I was wondering what you all thought would get wort temp down faster. Would an ice bath plus ground water copper coil chiller be faster than running ice water through the coil chiller with my sub pump?
This is a pure physics question.
Yes, applying an ice bath in addition WILL lower temps faster.
The real question is how much faster. That depends of ground water temp, flow, wort temp, ambient temp, type of vessel, level of immersion, is the ice bath being mixed, is the wort being stirred, etc.
If you are describing putting the wort in an ice bath, then using an immersion chiller in the wort hooked up to tap water supply, versus recirculating the water in the immersion chiller from the ice path, then probably not significantly faster. the ice bath will help some but with out fluid flow around the wort it will form a barrier layer that will reduce transfer of heat. now if you have the ability to recirc the ice water through the chiller, then why not put the wort in the ice bath that you are using with the submersible pump. it is hard to beat 32 degree water going through the chiller
Are you talking about both methods from the beginning of chilling or after you have reached a more reasonable temperature, say below 100F?