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HVAC SYSTEMS AND

DESIGNS
PSYCHROMETRY OF AIR
CONDITIONING
PROCESSES Processes in
A/C Equipment

Armando C. Emata PME3045


January 8, 2015
TOPIC OBJECTIVES
Solutions to last meetings board-work and todays assignments
Hygroscopic materials used in air washers
Adiabatic Dehumidifier
Water injection in air washers
Steam injection in air washers
Simple air conditioning system and state and mass rate of supply of
air
Summer air conditioning Apparatus Dew Point
o Introduction

o Summer air conditioning system with ventilation air-zero bypass

factor
Assignment for next meeting
USE OF HYGROSCOPIC MATERIALS
IN AIR WASHER
Hygroscopic solutions such as brines, glycols, etc., exert
lower vapour pressures as compared to pure water at
the same temperature as shown in Fig.1.
The saturation curve A on the psychrometric chart
represents the vapour pressure of water pA .
Representative vapour-pressure curves for certain
hygroscopic solutions are shown as B, C, D, E, etc.
The vapour-pressures pB , p , etc., of the solutions are
C
lower than the vapour pressure pA of water at the same
temperature t.
USE OF HYGROSCOPIC MATERIALS
IN AIR WASHER
A
B
C D
1

A pA

C pC

ts t
Fig. 1 Dehumidification of air by hygroscopic solutions
USE OF HYGROSCOPIC MATERIALS
IN AIR WASHER
If a hygroscopic solution such as C at temperature t is
circulated in an air washer instead of water at the same
temperature, the condition line will be 1-C instead of 1-A
for the initial state of air.
Thus, a spray of the hygroscopic solution is more
effective for dehumidification.
The solution after absorbing moisture, however,
becomes dilute and has to be regenerated again by
heating and driving off the water vapour.
ADIABATIC DEHUMIDIFIER
Adiabatic dehumidification is based on the principle of
adsorption, or, capillary action.
Process:
o The vapour which is condensed at the surface of the adsorbent
is drawn into capillaries, thereby reducing the vapour pressure at
the surface causing a pressure gradient, and hence a mass
transfer from the passing air stream to the absorbing surface.
o As the capillaries get filled with water, the attraction decreases
and the rate of dehumidification falls off.
Thermodynamically, the adsorption process is the
reverse of the adiabatic saturation process as shown in
Fig.2.
ADIABATIC DEHUMIDIFIER

Adsorption
1 dehumidification

Constant
WBT line

Fig. 2 Adsorption dehumidification process


ADIABATIC DEHUMIDIFIER
As the air passes over the adsorbing surface, water
vapour flows to the surface through the air film,
condenses and releases its latent heat which raises the
adsorbent and air temperatures.
Thus, the heat of condensation supplies the sensible
heat for the heating of air.
In actual practice, however, the process is accompanied
with a release of an additional heat called the heat of
adsorption.
This heat, with adsorbents, such as silica gel and
activated alumina, is very large. Thus the sensible heat
ADIABATIC DEHUMIDIFIER
gain of air exceeds the loss of latent heat and the
process 1-2 lies above the constant WBT line as shown
in Fig. 2.
It is to be noted that after adsorption, the material
becomes saturated and has to be reactivated by heating
as in the case of hygroscopic solutions.
WATER INJECTION
Let liquid water at temperature tf be injected and sprayed
into a flowing air stream with the help of nozzles. The
condition of the air will change depending on the amount
of water that evaporates.
The enthalpy of vaporization will come from the enthalpy
of the air.
Let us consider that the amount of water that has been
evaporated m is exactly equal to the amount injected.
The process line is shown in Fig. 3.
WATER INJECTION

Co
ns
tan
tW
BT

2b 2c

2a
1

t t
t
Fig. 3 Process with liquid water injection
WATER INJECTION
The air flow rate is ma . The mass and enthalpy balances
give

m
= + ----- (15.20)
m
m
h = h + ----- h f
m
= h + ( ) h (15.21)
f

where h is the enthalpy of liquid water.


