Conjugate heat and mass transfer in a skewed flow hollow fiber membrane bank used for liquid desiccant air dehumidification

Hollow fiber membrane tube bank has been increasingly used in various industries. Fluid flow in shell side is often projected at an impinging angle to the fiber bank due to the complicate structure of heat mass exchangers. However most previous researches concerned only on two ideal flow conditions, pure parallel flow or pure cross flow. The effects of skewed flow were not mentioned. In this research, fluid flow and transport phenomena in a skewed flow hollow fiber membrane bank for liquid desiccant air dehumidification are investigated. The boundary conditions on the membrane surfaces are determined by coupled heat and moisture transfer from tube side, through the membranes, and to the shell side. The governing differential equations of continuity, momentum, energy and concentration are solved by a finite volume method to obtain the shell-side convective heat and mass transfer coefficients, which are then experimentally validated. The influences of skewed angles from 0° to 90° on the heat mass transfer and friction properties are investigated. Correlations are proposed for the prediction of convective transfer coefficients and friction factors at different skewed angles.