A Review of Desiccant Cooling

D. G. Waugaman
A. Kini
C. F. Kettleborough
Departments of Mechanical Engineering
and Engineering Technology,
Texas A&M University,
College Station, TX 77843
Systems
This paper describes recent published design advances that have been made in
desiccant cooling systems. In desiccant cooling cycles, the desiccant reduces the
humidity of the air by removing moisture from the air. Then the temperature is
reduced by other components such as heat exchangers, evaporative coolers, or
conventional cooling coils. The main advantage that desiccant cooling systems offer
is the capability of using low-grade thermal energy. Desiccant cooling systems for
residential and commercial applications are now being used to reduce energy-op-
erating costs. However, the initial costs are comparatively high. The focus of research
for the past decade has been to develop desiccant systems with a high coefficient
of performance. Recent studies have emphasized computer modeling and hybrid
systems that combine desiccant dehumidifiers with conventional systems.

Introduction
Almost all materials have the capacity to adsorb and hold
water vapor, but commercial desiccants have significant ca-
pacity for holding the water. A commercial desiccant takes up
between lOand 1100 percent (ASHRAE, 1989)of its dry weight
in water vapor, depending on its type and moisture available
in the environment. Desiccants remove moisture from the sur-
rounding air until they reach equilibrium with it. This moisture
can be removed from the desiccant by heating it to temperatures
between 50 and 260 °C and exposing it to a scavenging air
stream. The desiccant is then cooled so that it can adsorb
moisture again. The transfer of moisture is due to the difference
in vapor pressure at the desiccant surface and that of the
surrounding air. When the vapor pressure at the desiccant
surface is less than that of air, the desiccant attracts moisture
and releases it when its vapor pressure is greater than that of
air.
Desiccant cooling systems are particularly useful when the
latent load is large in comparison to the sensible load. Des-
iccants also can remove contaminants from airstreams to im-
prove indoor air quality (Relwani, 1986). A thermal energy
input is used to regenerate the desiccant. Regeneration energy
is equal to the heat necessary to raise the temperature of the
desiccant to make its surface vapor pressure higher than the
surrounding air plus the heat necessary to vaporize the moisture
that it contains. A small amount of energy also goes into
desorption of the water from the desiccant.
The major advantages of desiccant cooling are:
1 Only air and water are required as working fluids. Fluo-
rocarbons are not required; thus, there is no impact on the
ozone layer.
2 Significant potential for energy savings and reduced con-
Contributed by the Petroleum Division for publication in the JOURNAL OF
ENERGY RESOURCES TECHNOLOGY. Manuscript received by the Petroleum Di-
vision, March 15, 1991; revised manuscript received June 22, 1992. Associate
Technical Editor: A. Ertas.
sumption of fossil fuels. The electrical energy requirement can
be less than 25 percent of conventional refrigeration systems.
The source of thermal energy can be diverse (i.e., solar, waste
heat, natural gas).
3 Indoor air quality is improved due to the higher venti-
lation rates and the capability of desiccants to remove airborne
pollutants (Kettleborough, 1986).
4 Since desiccant systems operate near atmospheric pres-
sure, maintenance and construction are simplified.
5 Desiccant cooling systems can eliminate the need for a
separate furnace for space heating in the winter season.
The thermal coefficient of performance (COP) is commonly
used to compare system performance. However, parasitic elec-
trical energy requirements can offset gains made in the thermal
COP and should be considered in making comparisons. Also,
the definition of the thermal COP varies with systems discussed
in this paper. Some investigators use the space-cooling load
divided by the thermal energy required to regenerate the des-
iccant. Others use the heat removed from the process airstream
divided by the thermal energy required to regenerate the des-
iccant. Some investigators use standard ARI (American Re-
frigeration Institute) indoor and outdoor conditions (80°F, 50
percent relative humidity, and 95°F, 40 percent relative hu-
midity, respectively). Unless stated otherwise, COP values
quoted in this paper are for standard ARI conditions.
Open-Cycle Solid Desiccant Systems
Pennington patented the first, and probably the most stud-
ied, desiccant cooling cycle in 1955. Commonly called the
"ventilation" cycle (Fig. 1), it takes ambient air into a rotating
desiccant dehumidifier where moisture is adsorbed. The tem-
perature increases because of the energy released during the
adsorption process. The air is then sensibly cooled and evap-
oratively cooled and introduced into the conditioned space.
The air exiting the room is first evaporatively cooled, then
passed through the sensible heat exchanger where it recovers

