Performance investigation and energy-saving potential of a heat pump-driven liquid desiccant dehumidification system in different climatic conditions

Abstract

For the buildings with higher moisture loads such as natatoriums, it is essential to regulate the air temperature and humidity accurately during the year-round. However, the conventional dehumidification air conditioning system is still commonly utilized, which requires considerable energy consumption. In this paper, the heat pump-driven liquid desiccant dehumidification system integrated with fresh air supply is developed. Nevertheless, considering the multi climate conditions through the year, the operating modes adapted to various conditions are seldom specified, let alone the energy-saving effects compared to traditional dehumidification systems. According to the temperature and moisture diagram, the partitions and corresponding operating modes are firstly presented. Then, the energy consumptions are compared extensively to identify the applicability of each operating mode. The modified temperature-moisture partitions are ultimately presented. Results show that with the introduced auxiliary condenser, the energy efficiency is improved by 7.5% to 63.4% in the summer conditions. Compared with the traditional dehumidification system, the maximum energy-saving rate could reach up to 92%. The optimized system could regulate the relevant components to meet the temperature and humidity requirements of high-humidity buildings throughout the year.