f
WATER INJECTION
It is evident that from Eq. (15.21) that if water is injected
at the wet bulb temperature of the air, the sigma heat
function is constant and the process follows the constant
WBT line 1-2b.
Otherwise, the process follows line 1-2a or 1-2c,
depending on whether the temperature of the water is
lower than the WBT of air.
Nevertheless since the term ( )hf is extremely
small compared to h and h, lines 1-2a and 1-2c are
very close to line 1-2b, irrespective of the temperature of
the injected water.
WATER INJECTION
NOTES:
o In recent years, this method of evaporative cooling has
gained popularity specially in places where there is
shortage of water since it eliminates at least 2-3% water
loss which occurs in air washer equipment.
o Also, it provides for individual control of supply conditions
for different spaces.
o And the equipment is simple and economical.
STEAM INJECTION
Steam is normally injected into outdoor fresh air which is
then supplied for the conditioning of textile mills where
high humidities have to be maintained.
The process can be analyzed by considering mass and
energy balances.
If m is the mass of steam supplied with enthalpy h and
ma the mass of dry air, then the leaving air state is given
by
m
= + ----- (15.22)
ma
m
h = h + ----- h (15.23)
ma
STEAM INJECTION
h

2

Steam
h injection

t t
t
Fig. 4 Process with steam injection
STEAM INJECTION
The process is shown in Fig. 4. The dry bulb
temperature of air changes very little during the process.
Note: The reference state for zero enthalpy for h, h,
and h must be the same.

Discuss Example Problem 15.4, page 492...


SIMPLE AIR
CONDITIONING SYSTEM
AND STATE AND MASS
RATE OF SUPPLY AIR
TOPIC DISCUSSION
The problem of air conditioning a space essentially
reduces to the calculation of the state and mass rate of
air to be supplied to the space-necessary to pick up its
sensible and latent heat loads.
For the simplest air conditioning system, consider a
space which is to be maintained at the room or inside
conditions of, say, dry bulb temperature t and humidity
ratio .
Let Qs represent the sensible heat gain and G, the
moisture gain of the room from internal and external
sources.
TOPIC DISCUSSION
In the usual nomenclature we may denote the room
sensible heat and the room latent heat as RSH and RLH
respectively.
Thus the room total heat, as in RTH is

RTH = RSH + RLH

In the case of the air conditioning apparatus, the return


of re-circulated air from the room is conditioned to a
supply dry bulb temperature of ts and a humidity ratio of
s .
TOPIC DISCUSSION
Air is then supplied to the space by a supply air fan.
The schematic diagram of the whole system is shown in
Fig. 5 below.
Return or Re-circulated Qs
Air at t, Room at
t ,

Air conditioning
apparatus Supply Air
Fan

Supply air at ts , s

Fig. 5 Simple air conditioning system


TOPIC DISCUSSION
Assuming steady-state conditions and the supply air flow
rate as (cmm)s , we have the following two equations by
sensible and latent heat balances.
Sensible Heat Balance
RSH = Q = s C (t p t ) s
= 0.0204 (cmm) (t s t ) (15.24)
s
Moisture or Latent Heat Balance
RLH = Q = L (h ) fg 0( s)
= 2500G = 50 (cmm) (s ) (15.25)
s
TOPIC DISCUSSION
We thus have only two equations and three independent
variables, viz., ts , s and (cmm)s , to solve. Hence one of
the three variables is to be known in advance or fixed
from experience.
Generally, it is either the supply air flow rate or the
supply air temperature. The other two parameters can
then be calculated.
Thus, we find that there will be one supply air state
corresponding to each supply air rate. An innumerable
number of such combinations are possible.
TOPIC DISCUSSION
But for all these states we have from Eqs. (15.24) and
(15.25)

0.0204(t ts ) Qs
--------------------------------------- = ------------ (15.26)
0.0204(t ts ) + 50( s ) Qs + QL
which is the same as Eq. (15.16) for the SHF line.