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 Exhaust
7

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Fig. 2 Recirculation cycle
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Fig. 1 Pennington cycle Exchanger Exchanger

Fig. 3 SENS cycle

heat of adsorption from the supply air. Next it is heated with
low-grade thermal energy and the hot air is used to regenerate
the desiccant. COP values of about 0.8-1.0 are commonly
predicted for this cycle (Kettleborough, 1986; Lof, Cler, Bris-
bane, 1986). Tecogen Inc. is developing laboratory prototypes
of 3-5-ton desiccant cooling systems based on the Pennington
cycle and propose to achieve an ARI COP of 1.0 (Cohen,
1989).
Schultz (1987) investigated a desiccant dehumidifier in a
system operating in the ventilation mode. In this system, the
dehumidifier is regenerated by direct absorption of solar ra-
diation. This system was found to have a COP less than the
conventional systems in which regeneration is normally
achieved by passing hot air through the dehumidifier and drying
it.
One early variation of the Pennington cycle was the "re-
circulation" cycle (Fig. 2). The difference is that the air from
the conditioned space is recirculated through the dehumidifier Fig. 4 DINC cycle
and other components. Ambient air is used for regeneration
and then exhausted to the atmosphere. COP values of 0.8 and
less, at ARI, conditions are commonly predicted for this cycle. coil is supplied to the cooling tower from which it is discharged
Several modifications of these cycles have been proposed to the atmosphere and the rest is supplied to the building
that suggest higher COP values can be achieved by modifying conditioned space. On the desorption (regeneration) side, out-
the cycle. One important modification was proposed by Ma- door air is passed through the heat exchanger. Next, it is heated
claine-cross (1974). This system is called the simplified ad- using solar energy and finally passed through the desiccant
vanced solid desiccant (SENS) cycle. COP values of above 2.0 wheel where the desiccant is regenerated. The regenerator tem-
have been predicted using ideal components. This cycle has peratures were about 50-70 °C for the impregnated lithium
been tested at the Solar Energy Applications Laboratory chloride wheel. An auxiliary boiler provides heat if necessary.
(SEAL) at Colorado State University (Lof, Appleyard, 1988). Testing at SEAL produced COP values of about 2.45 at 26 °C
The schematic of the SENS cycle is shown in Fig. 3. In this ambient and 26 percent relative humidity.
cycle, ambient air is first dehumidified in a rotating desiccant Texas A&M researchers have proposed the direct-indirect
wheel, then cooled in the rotating heat exchanger. It is then evaporative cooling (DINC) cycle (Waugaman, Kettleborough,
mixed with air recirculated from the building and passed 1987). It replaces one direct evaporative cooler at the Pen-
through a finned-coil heat exchanger supplied with cold water nington cycle with an indirect evaporative cooler and redirects
from a small cooling tower. Some cooled air from the finned the flows (Fig. 4). This cycle is simpler than the SENS cycle

