Water Tank Sizing
Water Tank Sizing
(OP)
I am designing a plant in which i have two pumps collecting water from a tank and then cirulating it through two condensers to recieve heat before passing through a heat exchnager connected indirecrtly to a coolign tower before returning the water to the same tank.
The pump flows are both around 120m^3/hr. pipe/condenser system volume ~ 4-5m^3.
I have looked with success to find an guidance / eqns relating to sizing the tank.
I presume there are some guidlines based on flow rate in and out of the tank and the volume of water in the entire system. can anybody help me in finding these?
many thanks in advance
The pump flows are both around 120m^3/hr. pipe/condenser system volume ~ 4-5m^3.
I have looked with success to find an guidance / eqns relating to sizing the tank.
I presume there are some guidlines based on flow rate in and out of the tank and the volume of water in the entire system. can anybody help me in finding these?
many thanks in advance





RE: Water Tank Sizing
i don't have access to API 650 is anybody able to provide the typical equations
RE: Water Tank Sizing
While bigger is usually better, there is no code or guideline to help you size the tank. This is a matter of design preference
If indeed this is a closed system and your only losses are evaporation, I would suggest 3 to 5 minutes pump capacity. (~360-600 m^3).
My opinion only
-MJC
RE: Water Tank Sizing
In your case, your system sounds pretty small, although the condenser duties were not stated which will determing the system volume via pipe and exchanger size. Because the circulating water will include some treatment chemicals for corrosion, you might be able to use your tank to save your treated water when the system is shut down. Therefore: the tank can be sized to hold the complete inventory of hot water in the circulating loop, plus level (or elevation design) to keep the pump suction flooded, and some small extra inventory to allow a few days between make-ups in the event of a small system leak and evaporation from your tank (a loss rate of 100liters/hr *2days =5cum). The water can't really go anywhere else except if there is a leak (or someone drains water), so the usual rules about how much reaction time is needed between normal and low (or high) level is not very important. You will still have the option to run the tank at a higher level when the system is in operation.
This is what I think anyway, others may have a different view.
best wishes,
sshep