Abstracto

Energy Performance Evaluation of Desiccant Based Air Conditioning Test Rig

Niyati Wadkar , Amit Patil , Amol Kolhe

A desiccant is a solid or liquid which dries air by attracting water molecules onto the desiccant surface. The dry air is then cooled by direct or indirect evaporation and sent to the air conditioned space. After the desiccant becomes saturated, it is heated to release the moisture it attracted from the air. This is called "reactivating" the desiccant. In traditional A/C system which is based on Vapour Compression Refrigeration (VCRs), the air is cooled up to its Dew Point Temperature ( DPT), for dehumidifying it and it is heated up to required temperature. But in Desiccant based hybrid A/C system, the air is passed through desiccant material where it dehumidifies the air by absorbing moisture from air and then air is cooled up to required temperature. By incorporating desiccant dehumidification with traditional VCR system, it reduces the energy cost which is required in traditional VCR system to cool the air up to its Dew Point Temperature (DPT), for dehumidifying it. The latent load can be reduced by desiccant material. This study aims to evaluate energy performance for the given test rig.