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 and COP values of over 1.6 have been predicted for this cycle
at ARI conditions.
The major energy inputs to the cycle are thermal energy to
heat the regenerative air and mechanical energy to run the
fans. The performance of a dehumidifier depends on its ge-
ometry and choice of the desiccant materials. The geometry
of the dehumidifier affects its pressure drop, size and cost as
well as the performance and cooling capacity. Ideally, an op-
timum combination of the desiccant material and the dehu-
midifier geometries provides high-efficiency and low-cost de-
humidifiers. Some researchers have proposed the addition of
inert heat capacity to the desiccant to improve system per-
formance (Grolmes, 1981).
Collier and Cohen (1988) have been working on a staged
regeneration idea to regenerate low-heat-capacity desiccant
beds. In this process only a fraction of the regeneration air
stream is heated to the maximum regeneration temperature.
Thus, the regeneration occurs in two stages: the first stage
regenerates with a portion of the air exiting from the sensible
heat exchanger, with no additional heating; and the second
stage regenerates with the remainder of the air exiting the
sensible heat exchanger, with additional heating. The temper-
ature of this air will be at the desired regeneration temperature
that will sustain the dehumidification side of the cycle. They
have used computer simulations to model desiccant cooling
systems and have shown that the staged regeneration idea is
superior to adding inert heat capacity to the desiccant matrix.
They have predicted a COP of around 1.1 for a Pennington
cycle using the staged regeneration process. Staged regenera-
tion was shown to improve performance levels and significant
increases in cooling capacity and overall system efficiency is Fig. 5 Zeolite heat pump (reproduced from Tchernev, 1989)
projected (Collier et al., 1990b).
Enerscope Inc. with the Gas Research Institute (GRI) is
studying methods for reducing the first cost of the dehumidifier is under development with support from the Gas Research
and the sensible heat exchanger (Collier, 1990a). Computer Institute in Chicago. A simple schematic of the system is shown
simulations have shown that by unbalancing and stratifying in Fig. 5 (Hajji, 1989). This system uses vaporization and
the heat exchanger, high efficiency and cooling capacity can condensation of water within evaporator/condenser containers
be achieved with low-effectiveness heat exchangers. Also, the 1 and 2, to exchange heat with chilled water circulated to the
required size of the desiccant wheel can be reduced by a factor cooled space. Oil is used to cool and heat the desiccant (zeolite)
of six. It has also been shown that increasing the regeneration within the containers 1 and 2. A pump is used to circulate the
temperature from 210°F to 390°F increases the efficiency by oil in a closed-loop through the oil-air heat exchangers and
5 percent and the capacity by 70 percent. Semco Manufacturing the zeolite containers. The evaporator/condenser is located
Inc. is employing a modified dehumidifier simulation program inside the zeolite container (Fig. 6). The outside cooling coil
from Enerscope Inc. for developing low-cost desiccant im- circulates water through the evaporator and is used to conduct
pregnated, corrugated wheel structures (Fischer, 1990). the heat of vaporization to the chilled water according to cooled
space requirements.
Waugaman (1988) quantified the effects of changing ge-
ometry and operating parameters of rotary, parallel plate, The oil leaving the adsorber is heated further by the gas
micro-bead silica gel wheels in the Pennington cycle using the boiler to about 200 °C and passed into the container operating
"analogy" (Maclaine-cross, 1974) (Jurnaik, 1982) method of in the desorption mode. As the temperature of the zeolite is
modeling the dehumidifier. The analogy method incorporates increased, the refrigerant (water) is desorbed and the pressure
parameters called combined potentials and specific heat-ca- in the container increases. The refrigerant condenses on the
pacity ratios that reduce the number of equations of a desiccant walls of the container and the heat of condensation is rejected
wheel to two, as in a rotary heat exchanger. Therefore, it is to the outside air during the cooling season. It is used to provide
"analogous" to heat transfer alone. Efficiencies which account part of the heating load during the heating season. The oil is
for nonideal heat and mass transfer are calculated based on further cooled in an oil-to-air heat exchanger to about 38°C,
the physical parameters of the dehumidifier, the rotational which can provide heat to the conditioned space during the
speed and other design conditions. COP values were estimated heating season. Tchernev has found that a seasonal cooling
at 1.6 for optimum parameters. COP of 1.2 can be achieved.
The Solar Energy Research Institute has a cyclic test facility
(CTF) (Pesaran, 1989) to develop analytical methods for pre-
dicting the performance of advanced rotary dehumidifiers. The Open-Cycle Liquid Desiccant Systems
CTF has a full set of automated controls to maintain steady Liquid desiccant systems have not been extensively inves-
inlet conditions (temperature, absolute humidity and airflow tigated because of the modest COP values that were predicted,
rate). Instrumentation monitors the wheel rotational speed, usually below 1.0. Still, liquid desiccants have some advantages
ambient air conditions, and inlet and outlet air conditions. over solid desiccant systems. Since the energy is stored as
chemical energy rather than thermal energy, the reliance on
continuous thermal energy supplies is reduced. Liquid desic-
Closed-Cycle Zeolite Heat Pump cants do not require complex dehumidifier geometries, as the
Tchernev (1989) have proposed the concept of regenerative desiccant is usually sprayed over the incoming air and can be
heat exchange for a closed-cycle zeolite heat pump. This system regenerated on inexpensive open-flow collectors or tanks. The