Thus all the supply air states lie on a line, the slope of
which is governed by Eq. (15.26). The locus of these
states is the sensible heat factor or the condition line
drawn from the room state.
TOPIC DISCUSSION
Fig. 6 shows a number of such supply air states, s,
s,..., etc., in a summer air conditioning plant, that satisfy
the governing equations.
A similar treatment is possible for a winter air
conditioning system.
The following example gives an illustration of the
calculation procedure for an industrial problem in which
an adsorption type of dehumidifier is used.

Discuss Example Problem 15.5...


SUMMER AIR
CONDITIONING
APPARATUS DEW POINT
INTRODUCTION
In summer, the outside air temperature and humidity are
both high.
The room, therefore, gains heat as well as moisture.
It is thus required to cool and dehumidify the re-
circulated room air in the air conditioning apparatus
either by the use of a cooling coil or by an air washer in
which chilled water is sprayed.
The process follows the room sensible heat factor
(RSHF) line.
INTRODUCTION
The room sensible heat factor is the ratio of the room
sensible heat to the room total heat

RSH RSH
RSHF = ------------------ = ---------
RSH + RLH RTH
In a cooling and dehumidification process, the
temperature at which the RSHF or condition line
intersects the saturation curve is called room apparatus
dew point (Room ADP).
Thus tADP in Fig. 6 denotes the effective surface
temperature ts .
INTRODUCTION
h

hs
hADP i
S
S
s3


S
s2
S S s1
ADP
X (1 X)

ts = t ADP ts ts ts ts
t

Fig. 6 Locus of supply air states for cooling and apparatus dew point
INTRODUCTION
The condition line i-S represents the locus of all possible
supply air states.
One extremity of the condition line is i which would be
supply air state with an infinite quantity of supply air.
The other extremity is S which is the supply state with
the minimum supply air requirement corresponding to
the given condition line.
It is not possible to have any other supply air state with a
DBT lower or higher than the ADP on the saturation
curve which would satisfy the given condition line.
INTRODUCTION
The minimum quantity of supply air will then be given by
either of the following three equations:

RSH
(cmm) = --------------------
s, min (15.27a)
0.0204(t tADP )
RLH (15.27b)
= -------------------
50( ADP )
RTH (15.27c)
= -------------------
0.02(h hADP )
INTRODUCTION
In the case of an actual coil with a bypass factor of X, the
leaving air state will be at s.
It is seen that the effect of the bypass factor is to
decrease the difference in temperature between the
room air and supply air, and hence to increase the
supply air quantity over its minimum value.
For any supply air state, the temperature difference
(t ts ) available to counteract the room sensible heat
load is called the dehumidified rise and the
corresponding dehumidified air quantity (cmm)d which is
equal to the quantity of the supply air, is obtained by the
INTRODUCTION
equation for sensible heat balance, and considering the
effect of bypass factor

RSH
(cmm)d = (cmm)s = --------------------
0.0204(t ts )
RSH
= ------------------------------- (15.28)
0.0204(t tADP )(1 X)
It can also be found from the equations of latent heat or
total heat balances.
SUMMER AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
WITH VENTILATION AIR-ZERO BYPASS
FACTOR
The introduction of fresh outside air for the ventilation of
conditioned space is necessary to dilute the carbon
dioxide and odours and other air contaminants for
maintaining the purity of room air.
Accordingly, the simple air conditioning system of Fig. 5
is modified, so that the supply air to the room comprises
fresh air and re-circulated room air.
An amount equivalent to the fresh air is ejected from the
room.
The schematic diagram of the system is shown in Fig. 7,
and the processes for the cases of cooling and
dehumidification are shown in Fig. 8.
SUMMER AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
WITH VENTILATION AIR-ZERO BYPASS
FACTOR

Qs
m
Room
cmm
QL
m cmm

m
cmm
1 2 s
Fan ms
Cooling and cmms
Dehumidifying
Apparatus

Fig. 7 Schematic diagram of system with ventilation air


SUMMER AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
WITH VENTILATION AIR-ZERO BYPASS
FACTOR

In Fig. 8, 0 and i represent the outside and inside air


states and 1 is the state of air after the mixing of re-
circulated room air with the ventilation air.
The mixture entering the conditioning apparatus
comprises re-circulated room air m and ventilation air
m.
The room sensible heat factor (RSHF) line is drawn from
the inside condition i to intersect the saturation curve at
room ADP at 2.
Point 2 represents the supply air state for a minimum
rate of supply air.
SUMMER AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
WITH VENTILATION AIR-ZERO BYPASS
FACTOR

