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Lesson
28
Psychrometric Processes

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The specific objectives of this lecture are to:

1. Introduction to psychrometric processes and their representation (Section 28.1)
2. Important psychrometric processes namely, sensible cooling and heating, cooling
and dehumidification, cooling and humidification, heating and humidification, chemical
dehumidification and mixing of air streams (Section 28.2)
3. Representation of the above processes on psychrometric chart and equations for
heat and mass transfer rates (Section 28.2)
4. Concept of Sensible Heat Factor, By-pass Factor and apparatus dew point
temperature of cooling coils (Section 28.2.)
5. Principle of air washers and various psychrometric processes that can be performed
using air washers (Section 28.3)
6. Concept of enthalpy potential and its use (Section 28.4)

At the end of the lecture, the student should be able to:

1. Represent various psychrometric processes on psychrometric chart

2. Perform calculations for various psychrometric processes using the psychrometric
charts and equations
3. Define sensible heat factor, by-pass factor, contact factor and apparatus dew point
temperature
4. Describe the principle of an air washer and its practical use
5. Derive equation for total heat transfer rate in terms of enthalpy potential and explain
the use of enthalpy potential

28.1. Introduction:
In the design and analysis of air conditioning plants, the fundamental
requirement is to identify the various processes being performed on air. Once identified,
the processes can be analyzed by applying the laws of conservation of mass and
energy. All these processes can be plotted easily on a psychrometric chart. This is very
useful for quick visualization and also for identifying the changes taking place in
important properties such as temperature, humidity ratio, enthalpy etc. The important
processes that air undergoes in a typical air conditioning plant are discussed below.

28.2. Important psychrometric processes:

a) Sensible cooling:

During this process, the moisture content of air remains constant but its
temperature decreases as it flows over a cooling coil. For moisture content to remain

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constant, the surface of the cooling coil should be dry and its surface temperature
should be greater than the dew point temperature of air. If the cooling coil is 100%
effective, then the exit temperature of air will be equal to the coil temperature. However,
in practice, the exit air temperature will be higher than the cooling coil temperature.
Figure 28.1 shows the sensible cooling process O-A on a psychrometric chart. The heat
transfer rate during this process is given by:

Q c = m a (hO − h A ) = m a c pm (TO − TA ) (28.1)

ho

hA

A O
W

DBT
Fig.28.1: Sensible cooling process O-A on psychrometric chart

b) Sensible heating (Process O-B):

During this process, the moisture content of air remains constant and its
temperature increases as it flows over a heating coil. The heat transfer rate during this
process is given by:

Q h = m a (hB − hO ) = m a c pm (TB − TO ) (28.2)

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where cpm is the humid specific heat (≈1.0216 kJ/kg dry air) and ma is the mass flow
rate of dry air (kg/s). Figure 28.2 shows the sensible heating process on a
psychrometric chart.

hB

O B

DBT
Fig.28.2: Sensible heating process on psychrometric chart

c) Cooling and dehumidification (Process O-C):

When moist air is cooled below its dew-point by bringing it in contact with a cold
surface as shown in Fig.28.3, some of the water vapor in the air condenses and leaves
the air stream as liquid, as a result both the temperature and humidity ratio of air
decreases as shown. This is the process air undergoes in a typical air conditioning
system. Although the actual process path will vary depending upon the type of cold
surface, the surface temperature, and flow conditions, for simplicity the process line is
assumed to be a straight line. The heat and mass transfer rates can be expressed in
terms of the initial and final conditions by applying the conservation of mass and
conservation of energy equations as given below:

By applying mass balance for the water:

ma .w O = ma .w C + mw (28.3)

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hO
Cooling coil hw
hC O
Wo

ma ma Wc
C
ho hC
Wo WC

Qt mw
Ts TC To
Fig.28.3: Cooling and dehumidification process (O-C)

By applying energy balance:

m a .h O = Q t + m w .h w + m a .h C (28.4)

from the above two equations, the load on the cooling coil, Qt is given by:

Q t = m a (h O − h C ) − m a ( w O − w C )h w (28.5)

the 2nd term on the RHS of the above equation is normally small compared to the other
terms, so it can be neglected. Hence,

Q t = m a (h O − h C ) (28.6)

It can be observed that the cooling and de-humidification process involves both latent
and sensible heat transfer processes, hence, the total, latent and sensible heat transfer
rates (Qt, Ql and Qs) can be written as:

Q t = Ql + Q s
where Q l = m a (h O − h w ) = m a .h fg ( w O − w C ) (28.7)
Q s = m a (h w − h C ) = m a .c pm (TO − TC )

By separating the total heat transfer rate from the cooling coil into sensible and
latent heat transfer rates, a useful parameter called Sensible Heat Factor (SHF) is
defined. SHF is defined as the ratio of sensible to total heat transfer rate, i.e.,

SHF = Q s / Q t = Q s /(Q s + Q l ) (28.8)

From the above equation, one can deduce that a SHF of 1.0 corresponds to no
latent heat transfer and a SHF of 0 corresponds to no sensible heat transfer. A SHF of
0.75 to 0.80 is quite common in air conditioning systems in a normal dry-climate. A

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lower value of SHF, say 0.6, implies a high latent heat load such as that occurs in a
humid climate.

From Fig.28.3, it can be seen that the slope of the process line O-C is given by:

Δw
tan c = (28.9)
ΔT

From the definition of SHF,

1 − SHF Q l m a h fg Δ w 2501Δ w Δw
= = = = 2451 (28.10)
SHF Q s m a c pm Δ T 1.0216 Δ T ΔT

From the above equations, we can write the slope as:

1 ⎛ 1 − SHF ⎞
tan c = ⎜ ⎟ (28.11)
2451 ⎝ SHF ⎠

Thus we can see that the slope of the cooling and de-humidification line is purely
a function of the sensible heat factor, SHF. Hence, we can draw the cooling and de-
humidification line on psychrometric chart if the initial state and the SHF are known. In
some standard psychrometric charts, a protractor with different values of SHF is
provided. The process line is drawn through the initial state point and in parallel to the
given SHF line from the protractor as shown in Fig.28.4.
c

Wo-Wc
-h
ho

SHF
c
-h
hw

Fig.28.4: A psychrometric chart with protractor for SHF lines

In Fig.28.3, the temperature Ts is the effective surface temperature of the cooling

coil, and is known as apparatus dew-point (ADP) temperature. In an ideal situation,
when all the air comes in perfect contact with the cooling coil surface, then the exit
temperature of air will be same as ADP of the coil. However, in actual case the exit
temperature of air will always be greater than the apparatus dew-point temperature due
to boundary layer development as air flows over the cooling coil surface and also due to

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temperature variation along the fins etc. Hence, we can define a by-pass factor (BPF)
as:

T − TS
BPF = C (28.12)
TO − TS

It can be easily seen that, higher the by-pass factor larger will be the difference
between air outlet temperature and the cooling coil temperature. When BPF is 1.0, all
the air by-passes the coil and there will not be any cooling or de-humidification. In
practice, the by-pass factor can be increased by increasing the number of rows in a
cooling coil or by decreasing the air velocity or by reducing the fin pitch.

Alternatively, a contact factor(CF) can be defined which is given by:

CF = 1 − BPF (28.13)

d) Heating and Humidification (Process O-D):

During winter it is essential to heat and humidify the room air for comfort. As
shown in Fig.28.5., this is normally done by first sensibly heating the air and then
adding water vapour to the air stream through steam nozzles as shown in the figure.

hD
Heating coil Steam nozzles

hO D
wD
ma ma
TO TD
wO wD wO
hO hD O

Qh mw
TO TD

Fig.28.5: Heating and humidification process

Mass balance of water vapor for the control volume yields the rate at which steam has
to be added, i.e., mw:

m w = m a (w D − w O ) (28.14)

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where ma is the mass flow rate of dry air.

From energy balance:

Q h = m a (hD − h O ) − m w h w (28.15)

where Qh is the heat supplied through the heating coil and hw is the enthalpy of steam.

Since this process also involves simultaneous heat and mass transfer, we can
define a sensible heat factor for the process in a way similar to that of a coolind and
dehumidification process.

e) Cooling & humidification (Process O-E):

As the name implies, during this process, the air temperature drops and its
humidity increases. This process is shown in Fig.28.6. As shown in the figure, this can
be achieved by spraying cool water in the air stream. The temperature of water should
be lower than the dry-bulb temperature of air but higher than its dew-point temperature
to avoid condensation (TDPT < Tw < TO).