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Fig. 6 Condenser/evaporator of zeolite heat pump (reproduced from
Tchernev, 1989)
disadvantages of liquid desiccants are that some liquid des-
iccants may be corrosive. Also, because of their high vapor
pressure, the desiccant may be released into the air. The health
effects of inhaling desiccants are not well known.
A simple schematic of a liquid desiccant system is shown in
Fig. 7 (Patnaik, 1987). In this configuration, the ambient air
is dehumidified, then cooled in a sensible heat exchanger. Ad-
ditional cooling takes place through an evaporative cooler, as
in the Pennington cycle, before entering the conditioned space.
The return air is first cooled in an evaporative cooler, and part
of the air is returned to the conditioned space. The rest of the
air is passed through the heat exchanger where it cools the
incoming air. In the liquid desiccant loop, the dilute solution
from the dehumidifier first flows through a heat recovery unit
(economizer), then to a regenerator where the moisture is re-
moved. The concentrated solution coming out of the regener-
ator is first cooled in the economizer, and then in the "cooling
unit," before returning to the dehumidifier where it can absorb
moisture again.
Liquid desiccant dehumidifiers coupled to regenerators using
lithium bromide and lithium chloride as a liquid desiccant have
been tested in the Solar Energy Applications Laboratory (Pat-
naik, 1988). No cooling equipment or load was coupled to the
desiccant, but cooling capacities of 1.0-4.0 refrigeration tons
(3.5-10.4 kW), for airflow rates between 0.65-0.95 kg/s, were
estimated. Regeneration energy and COP values were not re-
ported.
Chen et al. (1989) have studied the effects of design factors
and operating conditions on the performance of the dehu-
midifier. They found that the dehumidifying rate is linearly
proportional to the solution concentration, the inlet air hu-
midity and temperature, and quadratically proportional to the
flow rates of both solution and air. It was also found that the
dehumidifying rate decreases linearly with the solution tem-
perature.
Hybrid Desiccant Systems
In a conventional vapor compression system, moisture re-
moval occurs by condensation if the return air dew-point is
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Heat Source
H
EC
E
A
T
E
X
c
H C.T.
A
N
EC
G
E E : Economizer
EC : Evaporative Cooler R CU : Cooling Unit
CT : Cooling Tower
Fig. 7 A liquid desiccant cooling system (reproduced from Patnaik,
1987)
greater than the coil temperature. However, in high-humidity
conditions, this method is not very efficient and high indoor
humidity makes the conditions uncomfortable. The common
reaction to increased humidity is to reduce the set-point tem-
perature, which results in increased operation of the system,
thereby increasing energy consumption. Also, in the new high-
efficiency A/ C systems, the evaporator coil is at a higher tem-
perature, so the moisture removal is reduced.
Hybrid desiccant systems integrate a desiccant dehumidifier
with a conventional cooling system such that the dehumidifier
takes up the latent load and the conventional system can be
used for the sensible portion of the load. Hybrid systems offer
the advantages of reduced energy costs and reduced equipment
size and independent control of temperature and humidity.
The hybrid is usually more complicated and likely more ex-
pensive to build than either subsystem.
Novosel and Griffiths (1988) have predicted results of a gas-
fired desiccant humidity pump to supplement electrically
driven refrigeration equipment. A schematic of the pump is
shown in Fig. 8. It is designed as a makeup air module that
dehumidifies the makeup air with liquid desiccant. It is coupled
to a new or existing conventional A/C system via a duct. It
consists of a gas-fired regenerator with an air-to-air heat ex-
changer to recover the heat of regeneration. An evaporative
cooler reduces the temperature of the scavenger air that is used
to cool the liquid desiccant conditioner. This dehumidified and
cooled air is then passed on to the conventional system for
sensible cooling. They have predicted a COP of 0.71 based on
cooling outside air at ARI standard conditions to 89.7°F and
0.007 lb/lb humidity ratio. They have also predicted that in-
tegrating a humidity pump with a gas engine-driven chiller will
increase the COP by 14 percent (from 1.4 to 1.6). This is being
developed for manufacture by Kathabar Systems.
Ryan et al. (1989) have developed a residential dehumidifier
using aqueous lithium chloride desiccant. This system (Fig. 9)
uses a direct evaporative cooler, a boiler regenerator, a liquid
desiccant conditioner and an interchange heat exchanger. The
water is removed from the desiccant directly by boiling. There-
fore, regeneration air need not be heated and it reduces the
size of the desiccant unit. The indoor return air is dehumidified
in a flat plate heat exchanger. The interchange heat exchanger
transfers the heat from the hot regenerated desiccant, leaving
the boiler to the cool dilute desiccant leaving the conditioner.
This results in energy savings. This system delivered 1 t of
dehumidification with the supply air being within 4°F of the
return air. The average COP of this unit calculated over the
test period was 0.5. An economic analysis compared this des-
iccant system to a modern vapor compression system coupled
with an electric dehumidifier. The lower operating cost of the
Transactions of the ASME
 To Ambient

