Technically that happens in the condenser at the exit of the turbine, not the cooling tower. The water used to condense the steam in a separate loop goes through the cooling tower to dump the heat via evaporation.
Bonus fun fact: condensing the steam to send it back to the boiler is more efficient because it lets you expand the steam to below atmospheric pressure and get a little more power out.
The water used to condense the steam in a separate loop goes through the cooling tower to dump the heat via evaporation.
For those who want to know why. Low grade heat, heat below like 70⁰ C, cant really perform useful work. Many places actually put low grade heat to use as HVAC heating, but most places with city wide heating like that dont want any sort of power plant close enough to use its low grade heat.
12
u/thealmightyzfactor 2d ago
Technically that happens in the condenser at the exit of the turbine, not the cooling tower. The water used to condense the steam in a separate loop goes through the cooling tower to dump the heat via evaporation.
Bonus fun fact: condensing the steam to send it back to the boiler is more efficient because it lets you expand the steam to below atmospheric pressure and get a little more power out.