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There has been considerable research worldwide on desiccant-based air-conditioning during the past 30 years. The rationale for the push for this new research focus has been twofold: (a) the need to provide an alternative to conventional refrigerative air-conditioning systems which rely heavily on fossil fuels as their energy sources, and (b) the need to provide better thermal comfort in air-conditioned spaces in warm to hot and humid climates. A desiccant air-conditioning system consists of several components to cool and dehumidify the air before it is supplied to a conditioned space. Earlier research work has identified the potential advantages of this technology, which include the following: (1) working fluids that do not impact on the ozone layer, (2) reduced electricity consumption, (3) improved indoor air quality, (4) simpler construction and less maintenance, and (5) integral provision of heating and cooling for cold/temperate climates. On the other hand, the authors of this paper identified the following drawbacks: (1) inevitable heating of air while being dehumidified, (2) the need for desiccant regeneration and low thermal COP paradox, (3) limited options for regeneration heat sources, (4) limited options for reliable cooling, and (5) low electrical coefficient of performance (COP). This paper presents a critical review of the energy and thermal comfort performance of solid-desiccant rotor-based air-conditioning systems, and discusses in detail their potential advantages and drawbacks. This critical review found that the drawbacks of the systems outweigh their identified advantages. The main reason for this is the inevitable heating of air while being dehumidified and counterintuitive addition of moisture to air during the evaporative cooling process. During the past 30 years of research and development efforts, no significant innovations have been discovered to resolve these crucial issues. Unless future research and development is directed to find a breakthrough, this technology will have limited commercial application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increased awareness of the impacts of synthetic refrigerants on the environment has prompted the refrigeration industry and researchers worldwide to seek better alternatives in terms of technical, economic and environmental performance. CO2 refrigerant, also known as R744, has re-emerged as a potential alternative to existing refrigerants with its zero ozone depletion potential (ODP) and impressively low global warming potential (GWP). A refrigeration system utilising this refrigerant, however, suffers performance degradation when it operates in warm or hot climatic regions due to its inevitable operation in the supercritical region. In addition, the CO2 refrigerant properties necessitate the need for components designed to withstand very high operating pressures. These challenges have not been let unnoticed; related industries and researchers are actively involved in research and development of various components and systems which in turn encourages increased applications of these systems. In this paper, a comprehensive review of CO2 refrigeration systems and the state of the art of the technology and its applications in various industries is presented. In particular, the paper reviews recent research and developments on various aspects of CO2 systems including cycle modifications, exergy analysis of the systems, system modelling, transcritical operation consideration and various existing and potential applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dew point cooling (DPC) is a novel indirect evaporative cooling concept capable of delivering air temperatures approaching the dew point. Coupling this technology with CO2 refrigeration is well suited to minimising transcritical operation when the coefficient of performance (COP) is dramatically reduced in hot climates. A substantial experimental program was conducted to characterise this combination by testing a 20 kW CO2 refrigeration system subject to ambient temperatures above 40 °C. It was demonstrated that DPC operation not only avoided transcritical operation during such weather conditions, but also increased the COP by up to 140% compared to the conventional system. The combination of these technologies was successfully mathematically modelled, from which the optimum condenser inlet air temperature was identified for each condenser temperature. Using this optimum condition, it was possible to maximise the COP for a range of conditions applicable to the psychometric chart. An annual case study for Adelaide, Australia was conducted which demonstrated that optimally coupling DPC with CO2 refrigeration can reduce the annual energy consumption and peak demand by 16% and 47%, respectively, compared to a conventional CO2 booster system. Furthermore, the number of hours of transcritical operation was reduced from 3278 to 27. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]