Air-to-Air To Sensible
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Regeneration
Air

Gas-Fired
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Scavenger
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Brine Interchanger
Regenerator Conditioner

Diluted Desiccant Solution • Concentrated Desiccant Solution

Fig. 8 Humidity pump (reproduced from Novosel and Griffiths, 1988)

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Fig. 9 Residential dehumidifier using aqueous lithium chloride (repro-

Desiccant Recuperation
Heat Exchanger
duced from Ryan et al., 1989)
Fig. 10 DUBLSORB system (reproduced from Saunders et al., 1989)

desiccant system resulted in payback periods of around two

years.
Saunders et al. (1989) have developed a concept called the
DUBLSORB system that incorporates a conventional liquid
desiccant unit with a conventional absorption chiller (Fig. 10).
The heat rejected from the chiller condenser is used to regen-
erate the chiller with supplemental regeneration energy being
provided by an auxiliary gas-fired burner. This system uses a
cooling tower to cool both the chiller absorber and the desiccant
dehumidifier. Since the chiller has to meet only the sensible
load, it is smaller than a conventional chiller. In an economic
analysis, Saunders has shown that the payback period is less
than three years when compared to a conventional electric
chiller with reheat. The mathematical modeling of the system
has resulted in COP values of around 0.9 to 1.2, depending
on the indoor humidity ratio (outdoor conditions were near
standard ARI conditions).
Robert Turner et al. (1988), at the University of Nevada,
have compared the economics of operation of various heat-
pump desiccant-wheel configurations driven by a natural gas
internal combustion engine. The engine exhaust heat is used
to supply part of the regeneration energy for the desiccant.
Mathematical modeling predicted these systems cost much less
to operate than the all-electric heat pump in eight different
U.S. cities located in climates ranging from the hot and humid
to hot and dry to moderate summer conditions.
Meckler (1989) proposed a hybrid cogeneration cooling cycle
that incorporates packaged to cogenerated electrical power
with a solar-powered Rankine cycle and a means of using the
heat rejected at the condenser to regenerate the desiccant. A
case study of a representative building revealed that this system
decreased the energy consumption by 12 percent, as compared
to a conventional HVAC system.
Maclaine-Cross (1988) proposed a hybrid system with a des-
iccant unit, consisting of a regenerative dehumidifier, heat
exchanger, evaporative cooler, heat coils and fans, to provide
the latent and part of the sensible load. A gas-engine-driven
chiller takes up the remaining load. He found that energy costs
can be halved with the payback period averaging two years.
This suggests that these units will be very competitive with
conventional systems when the desiccant units are available
commercially.
Parsons (1987), at the Solar Energy Research Institute, ex-
amined the merits of coupling a desiccant dehumidification
subsystem to a gas-engine-driven vapor compression system.
This system uses a rotary silica-gel parallel-plate dehumidifier.
They have found that by addition of the desiccant subsystem,

