An Experimental Investigation on adsorption and regeneration performance of composite desiccants for building applications

In recent years, composite desiccants have attracted significant attention for their effective dehumidification properties. These materials are created by impregnating hygroscopic salt into the pores of a host material. They are characterized for their exceptional moisture adsorption capacity and their ability to regenerate at low temperatures, making them suitable for building applications. This paper experimentally investigates novel composite desiccant materials designed for moisture control in buildings, where CaCl2, KHCO2, LiCl, and MgSO4 - CaCl2 salts mixtures were impregnated into raw vermiculite. The adsorption performance was evaluated within an environmental chamber, and the regeneration performance was assessed using an oven. The experimental results demonstrate the superior performance of the composite desiccants in comparison to the raw material. Furthermore, the experimental results reveal that the LiCl composite presents the highest adsorption performance. For the regeneration process, the LiCl composite presented the highest reduction in the short-term. However, in the long term, the CaCl2 exhibited superior regeneration performance.