Traditional methods of evaporating water into the inlet air use media blocks and de-misters that increase the pressure drop, and there for reduce the power output capability of combustion turbines. These systems also require a significant amount of annual maintenance. These droplets can be made so small that they can achieve more evaporative efficiency than traditional evaporative coolers. Inlet pressure drop across the system typically cannot even be measured by plant instrumentation. Custom engineered advanced control system logic, combined with multiple nozzle arrays, are all designed to optimize the system's performance.
Special features provide for safe system operation.
Water pressure can vary, typically between 1,000 and 3,500 pounds per square inch depending on the required droplet size. Increased pressure reduces the size of the droplets. The key to determining the system design is the residence time of the water droplets in the inlet air, prior to the cooled air entering the compressor of the combustion turbine. This defines the required droplet size. Fogging systems cool inlet air down to the wet bulb temperature of the ambient.