ActiveDesiccationanda45DewpointDesignCriteria

MichaelD.Larranaga,PhD,CIH,CSP
H.W.Holder
MarioG.Beruvides,PhD,PE
D.C.Straus,PhD

Theuseofactivedesiccanttechnologywithintheheating,ventilating,andairconditioning(HVAC)marketasthe

primarymeansofmoistureremovalhasconsistentlygainedahighermarketshareworldwide.Theintroductionof
activedesiccationequipmentforcomfortcontroloccurredover50yearsagowithapatentondesiccanttechnologyin
1949.Providingacomfortableandhealthyindoorenvironmenthasbeenadifficulttaskformanycommercial
applicationswhereventilationratesarehigh.Theseapplicationsincludehospitals,schools,theatres,retailstores,
hotels,restaurants,nursinghomes,andofficebuildings.Humiditycontrolplaysanimportantroleinestablishingand
maintainingacomfortableindoorenvironment[1].TheuseofdesiccanttechnologyinhybridwithconventionalHVAC
systemsofferscosteffectivehumiditycontrolwhencomparedtoconventionaldehumidificationschemeswithcooling
coilsandreheat,andprovidesthecapabilitytomeettheoutsideairventilationratesasperASHRAE62,Ventilationfor
AcceptableIndoorAirQuality.

Furthermore,ithasbeentheorizedthatsickbuildingsyndrome(SBS)andoccupantcomfortcomplaintsare

relatedprimarilytomechanicalventilation.TheunderlyingfactorforSBSisthemodern,sealedbuildingwiththeindoor
environmentcontrolledbyanHVACsystem[2].BattermanandBurgenotedthatHVACsystemsareessentialtomodern
lifeandcanprovidehealthyandcomfortableindoorenvironmentswhenproperlyinstalled,operated,andmaintained
[3].Sietzcategorizedtheprimaryfactorsleadingtobuildingrelatedillness(BRI),andfoundthat53%of529indoorair
quality(IAQ)evaluationsconductedbytheNationalInstituteforOccupationalSafetyandHealth(NIOSH)from1971
through1988wereassociatedwithinadequateventilation[4].NIOSHattributedmorethanhalf(52%)oftheSBScases
tounsuitablefacilityventilationsystems[5].Poorlydesigned,installed,operatedandmaintainedHVACsystemshave
beenrecognizedassourcesofcontaminatingmicroorganisms,includingfungi[3,69].Additionally,conventionalHVAC
systemscannotadequatelydehumidifyairinwarmandhumidclimates[1012].Asystemicrelationshipbetweenthe
HVACsystem,outdoorair,andindoorenvironmentexistswithinbuildings.Hence,aproperlydesigned,functioning,and
operatingHVACsystemcanhaveasignificantpositiveimpactonthehealthandwellbeingofthebuildingitself,building
occupants,andonreducingthenumberofSBSsymptomsexperiencedwithinbuildings.

FreshAirVentilation

IntroducingpretreatedfreshairintoabuildingcanimprovetheIAQofabuildingandeliminatemany

problemsassociatedwithpoorventilationandlackoffreshairinbuildings.BayerstatedthatIAQimproveswhenusing
activehumiditycontrolandcontinuousventilationinschools[5].Inastudyof10schoolsinGeorgia,Bayerstatesthat
ofthefiveschoolshavingconventionalHVACsystems,nonesuppliedoutsideairattheASHRAErecommended15
cfm/person.Theschoolshavingdesiccantsystemsweredeliveringasmuchasthreetimesmoreoutsideair,while
maintainingequalorbettercontroloftheindoorrelativehumiditythantheconventionalsystems.Theaveragetotal
volatileorganiccompound(TVOC)concentrationstendedtobelowerinschoolshavingdesiccantbasedsystems.The
schoolshowingthehighestairexchangerateutilizedarotarydesiccantsystem,andhadthelowestcarbondioxide,
TVOC,andairbornemicrobialconcentrations,andthelowestaverageindoorrelativehumidity[5].InPhaseIIofthe
sameproject,FischerandBayerstatedthatincreasingtheairventilationratefrom5toonly8cfm/studentchallenged
theabilityoftheconventionalsystemstomaintainthespacerelativehumiditybelowtheASHRAEandAmerican
ConferenceofGovernmentalIndustrialHygienistsrecommended60%level.Increasingtheventilationrateofthe
conventionalsystemstotherequired15cfm/studentallowedthespacerelativehumiditiestoroutinelyexceed70%.
ThesedataexplainedwhyalloftheconventionalHVACsystemschoolsweredesignedand/oroperatedwithonly6
cfm/studentofoutdoorairorless.Thedecreasedventilationrateswereindirectresponsetotheperformance
limitationsoftheconventionalcoolingequipmentandcontributedtothepoorIAQwithintheschools.Furthermore,
theschoolsservedbytheconventionalHVACsystemsexperiencedabsenteeismata9%greaterratethanthoseserved
bythedesiccantsystems[13].

