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Sensitivity of air desiccant cooling system to climatic conditions: a comparative study on many systems

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Abstract

Air desiccant cooling systems are burgeoning. Their major advantage is the use of water alone as a refrigerant. Pairing with efficient solar panels looks promising. Much research is underway to improve the techniques and performances of installations. In this article, we present the results of a calculation code that we developed from experimental data. It studies the conditions of air treatment by desiccation according to three different techniques with wide intervals of climatic conditions in order to point the limits of applicability. The objective is to precisely define the area in which each type of handling system can be used. We started by simulating the treatment of the air in the desiccant handling system (DHU) operating according to four techniques in order to choose one for the Algerian climate. A validation of the results with the experimental data was made. According to our calculations, DHU using Pennington cycle are not able to achieve satisfactory comfort conditions. An improvement in the Pennington cycle is proposed. It consists in adding an exchanger cooled by the water leaving the heating circuit and which is used to cool the fresh air. This solution seems effective and gives clearly acceptable results for the climatic conditions studied. In the last part of this article, we present the calculation results relating to the sensitivity of each technique to variations in temperature and humidity conditions. We have thus successfully delimited the climatic zones of applicability of each system from the process of the evolution of the air inside the building (coefficient ɛ). It has been confirmed that the improved Pennington cycle is the system best suited to Algerian climatic conditions.

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Abbreviations

AHU:

Air handing unit

amb:

Ambient

COP:

Coefficient of performance

DHU:

Desiccant handing unit

DW:

Desiccant wheel

E:

Outlet point

Elec:

Electric

Exp:

Experimental

h:

Enthalpy (kJ/kg)

HC:

Heat exchanger

Hum:

Humidifier

I:

Inlet point

\( \dot{m} \) :

Mass flow rate (kg/h)

ret:

Return

RH:

Relative humidity (%)

sol:

Solar

sim:

Simulation

SW:

Rotary heat exchanger

t:

Temperature (°C)

x:

Humidity ratio (gwater vapor/kgdry air)

z:

Altitude (m)

∆:

Difference

η:

Efficiency

ε:

Direction of air treatment (kJ/kgda)

ρ:

Volumic mass (kg/m3)

da:

Dry air

e:

Outlet

h:

Humide

i:

Inlet

max:

Maximum

min:

Minimum

s:

Blowing

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire de Génie Energétique et Matériaux (LGEM), Université de Biskra, B.P. 145 R.P. 07000, Biskra, Algeria

    Mohammed Zerouali

  2. University of Larbi Ben m’hidi, Oum-El-Bouaghi, Algeria

    Nabil Labed

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  1. Mohammed Zerouali
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  2. Nabil Labed
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Correspondence to Mohammed Zerouali.

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Zerouali, M., Labed, N. Sensitivity of air desiccant cooling system to climatic conditions: a comparative study on many systems. Energy Syst 13, 191–213 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12667-020-00412-w

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