Cooling Tower Water Treatment Using Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) Project
Document Type
Oral Presentation
Campus where you would like to present
Ellensburg
Event Website
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source
Start Date
16-5-2021
End Date
22-5-2021
Keywords
Engineering, PLC, Cooling tower
Abstract
In water cooling towers used in industrial applications, continual use can lead to scaling, fouling, and corrosion inside the towers. These undesirable effects can lead to expensive equipment repair and plant downtime. This presentation will discuss the process of combating these problems with an automated system run by a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) that can prevent the listed problems by measuring conductivity, measured in microSiemens per centimeter (us/cm) and monitoring the number of cooling towers active. Furthermore, this presentation will analyze the effectiveness of the PLC bleed and seed system used to lower the conductivity and pH levels of the cooling tower water, and this will be shown by graphing the conductivity level over time, with an emphasis on the regions where the cooling tower treatment is active. This bleed and seed system is controlled by a Proportional Integral Derivative (PID) loop to change the chemical pumps speeds as necessary. The conclusion of this presentation should display the effectiveness of this project and map out the process used to achieve these results. Winner, College of Education and Professional Studies Presentation Award.
Recommended Citation
Brown, Alec, "Cooling Tower Water Treatment Using Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) Project" (2021). Symposium Of University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE). 9.
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source/2021/CEPS/9
Department/Program
Engineering Technologies, Safety, and Construction
Additional Mentoring Department
https://cwu.studentopportunitycenter.com/cooling-tower-water-treatment-using-programmable-logic-controller-plc-project/
Cooling Tower Water Treatment Using Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) Project
Ellensburg
In water cooling towers used in industrial applications, continual use can lead to scaling, fouling, and corrosion inside the towers. These undesirable effects can lead to expensive equipment repair and plant downtime. This presentation will discuss the process of combating these problems with an automated system run by a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) that can prevent the listed problems by measuring conductivity, measured in microSiemens per centimeter (us/cm) and monitoring the number of cooling towers active. Furthermore, this presentation will analyze the effectiveness of the PLC bleed and seed system used to lower the conductivity and pH levels of the cooling tower water, and this will be shown by graphing the conductivity level over time, with an emphasis on the regions where the cooling tower treatment is active. This bleed and seed system is controlled by a Proportional Integral Derivative (PID) loop to change the chemical pumps speeds as necessary. The conclusion of this presentation should display the effectiveness of this project and map out the process used to achieve these results. Winner, College of Education and Professional Studies Presentation Award.
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source/2021/CEPS/9
Faculty Mentor(s)
Lad Holden