http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karaganda

http://englishrussia.com/2013/07/22/kazakh-water-cooling-towers-morning-in-the-hyperboloid/#more-126441

There are about fifteen heating plants in Moscow. Their pipes 
can be of two types: smoking ones – high and “slender” and 
water-cooling towers – short and thick. The second ones are 
absolutely harmless for the environment, they are in fact 
like ordinary humidifiers but as high as a twelve-storey house.

Right now we are going to visit the Kazakhstan regional 
heating plant-3 in Karaganda and inspect the construction 
from all sides.

This is how water-cooling towers look like in Moscow from 
the height.

Water is cooled due to its partial evaporation when it drops 
down from the special sprinkler along which an air stream is 
supplied in the direction opposed to the water flow. In other
words, water flows down while the powerful current of the air
raises up evaporating and cooling the water.

When 1% of the water evaporates, the temperature of the remaining 
mass drops for 6 C.

The irrigation area of the water cooling tower is 3200 m.

Most cooling towers divide into two types – chimney and fan ones.

From the technical point of view fan cooling towers are 
more efficient because they provide deeper water cooling 
withstanding high specific heat loads, however they require 
electric energy for the fan drive operation).

In chimney-type cooling towers draft is created by means of
 high stack without electricity.

Fan cooling towers occupy less space and do not spoil landscape 
with their industrial appearance.

The view inside the hyperboloidal cooling tower at the height 
of ten meters. The sprinkling system disperses hot water.

78 m over the ground.

“Crater” of the cooling tower.

Rainbow.

Heating plant panorama.

The plant started its operation in 1977.

Today the plant has seven boilers and six turbines, but they plan to expand it.

The heating station operates on carbon. Annually it consumes 2 000 000 tons of coal.

The heating station produces 83% of all the heating and 98% of 
all the electric energy in Karaganda.  Available capacity: 
electric – 395 MW, heating – 736 Gcal/h.

In the control room.

Location: Karaganda, Kazakhstan