Spray Pond

an arrangement for cooling water by spraying it into the free atmosphere. Spray ponds are usually used to reduce the temperature of water that is cooling compressors, heat-exchange apparatus, transformers, and so on in circulating water supply systems for industrial enterprises. The cooling effect is primarily due to the evaporation of part of the sprayed water. (The evaporation of 1 percent of the water lowers its temperature by approximately 6° C.) To create the requisite contact surface with the air, the water is sprayed from nozzles at a height of 1 to 1.5 m above the water level in the pond. The gauge pressure of the water in the pipes at the nozzles is between 50 and 70 kg/m² (0.5–0.7 kilogram-force per cm²). The type and number of nozzles and the size of the spray pond’s area are chosen according to the quantity of water being cooled. Spray ponds are simpler to build and operate than cooling towers. However, their unit cooling capacity is relatively small and depends to an appreciable extent on wind velocity and direction.