SBIR Phase I: A High Efficiency and Low Cost Liquid Desiccant Dehumidifier Activated by Low Level Heat

这个小型企业创新研究第一阶段项目将建立一个高效率和低成本的液体干燥剂除湿器的概念验证单元，该除湿器可以在低至140华氏度的温度下通过热量激活，例如低成本太阳能热水器和空调冷凝器，旨在与这种除湿器集成。这种低水平的热量目前不能经济地使用，而现有的制冷系统依赖于将空气冷却到非常低的温度然后再次加热的低效过程，浪费了大量的能量。Xunergy的热性能系数？除湿器的除湿量预期为0.9的量级，比现有系统的除湿量高得多，并且加湿器使用基本上无腐蚀性且安全的液体干燥剂，因此预期成本低且持久。这样的系统对于在炎热和潮湿气候中调节通风空气将是特别具有成本效益的。 该项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是允许低水平的热量，例如来自低成本太阳能热水器的热量和来自空调冷凝器的热量，用于驱动通风空气的调节，具有低成本和持久的系统，大大降低了通风空气调节的能源和其他成本，以及由于使用能源和泄漏的制冷剂而导致的温室气体排放，以及减少高峰期的电力需求，特别是在炎热潮湿的日子，当电网紧张时。通风空调的低成本也可能有助于使医院，学校，剧院，室内市场等公共建筑中的空气更新鲜，更健康，而不会增加成本。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will build a proof-of- concept unit of a high efficiency and low cost liquid desiccant dehumidifier that can be activated by heat at a temperature as low as 140o Farenheit, such as that from the low cost solar water heaters and condensers of air conditioners designed to be integrated with such dehumidifiers. Such low level heat currently cannot be economically used, while the existing dehumidification systems rely on the inefficient process of cooling air to a very low temperature and then heating it up again, wasting a lot of energy. The thermal coefficient-of- performance of Xunergy?s dehumidifier is expected to be on the order of 0.9, much higher than those of existing systems, and the humidifier uses an essentially non-corrosive and safe liquid desiccant and therefore is expected to be of low in cost and long-lasting. Such a system will be particularly cost effective for conditioning of ventilation air in hot and humid climates. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project are allowing for low level heat such as that from low cost solar water heaters and that from condensers of air conditioners to be used for driving conditioning of ventilation air with a low cost and long lasting system, greatly reducing the energy and other costs of conditioning of ventilation air, emission of greenhouse gases due to the use of energy and the leaked refrigerant, and reducing the peak electricity demand, especially on hot and humid days when the grid is strained. The lower cost of ventilation air conditioning is also likely to help make air fresher and healthier in public buildings such as hospitals, schools, theaters, indoor markets etc. without increasing cost.