Energy savings potential of a desiccant assisted hybrid air source heat pump system for residential building in hot summer and cold winter zone in China

In hot summer and cold winter zone in China, air conditioning system has four running modes yearly including cooling with dehumidification, cooling, dehumidification and heating in residential buildings. The conventional air source heat pump (ASHP) system is not designed to independently control temperature and humidity, and is not very suitable for the dehumidification mode in the view of building energy consumption. A novel ASHP system combining radiant cooling/heating for residential buildings was presented. The main feature of this hybrid ASHP system is that desiccant wheel and cooling coil accomplish dehumidification process together, and the regenerative heat needed by the desiccant wheel is supplied by the condenser dissipated heat. Based on simulation studies and performance analysis, this paper predicts the primary energy consumption of the hybrid ASHP system in comparison with the conventional ASHP system during the cooling and heating seasons. It was found that primary energy requirement can be reduced by more than 8% in cooling with dehumidification mode, by 50% in dehumidification mode, and by more than 14% in heating mode. The study results prove that the hybrid ASHP system can keep great energy saving and running cost saving yearly, especially in the dehumidification process.

► An ASHP system combining desiccant wheel and radiant panel was presented.
► The regenerative heat for desiccant wheel is supplied by the condensing process.
► A running mode can be designed to independently control temperature and humidity.
► The desiccant wheel and coil can accomplish dehumidification process together.