Bed geometrical specifications effects on the performance of silica/water adsorption chillers

A transient three-dimensional numerical scheme considering both inter-particle and intra-particle mass transfer resistances is developed to examine the performance of silica gel/water adsorption chiller. The developed model is validated against the available experimental data in literature. The effects of bed contact resistance and variable thermal conductivity are examined and moreover, it is shown that modeling part of the bed including just three fins can well predict the performance of entire bed with 50 fins. Respecting to all mentioned considerations, a comparative study is performed to identify the appropriate fin shape and configuration for a given working condition of an adsorption chiller. Accordingly, effects of fin height and spacing on SCP and COP are investigated for beds with annular and square plate fins. Finally, a design procedure is proposed to configure the adsorbent bed specifications for a given application assuming that SCP and COP are specified parameters based on practical considerations.

► Transient 3-D numerical modeling of adsorption chiller with the sorbent SWS-1L. ► Comparative study to identify the appropriate fin shape and distribution is performed. ► Annular and square plate fins with comparable size and distributions are considered. ► Effects of bed variable thermal conductivity and contact resistance are examined. ► Design procedure to configure the adsorbent bed specifications is proposed.