PackagedHVACequipmentisnotdesignedtohandlethecontinuoussupplyofoutdoorairnecessarytocomply

withASHRAE62,VentilationforAcceptableIndoorAirQuality.Asaresult,theseschoolsarelikelytoexperienceIAQ
problems[11].HigherventilationratesasspecifiedbyASHRAE62translateintogreatercoolingloadsforconventional
equipment,specifically,greaterlatentloadsduringcoolingseasonswhenindoorrelativehumiditiesmustbecontrolled
toinhibitgrowthofmicroorganismsthatmayresultinhealthproblemsordamagedbuildingmaterials[14].
ConventionalHVACsystemscannotadequatelydehumidifytheairinwarmandhumidclimates[1012].Ina
conventionalreheatsystemutilizedfordehumidification,previouslycooledairisheatedandthenintroducedintothe
interiorofabuilding.Theairisfirstcooledto55Forlowertoremovethelatentmoistureload.Thiscoldairisthen

reheatedinordertosatisfyboththerelativehumidityandtemperaturerequirementsoftheindoorspace.Reheat
systemsincuraquadruplepenalty:(1)thefirstcostofthecoolinggenerationplant,associatedauxiliaries,andelectrical
serviceisincreasedbytheamountofreheat;(2)thereheatcoilfirstcostpremiumincludesincreasedelectricalservice
and/orheatingdistributionpiping;(3)theownerpaystheannualoperatingcostfortheextrasensiblecoolingoftheair,
and(4)thenpaystheannualoperatingcostofreheatingtheair.Inordertocomprehendtheadvantagesofenhanced
dehumidificationsystems,itisvitalthatownersandHVACsystemdesignersunderstandthisquadruplepenalty
associatedwithreheatsystems.Reheatshouldnotbethesoleorfirstincontrolsequencemeansofhumiditycontrol
[15].BuildingsinthehumidsouthshouldbepressurizedtominimizeinfiltrationofmoistoutsideairandHVACsystem
designshouldincorporatedehumidificationthatmaintainsthespaceinthe45%to55%relativehumidityrangeduring
theentirecoolingseason[15].
UtilizingActiveDesiccationforDedicatedOutdoorAirSystemsanda45FDewpoint
Aseparateanddedicatedoutsideairpretreatmentventilationsystemmaybetheonlyreliablemethodof
meetingASHRAEStandard62.Itisalsothesimplestmethod[16].Thisseparatededicatedoutdoorairconceptcanbe
utilizedtocompletelymeetspacelatentloads,thusdecouplingthespacelatentandsensibleloads.Designingthe
outsideairsystemtodelivertherequiredventilationtoeachoccupanttypicallyrequiresasupplyairdewpoint
temperatureofabout45Ftomaintainaspacedewpointtemperaturearound52F.Asupplyairdewpoint
temperaturesettingof45FonanHVACsystemretrofitwithactivedesiccantdehumidificationwasutilizedonahigh
schoolHVACsystemretrofitproject[17],whichresultedinsignificantenergysavingsforthedistrict.Seetheexample
discussionbelow.Todeterminethesupplyairconditionsforadedicatedoutdoorairsystemworkinginparallelwith
distributedsensiblecoolingequipment,oneshouldselecttheairdewpointtemperaturelowenoughtomaintaina
summerspacerelativehumiditynogreaterthan40%,orasupplyairdewpointtemperaturearound44F[18].
Likewise,thesupplyairdrybulbtemperatureshouldbeatorbelow55F[16].Thisresultsintheeliminationof
terminalreheatfromtheHVACsystemandtheabilitytodesizethecoolingequipmentduetothedecreaseinlatent
capacityrequiredforconventionalsystemstodehumidify[16].Furthermore,excesscoolingcapacitycanbesubtracted
fromtherestofthesystem,resultinginsavingsthatoffsetthecostofthepretreatmentequipment[19,20].Reducing
thelatentcoolingloadburdenoftherefrigerationequipmentresultsinanetincreaseinefficiencyofthesystem,
furtheroffsettinginitialpurchasecosts[20].

