Design and Modelling of an Adsorption System for Heating and Cooling Applications

Currently solid sorption systems are the focus of intensive research and development in the field of heating and air conditioning applications, but their performance (i.e., COP and specific power capacity) remains feeble compared to their vapour compression counterparts. This is mainly a result of low heat and mass transfer in the adsorbent bed. To remedy this limitation, a novel concept based on the use of bellows as an adsorber and evaporator unit was developed. In case of the adsorber, this structure augments heat transfer between its wall surface and the adsorbent bed (i.e., Zeolite 13x) four-fold. Similarly the evaporator was structured in the form of a heat pipe by binding wick material onto its inner wall to allow uniform wetted surface and temperature distribution over its entire surface area. There is also a possibility of combining the two units together so that heat and mass transfer are effectively integrated within a single heat-pipe adsorber module. To demonstrate the feasibility of the concept, a prototype system has been designed and built. In this paper computer simulation and experimental results obtained using zeolite/water pair are presented.