ABSTRACT
Air-conditioning (AC) systems, which operate on traditional vapor compression refrigeration (VCR) systems, consume a substantial proportion of the world’s electricity consumed by the building industry. In the scope of decreasing greenhouse gas emissions, energy consumption, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning industries have focused on finding alternatives to electrically operated VCR systems. A combination of a liquid desiccant dehumidification system (LDDS) with a VCR system has been recommended as a superior substitute in warm and moist climates. The focus of this research article is to design and fabricate a small-scale 5 kW hybrid LDDS system by integrating the distinct technologies mentioned above. Additionally, data collected on the vapor pressure of potassium formate (KCOOH) at various solution concentrations and temperatures is being collected to assist in encouraging research and determine the optimal concentration range. In this study, experimental analysis and comparison of dehumidification performance was conducted between two desiccants by analyzing the effects of input variables (,
, and
) on the output response (
,
, and
). The results showed that the solution with a 69.92% KCOOH concentration had nearly the same vapor pressure as a solution with a 35% LiCl concentration. Moreover, it was revealed that the lowest values of
and
and the highest value of
yield maximum values of the output responses. At the same combination of input variables, the KCOOH desiccant has a much higher hybrid system coefficient of performance than the LiCl desiccant.
Nomenclature
ACAir-conditioning
COPCoefficient of performance
Coefficient of performance of hybrid system
Coefficient of performance of heat pump
Coefficient of performance of system
CaCl2Calcium chloride
Isobaric specific heat (kJ/kg.K)
DOEDesign of experiments
D1Concentration of KCOOH solution
D2Concentration of LiCl solution
Latent heat of evaporation (kJ/kg)
Enthalpy of absorption (kJ/kg)
Enthalpy of dilution (kJ/kg)
hpHeat pump
IAQindoor air quality
KCOOHPotassium formate
LDDSLiquid desiccant dehumidification system
LDACLiquid desiccant air conditioning
LiClLithium chloride
LiBrLithium bromide
LHLLatent heat load
MgCl2Magnesium chloride
MARDMean absolute relative deviation
MRRMoisture removal rate
TRTons of refrigeration
Temperature (
Temperature of air (
)
VCRVapor compression refrigeration
Greek letters
Specific humidity change (kg of water vapor/kg of dry air)
Specific humidity of air (kg of water vapor/kg of dry air)
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).