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 NIGHTTIME DAYTIME
ADSORPTION MODE DRSORPTION MODE
VC = Vapor Compression Machine
DEC = Direct Evaporative Cooler
Fig. 11 DESRAD system operating modes (reproduced from Swami,
1990)
the gas-based COP is increased by 40 percent and the cooling
capacity is increased by 50 percent.
A new idea in desiccant cooling has been developed at the
Florida Solar Energy Center (Rudd, 1990; Swami, 1990). It is
called the "desiccant enhanced nocturnal radiation" (DES-
RAD) cooling and dehumidification system. This concept is a
passive cooling approach and uses a desiccant bed integrated
in the roof to achieve both the latent and sensible cooling in
hot and humid climates. The capacity of household materials
to store moisture and thermal energy is used during the day,
and the desiccant bed removes moisture during the night. Sen-
sible cooling is provided during the night and the desiccant is
regenerated during the day.
The system (Fig. 11) operates in two modes: the nighttime
adsorption mode and the daytime desorption mode. At night,
room air is circulated to the desiccant bed on the roof where
the moisture is removed. The heat of sorption is transferred
to the atmosphere. After the air passes through the desiccant
bed, it is passed through an evaporative cooler to increase the
humidity level and to further cool the air. This air is then
passed into the room where it absorbs the heat and moisture
from the room.
During the day, the desiccant system is disconnected from
the house. The desiccant is regenerated by venting it with
ambient air that is heated by the sun-absorbing metal roof.
The heat exchanged, between the metal roof, the hot air and
the desiccant, regenerates the bed. The system relies on the
internal thermal mass and the moisture capacitance of special
construction materials and household articles to carry the cool-
ing and dehumidifying loads during the day. A conventional
air-conditioning system is used as a backup.
Swami et al. (1990) have studied a building-integrated DES-
RAD system and they have found a 79, 81 and 75-percent
reduction in the total, sensible and latent loads, respectively.
This suggests that this concept is a very promising solar cooling
alternative; but initial costs may be high, and there might be
degradation in the performance of the desiccant subjected to
repeated cycles.
Cargocaire Engineering Corporation has conducted research
on the application of desiccant systems for supermarket ap-
plications (Bowlen, Kosar, 1989). In 1984, they introduced an
integrated gas-fired desiccant dehumidification/electric air-
conditioning system. This system has greater humidity control
resulting in a 10-percent reduction in cooling and refrigeration
costs.
Cargocaire is also investigating the concept of humidity con-
trol in humid-climate hotels where the air distributed by con-
ventional air-conditioning units is cool but saturated (Banks,
1990a). High-humidity indoor air results in discomfort and the
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growth of fungi. The moisture problem is being tackled by
using a gas-fired dehumidifier integrated with a heat exchanger.
This permits a down-sized electric air conditioner. They have
also shown cost savings can be achieved by using a desiccant
system to dehumidify an ice arena (Banks, 1990b).
The Gas Research Institute (GRI), in a cooperative project
with McDonald's Corporation, is evaluating the performance
of 5-t desiccant dehumidifiers. These are makeup air units
integrated with existing air-conditioning units for restaurants
(Koopman, 1989).'
Arthur D. Little Corp. has developed a solid desiccant de-
humidification/electric vapor compression system for residen-
tial applications in the 1-3-t range (Teagan, 1989). The system
is projected to achieve a COP of 0.7 and an EER of 40. It is
a compact package design with a honeycomb wheel in a blended
return and fresh air configuration.
Desiccant Materials Research
Extensive work is now being done on identifying low-cost,
high-performance materials that can maximize the perform-
ance of desiccant cooling systems. Silica gel and lithium chlo-
ride are now the most widely used desiccant materials in studies
on wheel geometries in desiccant cooling. The sorption per-
formance, durability and life-cycle costs of these materials limit
the cost effectiveness of desiccant cooling systems. The Solar
Energy Research Institute (Pesaran, Bingham, 1989) have de-
veloped experimental facilities to evaluate new desiccant ma-
terials, and to validate mathematical models.
Collier et al. (1986) have, by computer simulation, identified
the desiccant adsorption properties that would maximize the
performance of a desiccant cooling system. He found that the
properties have a large influence on the cooling capacity and
COP of the cycle. He has proposed an "ideal desiccant" called
the Type IM material, which can improve the thermal COP
of the desiccant cooling system from the present achievable
range of 0.85-1.05 for silica gel, to about 1.3—1.4 or close to
the theoretical maximum. System analyses have shown that
the operating costs are at least 20 percent less than with con-
ventional materials. Also, the cubic feet per minute per ton
(cfm/ton) can be reduced from the range of 310-400 for silica
gel to a range of 200-250. This would reduce the size of the
system and maintain low parasitic electric power requirement.
The materials research effort is now directed toward finding
and measuring properties of materials that could be better
desiccants than the silica gel and approach the Type IM ma-
terial in its sorption performance. Also, the dehumidifier costs
could be reduced by improved manufacturing methods for the
new materials.
