Condensate recovery from remote cooling units

Abstract

A cooling system has a chiller to remove heat from a cooling liquid and a plurality of remote cooling units each comprises a heat exchanger coil, a fan blowing air through the heat exchanger coil, a drip pan receiving drip water condensing on the heat exchanger coil, a cooling conduit connected to the chiller outlet and the heat exchanger coil, a return conduit connected to the chiller inlet and the heat exchanger coil, and a suction conduit connected to receive water from a pan outlet of the drip pan. A liquid pump circulates the cooling liquid through the chiller and through each remote cooling unit, and a suction pump connected to an output end of each suction conduit draws drip water from each drip pan through each of the suction conduits and deposits the drip water into a collector.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A cooling system comprising:
 a chiller operative to remove heat from a cooling liquid passing through the chiller from a chiller inlet to a chiller outlet;   a plurality of remote cooling units, each remote cooling unit comprising:
 a heat exchanger coil and a fan operative to blow air through the heat exchanger coil; 
 a drip pan configured to receive drip water that condenses on an exterior of the heat exchanger coil; 
 a cooling conduit adapted for connection to the chiller outlet and a coil inlet of the heat exchanger coil; 
 a return conduit adapted for connection to the chiller inlet and a coil outlet of the heat exchanger coil; and 
 a suction conduit connected at an input end thereof to receive water from a pan outlet of the drip pan; 
   a liquid pump operative to circulate the cooling liquid through the chiller and from the chiller outlet to each remote cooling unit and back to the chiller inlet; and   a suction pump connected at a suction port of the suction assembly to an output end of each suction conduit and operative to draw drip water from each drip pan through each of the suction conduits and deposit the drip water into a collector.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1  wherein each cooling conduit is insulated. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1  wherein for each remote cooling unit, the cooling conduit, the return conduit, and the suction conduit are enclosed together in a conduit cover. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 3  wherein the conduit cover is wrapped around the cooling conduit, the return conduit, and the suction conduit. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1  wherein each of the remote cooling units comprises a float operated valve on the corresponding drip pan, wherein the float operated valve is operative to open the pan outlet when a level of the drip water in the drip pan rises to a selected level that is above the pan outlet. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5  wherein the float operated valve is operative to close the pan outlet before the level of the drip water falls to a level where the pan outlet is exposed to the atmosphere. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 5  wherein the suction pump operates at all times when at least one pan outlet is open, and comprising a sensor operative to turn off the suction pump when all pan outlets are closed. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7  wherein the suction pump comprises a timer operative to periodically start the suction pump. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1  comprising a trailer, and wherein the chiller and remote cooling units are placed on the trailer for transport to a desired location. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 1  comprising a mist maker operative to transform the drip water in the collector into a mist directed to cool the chiller. 
     
     
         11 . A method of providing cooling to a plurality of neighboring enclosures, the method comprising:
 providing a chiller operative to remove heat from a cooling liquid passing through the chiller from a chiller inlet to a chiller outlet;   providing a remote cooling unit in each enclosure, each remote cooling unit comprising a heat exchanger coil;   circulating the cooling liquid through the chiller and from the chiller outlet through the heat exchanger coil of each remote cooling unit and back to the chiller inlet;   in each remote cooling unit, collecting drip water that condenses on an exterior of each heat exchanger coil;   connecting an input end of a suction conduit to receive drip water collected in each remote cooling unit; and   providing a suction at an output end of the suction conduit and drawing drip water from each remote cooling unit into a collector.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11  comprising circulating the cooling liquid through the chiller and from the chiller outlet to the heat exchanger coil of each remote cooling unit by connecting a conduit assembly between the chiller and each remote cooling unit. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12  wherein the conduit assembly comprises:
 a cooling conduit connected between the chiller outlet and a coil inlet of the heat exchanger coil; 
 a return conduit connected between the chiller inlet and a coil outlet of the heat exchanger coil; 
 a suction conduit connected at an input end thereof to receive drip water from the remote cooling unit; and 
 a conduit cover enclosing the cooling conduit, the return conduit, and the suction conduit. 
 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13  comprising, in each remote cooling unit, collecting drip water in a drip pan and allowing drip water in the drip pan to rise to a selected level before connecting the input end of the corresponding suction conduit to the drip pan. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14  wherein, in each remote cooling unit, a pan outlet of the drip pan is connected to the input end of the corresponding suction conduit through a float valve, and wherein the float valve is operative to open and connect the pan outlet to the input end of the corresponding suction conduit when a level of the drip water in the drip pan rises to a selected level that is above the pan outlet. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15  comprising ceasing to provide a suction at the output end of the suction conduit when the float valve in each of the remote cooling units is closed. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 11  mounting the chiller and the remote cooling units on a vehicle and transporting the chiller and remote cooling units to a location adjacent to the neighboring enclosures.