Sincethemidtolate1980s,desiccantbasedcoolingsystemshavefoundincreasedapplicationsashumidity
controldevicesasdedicatedoutsideairpretreatmentventilationsystemsfornonindustrialstructureslikeschools,
homes,hospitals,andcommercialbuildings[19,21].Severalauthorshavestatedthattheuseofactivedesiccants
enhancedthequalityoftheindoorairbyhelpingtomaintaincomfortcriteria(temperature,humidityandventilation)
[13,20,22],removingparticulatesandbioaerosolsfromtheair[22,23],andremovingchemicalpollutantsfromtheair
[21,24].

TheapplicationofdesiccantdehumidifiersintegratedwithHVACsystemsservestopreconditiontheoutside

ventilationairsuchthatthelatentloadisremoved.Someofthebenefitsofapplyingdesiccantdehumidificationtoair
conditioningsystemsarehumiditycontrol,efficientlatentloadremoval,andreductioninpeakelectricdemands[14].
OthersavingsassociatedwithdesiccantdehumidificationHVACsystemhybridizationinclude:1)providinganenhanced
occupantcomfortwithlowerenergyusage,2)providingimprovedhumiditycontrolresultinginsensibleversuslatent
cooling,3)reducingequipmentexpendituresbyallowingthedownsizingoftheevaporatorcoil,condensingunits,
distributionplenumsandterminalboxes,airhandlers,reducedductworksizeandcrosssection,andspaceutilizedfor
mechanicalequipmentforcomparabledesignloads(Mumma2001CeilingPanelCoolingsystems),4)allowing
independenttemperatureandhumiditycontrols,and5)allowinghighertemperaturesetpointsduetoincreased
evaporationofftheskinofbuildingoccupants[20].
Therearetwowaystoremovemoisturefromtheairforairconditioningapplications:(1)bycoolingtheairto
condensewatervaporor(2)bypassingairoverorthroughadesiccantmedium,whichremovesmoisturefromtheair
throughdifferencesinvaporpressures[25].Coolingbaseddehumidificationchillsairbelowitsdewpointtemperature,
resultinginmoisturecondensationonthenearestsurface[25].Thisresultsinanenergypenaltybecausecoolingbased
dehumidificationmustchangethephysicalstateofthewaterfromavaportoaliquid(latentload)inordertoremove
waterfromtheairstream,requiringmoreenergywithnosensibletemperaturechange.Additionally,condensation
withinanHVACsystemcanresultinmicrobialgrowth,equipmentdamage,andexcessenergyusage.
Desiccantshaveanaturalaffinityforremovingmoisturefromairwithnochangeofstate.Asthedesiccant
removeswatervaporfromtheair,thelatentloadisremovedfromairconditioning,andthesensibleloadcanbe
efficientlycooledtocomfortableconditions.Soliddesiccantstakeadvantageofdifferencesinvaporpressuretoremove
moisturefromtheairinthevaporstatewithoutthelatentenergypenaltyassociatedwithcoolingbased

dehumidification.Thehoneycombwheeltypedesiccantisverylight,anditsrotatingmassisverylowcomparedtoits
highmoistureremovalcapacity,resultinginanenergyefficientdehumidificationunit.Thedesignissimple,reliable,and
easytomaintain,andisthemostwidelyinstalledofalldesiccantdehumidifiersinambientpressureapplicationslikeair
conditioning[25].Additionally,therotarywheelhoneycombdesignisthemostappropriatedehumidifierconfiguration
forairconditioningapplications[14].
InvestmentPerceptionofDesiccantDehumidifiers
Themaindisadvantageofthehoneycombtypedesiccantunitisitsperceivedhighfirstcost.Thehoneycomb
wheelstructureisenergyefficient,butcostsmoretoproducethantypicalcoolingcoils.Thehighinitialcosthoweveris
balancedbyoperationaladvantagesdiscussedaboveandapplicationflexibility[26].Regardingtheappropriatenessof
desiccantdryingsystemsforairconditioningapplications,theUnitedStatesDepartmentofEnergysNational
RenewableEnergyLaboratorymaintains:
Conventionalvaporcompressioncoolingsystemsarenotdesignedtohandletemperatureandhumidityloads
separately.Consequently,oversizedcompressorsareinstalledtodehumidifytheincomingair.Andtomeet
humidityrequirements,vaporcompressionsystemsareoftenoperatedforlongcyclesandatlow
temperatures,whichreducestheirefficiencyandrequiresreheatingthedry,coldairtoachievesomedegreeof
comfort.Bothconsequencesarecostly.Desiccantsystems,however,cansupplementconventionalair
conditioners.Byworkingtogether,theytacklethetemperatureandhumidityloadsseparatelyandmore
efficiently.Heating,ventilating,andairconditioning(HVAC)engineerscanthenreducecompressorsizeand
eliminateexcesschillercapacity.Desiccantcoolingsystemsareenergyefficientandenvironmentallybenign...
Desiccantsystemsalsodisplacechlorofluorocarbonbasedcoolingequipment,theemissionsfromwhich
contributetothedepletionoftheEarth'sozonelayerDesiccantdehumidificationcouldreducetotal
residentialelectricitydemandbyasmuchas25%inhumidregions,providingadrier,morecomfortable,and
cleanerindoorenvironmentwithalowerenergybill.Desiccantsystemsallowmorefreshairintobuildings,
thusimprovingindoorairqualitywithoutusingmoreenergy.

