ABSTRACT
Desiccant dehumidification has emerged as an alternative or as a supplement to conventional vapor compression systems for cooling and conditioning air in commercial and industrial buildings to remove the latent heat load. The advantages of desiccant-based air conditioning systems, compared to conventional ones based on the dehumidification by cooling, have been highlighted in many research papers. The energy saving and the reduction of the environmental impact are higher when the desiccant material is regenerated by using ‘‘free'' thermal energy.
We study performance of air humidifier cooler systems with a rotary desiccant wheel, as the heat and moisture transfer medium in hot and dry climates as an alternative to vapor compression cooling. The wheel is symmetrically balanced and is operated with counter-flow pattern. This investigation examines the effect of operating conditions and different design parameters of desiccant wheel with air humidifier cooler such as: the regeneration temperature, regeneration air mass flow rate, desiccant wheel rotational speed, silica gel quantity (porosity), concentration of calcium chloride solution (mass%), and the concentration of sodium chloride solution (mass%). Air humidifier cooler and desiccant wheel are conducted on a lab-scale unit. Test rig consists of a main unit and accessories were carried out in the laboratories of Faculty of Energy Engineering, Aswan University.