The line 1-2, therefore, represents the condition line for


the apparatus and is called the grand sensible heat
factor (GSHF) line.
It is noted that the line i-2 is the condition line for the
room or the RSHF line and line 1-2 is the condition line
for the apparatus or the GSHF line intersecting the
saturation curve at coil apparatus dew point (Coil ADP).
Note that, in this case, the coil ADP and the room ADP
are the same.
SUMMER AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
WITH VENTILATION AIR-ZERO BYPASS
FACTOR

0
S: Surface at ADP
2: Leaving air
s: Supply air
GSHF Line
1


i
S, s, 2
RSHF Line

t ADP t t
t
Fig. 8 Summer air conditioning processes with ventilation air
and zero bypass factor
SUMMER AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
WITH VENTILATION AIR-ZERO BYPASS
FACTOR

In the absence of ventilation air, the load on the air


conditioning apparatus is that due to the room sensible
heat and room latent heat.
When ventilation air is used, there is an additional load
on the apparatus named the ventilation load equivalent
to the change of state of the ventilation air from the
outside condition to inside condition.
This becomes evident when we write for the total load on
the air conditioning apparatus in terms of the change of
state of the mixture air s from 1 to 2.
SUMMER AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
WITH VENTILATION AIR-ZERO BYPASS
FACTOR

Thus
Q = s (h h) = (h + h) s h
= ( s )h + h hs
= (h s h) + (h h) (15.29)

The first term on the right side in Eq. (15.29) represents


the room load and the second term, the load due to the
ventilation air as explained earlier.
SUMMER AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
WITH VENTILATION AIR-ZERO BYPASS
FACTOR

Accordingly, if (cmm) is the outside ventilation air


volume flow rate, then the outside air sensible heat
(OASH) and outside air latent heat (OALH) loads are
OASH = Q S= 0.0204(cmm) (t - t) (15.30)
OALH = Q L= 50(cmm)( ) (15.31)

Also for the outside air total heat (OATH), we have


OATH = Q = OASH + OALH
= 0.02(cmm)(h h) (15.32)
Note: These equations apply to winter air conditioning too.
SUMMER AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
WITH VENTILATION AIR-ZERO BYPASS
FACTOR

The break-up of the load on the air conditioning


apparatus is now as follows:
Room Load
Sensible RSH
Latent RLH
Total RTH = RSH + RLH
Ventilation Load
Sensible OASH
Latent OALH ___
Total OATH = OASH + OALH
SUMMER AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
WITH VENTILATION AIR-ZERO BYPASS
FACTOR

Air conditioning Equipment Load


Total Sensible TSH = RSH + OASH
Total Latent TLH = RLH + OALH_
Total GTH = TSH + TLH

In Fig. 8, the process line 1-2 represents the grand


sensible heat factor line for the process in an air
conditioning apparatus.
The grand sensible heat factor is the ratio of the total
sensible heat to the grand total heat.
SUMMER AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
WITH VENTILATION AIR-ZERO BYPASS
FACTOR

Thus

TLH TSH
GSHF = ----------------- = ----------
TSH + TLH GTH

Discuss Example Problems 15.6 and 15.7...


Assignment # 9 Jan 13, 2015
500 kg of air is supplied per minute to an auditorium
maintained at 21C and 40 percent RH. The outside
air at 5C DBT and 60 percent RH is first passed
over heating coils and is heated until its WBT is
equal to the room WBT. It is then passed through an
adiabatic saturator and is finally heated to 45C
before being supplied to the room. Determine:
a) The heat added in both the heating coils
b) The mass of water evaporated in the air washer
Read and study pages 490 to 511 of your textbook.

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