Forexample,AssuredIndoorAirQuality,LPinstalled8desiccantbasedairconditioningsystemstoaddress
concernsassociatedwithhighindoorhumidityatahighschoolinthehotandhumidsouthernvalleyofTexas.The
purchase,retrofit,andinstallationcostofthedesiccantandairconditioningsystemswas$2.1million.Asaresultofthe
desiccantinstallation,theschoolreduceditsbuildingoperatingcostsfrom$117.25/hrto53.49/hrwhileincreasing
ventilationratestomeetASHRAE621999.Thepaybackperiodfortheinitial$2.1millioninvestmentwas3.75years.
Thepresentworthoftheinvestmentwas$5.8milliondollarsbasedonaninterestrateof4.0%andaservicelifeof20
years.Therefore,theapplicationofdesiccationtechnologyasanIAQcontrolstrategyinhumidclimateshasprovideda
significanteconomicbenefittotheschooldistrictandthecommunity.

Fischerstatedthatthepaybackperiodassociatedwithprovidingadesirableindoorenvironmentalqualityis
probablyveryshort[11].Heindicatedthatthemanybenefitslistedwouldberecognizedyearafteryear,whereasthe
costsassociatedwithprovidingthedesirableindoorenvironmentalqualityareaonetimeexpensewithminimal
maintenancecosts.Theexpectedbenefitswhichincludedreductionsinabsenteeismandhealthcarecosts;positive
impactsonproductivityandalertness;decreasedincidencesofdrowsiness,allergies,andillness;avoidanceofproperty
damageandremediation;andreducedmaintenancecostsquicklyexceededtheinitialexpenseassociatedwithan
improvedindoorenvironment[5].

KumarandFiskproposedthatcostsassociatedwithprovidingadditionalventilationmaybemorethanoffsetby

thesavingsthatresultfromreducedemployeesickleave,andthatincreasingventilationratesabovetheminimumrates
specifiedinASHRAEStandard621999,VentilationforAcceptableIAQ,canyieldsubstantialbenefits,includingthe
reductionsoftheincidenceofallergyandasthmainbuildingoccupants[27].
TimeforAcceptance
AwidespreadperceptionexiststhatHVACsystemswithadedicatedoutdoorairsystemhavehigherfirstcosts
thanconventionalsystems.Whenviewedasaninvestment,dedicatedoutdoorairsystemscanprovidesignificant
benefitswithsubstantialsavings.Thisperceptionisaresultoftherelativelyrecentintroductionofactive
dehumidificationandtheunfamiliarityoftheHVACsystemindustrywithdedicatedoutdoorairsystems.Theuseof
dedicatedoutdoorairsystemsgenerallyfallsoutsideoftheconventionalHVACsystemdesigns[28],butthebenefitsof
utilizingthesesystemsdictatetheneedforchangeandtransformationtoanewparadigmwithintheHVACsystem
industry.From1997through2001,6700newdesiccantinstallationsforIAQandventilationspecificapplications
occurrednationwidewithoutsignificantawareness,education,andtrainingregardingdesiccantHVAChybridization
withintheHVACsystemindustry.StrongproponentsofutilizingdesiccantsystemsinHVACapplicationsaretheUS
DepartmentofEnergyandtheAmericanRefrigerationInstitute,althoughactivedesiccationHVAChybridizationremains
highlycontroversialsubjectwithintheindustry[1].ItisunlikelythattheincreaseduseofdesiccationforIAQand
ventilationrelatedapplicationsistheresultofchance,butappearstobeduetotheinsightsofengineersanddesigners
whorealizingtheincreasedvalueofutilizingdesiccanttechnologyforHVACsystemapplications.Itisalsounlikelythat
theuseofdedicatedoutdoorairsystemswillremainoutsideofconventionalHVACsystemdesigns,astheirincreased
useprovidesevidenceofincreasingacceptancewithintheindustry.

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