Cold water spray or a

wetted surface

ma ma wE
TO TE
wO wE wO
hO hE

Tw TDPT TE TO

Fig.28.6: Cooling and humdification process

It can be seen that during this process there is sensible heat transfer from air to
water and latent heat transfer from water to air. Hence, the total heat transfer depends
upon the water temperature. If the temperature of the water sprayed is equal to the wet-
bulb temperature of air, then the net transfer rate will be zero as the sensible heat
transfer from air to water will be equal to latent heat transfer from water to air. If the
water temperature is greater than WBT, then there will be a net heat transfer from water
to air. If the water temperature is less than WBT, then the net heat transfer will be from
air to water. Under a special case when the spray water is entirely recirculated and is
neither heated nor cooled, the system is perfectly insulated and the make-up water is
supplied at WBT, then at steady-state, the air undergoes an adiabatic saturation
process, during which its WBT remains constant. This is the process of adiabatic
saturation discussed in Chapter 27. The process of cooling and humidification is
encountered in a wide variety of devices such as evaporative coolers, cooling towers
etc.

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f) Heating and de-humidification (Process O-F):

This process can be achieved by using a hygroscopic material, which absorbs or

adsorbs the water vapor from the moisture. If this process is thermally isolated, then the
enthalpy of air remains constant, as a result the temperature of air increases as its
moisture content decreases as shown in Fig.28.7. This hygroscopic material can be a
solid or a liquid. In general, the absorption of water by the hygroscopic material is an
exothermic reaction, as a result heat is released during this process, which is
transferred to air and the enthalpy of air increases.

Hygroscopic
material

O WO
O F
WF
F

TO TF

Fig.28.7. Chemical de-humidification process

g) Mixing of air streams:

Mixing of air streams at different states is commonly encountered in many

processes, including in air conditioning. Depending upon the state of the individual
streams, the mixing process can take place with or without condensation of moisture.

i) Without condensation: Figure 28.8 shows an adiabatic mixing of two moist air
streams during which no condensation of moisture takes place. As shown in the figure,
when two air streams at state points 1 and 2 mix, the resulting mixture condition 3 can
be obtained from mass and energy balance.

From the mass balance of dry air and water vapor:

m a,1w 1 + m a,2 w 2 = m a,3 w 3 = (m a,1 + m a,2 ) w 3 (28.16)

From energy balance:

m a,1h1 + m a,2 h 2 = m a,3 h 3 = (m a,1 + m a,2 )h 3 (28.17)

From the above equations, it can be observed that the final enthalpy and
humidity ratio of mixture are weighted averages of inlet enthalpies and humidity ratios.
A generally valid approximation is that the final temperature of the mixture is the

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weighted average of the inlet temperatures. With this approximation, the point on the
psychrometric chart representing the mixture lies on a straight line connecting the two
inlet states. Hence, the ratio of distances on the line, i.e., (1-3)/(2-3) is equal to the ratio
of flow rates ma,2/ma,1. The resulting error (due to the assumption that the humid
specific heats being constant) is usually less than 1 percent.

ma,1

ma,1+ma,2 = ma,3

ma,2

Fig.28.8. Mixing of two air streams without condensation

ii) Mixing with condensation:

As shown in Fig.28.9, when very cold and dry air mixes with warm air at high
relative humidity, the resulting mixture condition may lie in the two-phase region, as a
result there will be condensation of water vapor and some amount of water will leave
the system as liquid water. Due to this, the humidity ratio of the resulting mixture (point
3) will be less than that at point 4. Corresponding to this will be an increase in
temperature of air due to the release of latent heat of condensation. This process rarely
occurs in an air conditioning system, but this is the phenomenon which results in the
formation of fog or frost (if the mixture temperature is below 0oC). This happens in
winter when the cold air near the earth mixes with the humid and warm air, which
develops towards the evening or after rains.

Fig.28.9. Mixing of two air streams with condensation

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28.3. Air Washers:

An air washer is a device for conditioning air. As shown in Fig.28.10, in an air
washer air comes in direct contact with a spray of water and there will be an exchange
of heat and mass (water vapour) between air and water. The outlet condition of air
depends upon the temperature of water sprayed in the air washer. Hence, by
controlling the water temperature externally, it is possible to control the outlet conditions
of air, which then can be used for air conditioning purposes.

