Work

System operating strategy for coordinated temperature and humidity control air conditioning

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Research on Temperature and Humidity Independent Control (THIC) air conditioning systems has shown significant diversification and deepening in recent years. Aiming to reduce energy consumption in cooling and dehumidification functions of THIC systems, a novel coordinated temperature-humidity control strategy based on condensation dehumidification is proposed. Through flexible regulation of key parameters including refrigerant flow rate, evaporation temperature, and system connection configuration, this strategy achieves synergistic optimization of indoor temperature and humidity control. Furthermore, it dynamically switches between three distinct connection modes based on actual demand under varying operating conditions, thereby ensuring the indoor environment consistently meets the set standards. Validation of the proposed strategy’s effectiveness was conducted through a case study of a representative office building located in Xi’an, China. Using a simulation-based approach, analyzed variations in indoor temperature and humidity under relevant operating schemes. Throughout the process, key performance metrics, including the Coefficient of Performance (COP), cooling capacity, and compressor power consumption, were acquired. Simulation results indicate that as the indoor temperature increased from 25°C to 40°C, the system’s COP exhibited an overall upward trend, ranging from 1.62 to 2.93. Moreover, the airflow ratio between the high-temperature and low-temperature evaporators was observed to significantly influence cooling capacity. Specifically, when the airflow ratio was adjusted to a specific threshold value, the cooling capacity was observed within the range of 4.20 kW to 5.24 kW. The findings demonstrate that the coordinated temperature and humidity control air conditioning operation strategy validated in this study is viable for reducing energy consumption.

Source: Case Studies in Thermal Engineering

DOI: 10.1016/j.csite.2025.107476