Performance of a temperature and humidity independent control air-conditioning system based on liquid desiccant for industrial environments

Saving energy consumption of air-conditioning systems is becoming increasingly important in industrial buildings. In this study, measurements were conducted to reveal on-site performance of a full fresh air-conditioning system based on liquid desiccant applied in an industrial factory. Operating the system, temperature and humidity independent control (THIC) can be realized. The results reveal that the THIC system requires higher-temperature chilled water and no reheating process because of the adoption of a liquid desiccant dehumidifier, compared with the conventional vapor compression air-conditioning system. Therefore, a competitive system's coefficient of performance of 3.6 can be realized under the THIC system and an annual electricity-saving ratio of 23.3% can be achieved. In this system, the process air is divided into two parts, and the flow rate ratio of these two parts is discussed to further improve the system's performance. An optimal range of the ratio is determined in this study. When adjusting the ratio from the current 0.72 to 0.5, annual electricity consumption of the THIC system can be further saved by 5.4%. This study would provide valuable experience and reference for energy conservation of industrial air-conditioning systems. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.