Modular cooling tower

Claim 2

A transportable cooling tower module, comprising: a basin; four walls extending vertically upward from said basin; an air supply duct having an air intake opening defined in a bottom thereof and an air discharge outlet defined in a top thereof, said air supply duct extending vertically through said basin so that said basin laterally surrounds said air supply duct; a vertical axis fan located in said air supply duct; a drainage collection system located above said basin and said air supply duct, said drainage collection system including a plurality of parallel elongated collection plates having a length, said collection plates being sloped and overlapping in a direction transverse to said length of said collection plates, each collection plate having a lower gutter portion arranged to drain into said basin, said overlapping collection plates covering said fan; a body of fill material located directly above said drainage collection system, said body of fill material having a vertical thickness of at least approximately four feet; a liquid distribution system including at least one horizontal pipe supported from opposed ones of said side walls and including at least one nozzle spaced above said body of fill material so as to have a free fall height of spray from said nozzle to said fill material of less than one foot; a drift eliminator located above said horizontal pipe of said liquid distribution system; and said transportable cooling tower module having an overall height from a bottom of said basin to a top of said walls of less than eleven feet.

Claim 3

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1, wherein: said drift eliminate is supported at least in part directly on said horizontal pipe of said liquid distribution system.

Claim 4

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1, wherein: said collection plates each have an uppermost supporting surface; and said body of fill material is supported directly on said uppermost supporting surfaces of said collection plates.

Claim 5

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1 further comprising: three additional air supply ducts, making a total of four air supply ducts extending vertically through said basin, said basin laterally surrounding each of said four air supply ducts; and three additional vertical axis fans, one of which is located in each of said three additional air supply duct.

Claim 6

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1, wherein: said fan is a direct drive electrically powered fan.

Claim 7

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1, wherein: said body of fill material includes at least four layers of corrugated plastic fill material, each layer being approximately one foot thick.

Claim 8

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1, wherein: said overall height of said module is no greater than ten feet, four inches.

Claim 9

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1, wherein: said nozzle includes a rotating plate having a plurality of blades thereon for distributing liquid from said liquid distribution system over said body of fill material.

Claim 10

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1, wherein: said basin and said walls form an integrally constructed fiber reinforced plastic structure.

Claim 11

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1, wherein: said horizontal pipe includes flanged ends substantially flush with said opposed ones of said side walls, said horizontal pipe and said opposed ones of said side walls forming an integrally constructed fiber reinforced plastic structure.

Claim 12

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 10, in combination with a second such module, said modules being joined together structurally and for common fluid supply to their liquid distribution systems, by bolting together of one of said flanged ends of said horizontal pipe of said first module to one of said flanged ends of said horizontal pipe of said second module.

Claim 13

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1, in combination with three other such modules, said four modules being arranged in a rectangular plan shape with each module occupying one quadrant of said rectangular plan shape.

Claim 14

A modular construction water cooling tower, including said module of claim 1 and at least one other substantially identical module, said modules being connected together structurally and having a common liquid supply system, each of said modules being capable of independent operation when separated from each other.

Claim 15

The modular construction water cooling tower of claim 13, wherein each of said modules is a prefabricated module which can be separately transported to a construction site for assembly into said modular construction water cooling tower.

Claim 16

The modular construction cooling tower of claim 13, wherein said modules are aligned in a row and are mounted upon a wheeled transport to provide a portable cooling tower.

Claim 17

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1, wherein: each of said four walls has a width of approximately eight and one-half feet.

Claim 18

The transportable cooling tower module of claim 1, wherein: each of said four walls has a width of approximately twelve feet.

Claim 19

A cooling tower, comprising: at least one layer of fill material; a liquid distribution system for distributing liquid onto said fill material; a drainage collection system located under said fill material; at least one fan located under said drainage collection system to force air directly upward from said fan through said drainage collection system and through said fill material; a frame supporting said liquid distribution system, said fill material, said drainage collection system and said fan; a basin supported by said frame and located below said drainage collection system to receive liquid run-off from said drainage collection system; an air supply duct having an air intake opening defined in a bottom of said tower and having an air discharge opening directed upward toward said drainage collection system; said fan being located within said air supply duct; said basin laterally surrounding said air supply duct; wherein said drainage collection system has an underside against which air is directly blown by said fan; wherein said air supply duct include a secondary liquid collection means for directing condensate and spray collecting on said underside of said drainage collection system into said basin; and wherein said air supply duct includes a lower cylindrical duct portion telescopingly received within an upper cylindrical duct portion with an annular gap between overlapping portions of said lower and upper cylindrical duct portions, said annular gap being communicated with said basin and being part of said secondary liquid collection means.

Claim 20

A cooling tower, comprising: at least one layer of fill material; a liquid distribution system for distributing liquid onto said fill material; a drainage collection system located under said fill material; at least one fan located under said drainage collection system to force air directly upward from said fan through said drainage collection system and through said fill material; a frame supporting said liquid distribution system, said fill material, said drainage collection system and said fan; a basin supported by said frame and located below said drainage collection system to receive liquid run-off from said drainage collection system; an air supply duct having an air intake opening defined in a bottom of said tower and having an air discharge opening directed upward toward said drainage collection system; said fan being located within said air supply duct; said basin laterally surrounding said air supply duct; wherein said drainage collection system has an underside against which air is directly blown by said fan; wherein said air supply duct include a secondary liquid collection means for directing condensate and spray collecting on said underside of said drainage collection system into said basin; and wherein said air supply duct includes a lower cylindrical duct portion telescopingly received within an upper cylindrical duct portion with an annular gap between overlapping portions of said lower and upper cylindrical duct portions, said annular gap being communicated with said basin and being part of said secondary liquid collection means.

Claim 21

The cooling tower of claim 18, further comprising: liquid level control means for maintaining a liquid level in said basin within said annular gap.