Mathematical simulation and experimental study of a modified zeolite 13X–water adsorption refrigeration module

In order to investigate the performance of the adsorption cooling module (16 mm in diameter and 1020 mm in length) with zeolite 13X and water as the adsorption working pair, a dynamic heat and mass transfer model was established based on the linear driving force (LDF) model. For the working process of the main parts of the module, including adsorber and condenser/evaporator, the coupled dynamic equations were set up for each stage of heating/desorbing and cooling/adsorbing, respectively. The model was then solved using the finite difference method, and the performance of the adsorber and condenser/evaporator of the module were analyzed. The calculated results were validated with experimental data and good agreement was observed. By means of the model, simulation and optimization of the adsorption cooling module can be further studied.