Comparative assessment of the linear driving force and pseudo-gas-side-controlled models for the prediction of mass transfer in desiccant matrices

The response of the desiccant wall to a step change in the airflow state is simulated, for both adsorption and desorption processes. For each approach, a mass transfer coefficient is estimated after the time evolutions predicted by the detailed model. It is concluded that, when adopting a constant mass transfer coefficient: (i) the pseudo-gas-side-controlled model with an adsorption-desorption averaged value is more suitable for predicting the behaviour of matrices with lower thickness desiccant wall and (ii) the linear driving force model is more appropriate for higher thickness desiccant wall if using a mass transfer coefficient of the specific sorption process.