Mathematical Modeling of Solar Operated Liquid Desiccant, Evaporative Air Conditioning System

Abstract

A solar operated liquid desiccant (CaCl 2), evaporative air conditioning system is mathematically modeled. Several modifications were introduced to improve the system performance. Three indices; desiccant replacement factor DRF, system thermal ratio STR and solar utilization factor SUF were defined to evaluate the system performance at various operating conditions. The long term system performance at the weather conditions of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia is investigated and also the effect of varying solar collector area and the height of the proposed thermal storage tank are studied in terms of DRF, STR and SUF. It is found that the monthly-averaged daily value of DRF is highest during the summer while the lowest value occurs in the winter. SUF shows an opposite behavior to DRF. The monthly variation of the efficiency and STR vary slightly during the seasons. These results showed that the system performance is good at humid weather conditions.