Czanderna (1988a) at the Solar Energy Research Institute
has been working on identifying polymeric materials that might
be used in desiccant cooling systems. Polymers have the po-
tential for sorbing 5 to 80 percent of their weight and can be
easily fabricated into the required shapes. Polymers have the
potential for being regenerated at temperatures below 176°F
and to maintain long-term stability through thousands of sorp-
tion-desorption cycles. Also, the cost of commercial polymers
is comparable to that of commercial grade silica gel. Polymers
can serve both as the desiccant and the support structure in a
desiccant wheel. They have used the Quartz Crystal Micro-
balance Apparatus (Czanderna, Thomas, 1988b) to measure
the water sorption capacity of polymers. They have identified
nine commercially available polymers as candidate-advanced
desiccant materials for further study and modification.
The Eaton Corporation has developed an advanced desiccant
material based on ionic-gel polymer (Pusatcioglu, 1989). They
have identified cross-linked polystyrene (sulfonic acid-sodium
form) as the most promising material that has properties close
to that of the Type IM material. LaRoche Chemicals has also
identified several candidate Type IM materials (Belding, 1989)
Transactions of the ASME
 and have manufactured and tested single sheets of fiber glass
impregnated with this material and found that the whole system
exhibits Type 1M behavior.
Mullins (1989) at Michigan Tech University has found that
porous glass is capable of reversible water sorption. It offers
the potential for improved performance over the conventional
materials.
Komarneni of the Pennsylvania State University is deter-
mining the capability of nano-composite materials to perform
as effective desiccants (Komarneni, 1989). Nano-composite
materials are made up of two or more components, with the
size of each component between 1-100 nm. They have iden-
tified Type 1M composites and further characterization is un-
der way.
Anderson at 3M and Pesaran (1990) at SERI have in a
cooperative program created and evaluated four unique solid
desiccant substrates. These substrates incorporate silica-gel
particulate desiccant in four different composite structures.
They have identified at least two of the four as high-sorption
capacity materials that can be assembled into low-pressure drop
sorptive beds.
Ertas et al. (1990), at Texas Tech University, are investigating
the properties of a liquid desiccant solution that is a mixture
of lithium chloride and calcium chloride. Lithium chloride is
the more stable liquid desiccant, but its cost is somewhat high
($8.00/lb). Calcium chloride is the cheapest (15 cents/lb), but
unstable, depending on the air inlet conditions and the con-
centration of the desiccant in the solution. It is seen that the
mixture has low viscosity and is highly soluble over a consid-
erable temperature range, thus ensuring no solidifications,
which is one requirement of an effective liquid desiccant. Also,
a 50-percent reduction in cost as compared to lithium chloride
has been achieved.
Researchers at the Solar Energy Research Institute are work-
ing on desiccant contamination by air-borne contaminants and
its effect on the sorption performance of the desiccants. A test
facility was built in 1989 to thermally cycle several desiccant
samples with exposure to ambient humid air or contaminated
humid air. The contaminant of choice was cigarette smoke.
Pesaran (1990) has found that the silica gel samples thermally
cycled with ambient air showed a 5 to 30 percent loss in their
moisture capacity. The silica gel samples thermally cycled with
smoked air lost 30 to 70 percent of their moisture capacity.
Depending on the degree of desiccant degradation, the decrease
in thermal coefficient of performance and cooling capacity of
the system was 10 to 35 percent.
Concluding Remarks
Improvements in desiccant cooling range from the very sim-
ple Pennington cycle to complex hybrid-cogeneration designs.
Most studies have involved computer modeling to evaluate
performance. Although the systems reviewed here reduce en-
ergy costs, they have been slow in replacing conventional equip-
ment due to expensive first costs, long payback periods, and
limited marketing attempts.
Thermal COP (coefficient of performance) can be a mis-
leading parameter in evaluating performances because of the
variety of calculation methods and operating conditions used
by the investigators. Also, parasitic electrical energy usage
often increases with increasing thermal COP and more than
offsets energy savings. Though COP values are quoted in this
paper, they should not be used to compare the merits of dif-
ferent systems; but they are a basis for optimizing a particular
application. More significant variables are the energy dollars
saved for an application and the payback period on the initial
investment. Some investigators have predicted payback periods
as short as two years, based on current regional energy costs.
Much less experimental and field work have been done than
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computer analysis. Very little testing has been performed on
complete integrated systems. Perhaps a shift of the emphasis
to construction and testing of packaged systems will gain des-
iccant cooling a significant share of the A / C market.
The developments of the Montreal Protocol to phase out
the use of certain fluorocarbons, and the developments in
desiccant cooling provide alternatives to conventional air-con-
ditioning equipment. Higher electrical energy costs and envi-
ronmental concerns and legislation should contribute to the
demand for desiccant cooling and the need for further devel-
opment of the hardware.
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