Optimization of a fin-tube type adsorption chiller by design of experiment

•We present a transient 2D axisymmetric modeling of a fin-tube type adsorption chiller.•We examine the effects of 10 parameters on the performance by design of experiment.•The optimum conditions of an adsorption chiller are found through ANOVA.•COP and SCP are selected as the object functions.•Fin thickness and the temperature of hot water are the dominant parameters.

This paper presents a numerical analysis of the performance of a fin-tube type adsorption chiller associated with heat and mass transfer mechanisms. A two-dimensional axisymmetric transient model is developed and 10 parameters are used to investigate their effects on the performance of an adsorption chiller and to obtain the optimized conditions of a fin-tube type adsorption chiller. Ten parameters found in many other studies, such as fin pitch, fin thickness, fin height, diffusion coefficient, particle size, cycle time, cycle ratio, temperature of hot water, fluid velocity and porosity, are used in this study. Based on the design of experiment, an orthogonal array of 10 parameters with three levels, L27(313) is used for the analysis of variance (ANOVA) and through this method, each parameter's level of contribution is carefully examined. The result shows that fin thickness and the temperature of hot water are the dominant parameters for COP and SCP, respectively. The optimum conditions having the highest COP of 0.6782 and SCP of 217.68 W kg−1 are found through the result.