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Cooling towers are essentially large heat exchanges that use air and water to remove excess heat from an industrial process.  The excess heat is dumped into the body of water through pipes.  The water on the surface will evaporate which causes a cooling action and thus helps reduce the water temperature. Common applications for cooling towers are in oil refineries, chemical plants, thermal power stations, nuclear power stations and HVAC systems.

Challenge:  Cooling towers must maintain a proper water level for the system to work properly.  Running low or completely out of water will cause the system to overheat and damage critical equipment.  On the other hand, overfilling the tank with water can be just as disastrous as it can cause damage to equipment below.  Finding a durable, low maintenance system that can control the liquid level between two points can be a challenge.

Solution: Gems Sensors Non-Contact Radar Level Sensor

The Gems Non-Contact Radar Level transmitter is a non-contact continuous level sensor.  Radar technology works by sending out short microwave signals toward the liquid via the sensor.  The microwave signal then hits the liquid surface and bounces back toward the sensor.  The sensor utilizes the time-of-flight principle which uses the known speed of the microwave, and the time it took for the signal to return, divided by two (since it had to travel down to the liquid and then back up to the sensor) to determine the distance between the liquid level and the sensor.  Since most level is based on the height of the liquid, not the height of the non-liquid (air), the air height is subtracted from the total tank depth to determine the liquid level! 

Gems Sensors Non-Contact Radar Sensor is a great fit in Cooling Towers for several reasons

• Comes standard with Bluetooth® configuration/setup which is more efficient than installing a multiple channel relay with individual probes and floats.  This helps save countless installation man hours and eliminates the potential failure modes from dozens down to practically one.
• The non-contact design also eliminates the need to use multiple metal probes and fittings within the tank.  Conductivity probes require routine maintenance to ensure the probes are clean and not coated, which could lead to inaccurate sensing of the water.     
• Non-contact design means no media ever encounters the Radar sensor.  This eliminates the need to worry about material compatibility between the media and sensor components.
• The non-contact design is by default a no moving parts solution, which eliminates the potential for any mechanical failures from a float or probe-based sensor. 
• Radar through the air technology is a very accurate sensing technology and can detect liquid level within 5mm, with no effect on its accuracy based on changes in temperature or pressure. 
• Radar technology is not affected by condensation or dust in the air like ultra-sonic based sensors. 

The above characteristics make Gems Sensors Radar sensor an ideal solution to work in Cooling Towers. With a standard 4-20 mA or Modbus output, it is compatible with almost any type of controller or display. Gems Sensors Non-Contact Radar sensor also has built-in Bluetooth® capabilities making configuring the sensor to your specific tank easy and hassle free. This helps save countless installation man hours and eliminated the need for timely and costly tank modification.

Gems Radar Level Sensor is an excellent match for Cooling Towers

Additional Sensors for Cooling Towers:

• LS-800, Multi-Float Level Switch
• LS-700, Compact Multi-Float Level Switch
• Series DF, Dual Function Relay with Pump Control and Low Water Cutoff Capability