Saturation-triggered dual-mode desiccant coated heat exchanger operation: Breaking the thermal-hygrometric coupling barrier for independent temperature-humidity control

Funding Sponsor

Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation of Guangdong Province

Author's Department

Mechanical Engineering Department

Fourth Author's Department

Mechanical Engineering Department

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https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2025.116179

All Authors

Jianlin Liu Chuan Sun Xin Cui Omar Abdelaziz Qian Chen

Document Type

Research Article

Publication Title

Energy and Buildings

Publication Date

11-1-2025

doi

10.1016/j.enbuild.2025.116179

Abstract

Traditional dehumidifiers require auxiliary heat exchangers for temperature control, incurring energy penalties from sequential heating/cooling. Desiccant coated heat exchangers (DCHE) overcome this by simultaneous sensible/latent heat removal, enabling intrinsic temperature-humidity decoupling. However, weak thermal-hygrometric coupling in conventional DCHE limits independent control. To address this critical challenge, this study proposes a dual-mode decoupling strategy rooted in adsorbent saturation characteristics. The core innovation lies in transitioning the DCHE's operational mode from active dehumidification to pure heat exchange based on adsorbent saturation detection. By developing a time-dependent simulation model in Simulink, we demonstrate the decoupled system's exceptional stability (temperature fluctuation <±1 ∘C, humidity ratio fluctuation <±0.4 g/kg) and rapid temperature response capability (temperature response time accounts for less than 5 % of the total dynamic time). Simulation validation reveals the strategy's robustness against sudden humidity disturbances (0.15-0.3 g/s) and temperature disturbance (27.5–42.5 ∘C). Furthermore, parameter sensitivity analysis quantifies the trade-off between control accuracy and response speed under varying humidity deviation thresholds (0.2–0.4 g/kg). This research establishes a theoretical framework for intelligent indoor environmental control systems and provides practical guidance for next-generation DCHE controller design.

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