inlet through the exchanger to the top air outlet; a baffle disposed in between the fill media and the heat exchanger that at least substantially separates the first and second air paths from each other said baffle comprising a tray that collects water from the evaporative fill media and has nozzles to redistribute the collected water onto the heat exchanger; and an air drift reducer disposed adjacent the heat exchanger, the drift reducer having an axis of orientation perpendicular to a major air flow axis, wherein the axis of orientation of the drift reducer is angled relative to the vertical direction, wherein the baffle, the fill media, and the heat exchanger each extend across less than the width of the chamber, so that the first and second air paths mix before exiting the top air outlet.