MODELING OF A SOLAR-ASSISTED DESICCANT AIR-CONDITIONER FOR A RESIDENTIAL BUILDING

The objective of this work was to develop a mathematical model of a solar-assisted desiccant air conditioner and simulate its performance in a residential building. The desiccant air conditioner modeled operates on the Munters Environmental Control (MEC) cycle. Based on the air conditioner model developed, a cooling system was designed in accordance with accepted HVAC engineering practice. The performance of this cooling system was evaluated in a residential building at various locations by means of computer simulations. Results obtained indicate that desiccant air conditioning can meet the cooling loads present in the three locations evaluated. The air conditioner design itself exhibits better than expected performance in all three locations considered. Desiccant cooling appears to be well matched to the available solar resource in the southwestern U.S. However, it appears that a significant amount of auxiliary energy is required to power the system in the northeastern and, in particular, the southeastern U.S. It is recommended that alternative thermal energy sources be evaluated for use with desiccant air conditioning in these locations.