This Working Panel was established in 2008 and is currently dealing mainly with aspects of approval, design and operation of cooling towers and its respective states of technology, as there are

• Basic approvals for the design of cooling systems under consideration of the IPPC-Guideline 2008/1/EG (91/61/EG)
• Evaluation of materials and products of the cooling fill (including preventative fire protection)
• Automated operation modes/in winter
• Design data for the structural design (e. g. operation temperature effects due to process-relating differing operation modes)
• "Best Practice" concerning new erections and maintenance (with system consistency in case of exchanging parts)
• Special problems in conjunction with sound attenuating baffles
• Consequences and considerations (avoidance/reduction) of recirculation effects within groups of cell cooling towers
• Cooling design/optimization
• Types of cooling systems (cell-, large cooling towers; continuous-/once-through-/circuit-/mixed cooling) and criteria for utilization
• Specifics for flue gas discharges via cooling towers (i. a. measuring concepts/measuring spots for emissions, discharge procedures for the vapour-/flue gas-condensate etc.)

The main focus for future tasks will be the revision of VGB-publications concerning cooling issues (e. g. VGB-R 129 P, VGB-R 135 P, VGB-R 611)

Service

• Consultancy for optimization of operations & maintenance
• Inspections and damage investigations at site and in the laboratory on cooling systems, turbine condensers and other heat exchangers

Current topics

• Amendment of the IPPC-BREF-Document "Industrial Cooling Systems"
• Investigations (tests) concerning fire behaviour of different special cooling fills
• Microbiological investigations on cooling towers