Eliminator
Plates

Air out
Air in

Make-up
water

Pump
Cooler/heater
Fig.28.10: Air washer

In the air washer, the mean temperature of water droplets in contact with air
decides the direction of heat and mass transfer. As a consequence of the 2nd law, the
heat transfer between air and water droplets will be in the direction of decreasing
temperature gradient. Similarly, the mass transfer will be in the direction of decreasing
vapor pressure gradient. For example,

a) Cooling and dehumidification: tw < tDPT. Since the exit enthalpy of air is less than its
inlet value, from energy balance it can be shown that there is a transfer of total energy
from air to water. Hence to continue the process, water has to be externally cooled.
Here both latent and sensible heat transfers are from air to water. This is shown by
Process O-A in Fig.28.11.

b) Adiabatic saturation: tw = tWBT. Here the sensible heat transfer from air to water is
exactly equal to latent heat transfer from water to air. Hence, no external cooling or
heating of water is required. That is this is a case of pure water recirculation. This is

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shown by Process O-B in Fig.28.11. This the process that takes place in a perfectly
insulated evaporative cooler.

c) Cooling and humidification: tDPT < tw < tWBT. Here the sensible heat transfer is from air
to water and latent heat transfer is from water to air, but the total heat transfer is from
air to water, hence, water has to be cooled externally. This is shown by Process O-C in
Fig.28.11.

d) Cooling and humidification: tWBT < tw < tDBT. Here the sensible heat transfer is from air
to water and latent heat transfer is from water to air, but the total heat transfer is from
water to air, hence, water has to be heated externally. This is shown by Process O-D in
Fig.28.11. This is the process that takes place in a cooling tower. The air stream
extracts heat from the hot water coming from the condenser, and the cooled water is
sent back to the condenser.

e) Heating and humidification: tw > tDBT. Here both sensible and latent heat transfers are
from water to air, hence, water has to be heated externally. This is shown by Process
O-E in Fig.28.11.

Thus, it can be seen that an air washer works as a year-round air conditioning
system. Though air washer is a and extremely useful simple device, it is not commonly
used for comfort air conditioning applications due to concerns about health resulting
from bacterial or fungal growth on the wetted surfaces. However, it can be used in
industrial applications.

D E
B
W
C
O

DBT

Fig.28.11: Various psychrometric processes that can take place in an air washer

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28.4. Enthalpy potential:

As shown in case of an air washer, whenever water (or a wetted surface) and air
contact each other, there is possibility of heat and moisture transfer between them. The
directions of heat and moisture transfer depend upon the temperature and vapor
pressure differences between air and water. As a result, the direction of the total heat
transfer rate, which is a sum of sensible heat transfer and latent heat transfers also
depends upon water and air conditions. The concept of enthalpy potential is very useful
in quantifying the total heat transfer in these processes and its direction.

The sensible (QS) and latent (QL) heat transfer rates are given by:

Q S = h C A S (t i − t a )
. (28.18)
Q L = m w .h fg = hD .A S ( w i − w a ).h fg

the total heat transfer QT is given by:

Q T = Q S + Q L = hC A S (t i − t a ) + hD .A S ( w i − w a ).h fg (28.19)

where ta = dry-bulb temperature of air, oC

ti = temperature of water/wetted surface, oC

wa = humidity ratio of air, kg/kg

wi = humidity ratio of saturated air at ti, kg/kg

hc = convective heat transfer coefficient, W/[Link]

hD = convective mass transfer coefficient, kg/m2

hfg = latent heat of vaporization, J/kg

Since the transport mechanism that controls the convective heat transfer
between air and water also controls the moisture transfer between air and water, there
exists a relation between heat and mass transfer coefficients, hc and hD as discussed in
an earlier chapter. It has been shown that for air-water vapor mixtures,

hC hc
hD ≈ or = Lewis number ≈ 1.0 (28.20)
c pm hD .c pm

where cpm is the humid specific heat ≈ 1.0216 kJ/kg.K.

Hence the total heat transfer is given by:

h A
[
Q T = Q S + Q L = C S ( t i − t a ) + ( w i − w a ).h fg
c pm
] (28.21)

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by manipulating the term in the parenthesis of RHS, it can be shown that:

h A
Q T = Q S + Q L = C S [(hi − h a )] (28.22)
c pm

thus the total heat transfer and its direction depends upon the enthalpy difference (or
potential) between water and air (hi-ha).

if hi > ha; then the total heat transfer is from water to air and water gets cooled

if hi < ha; then the total heat transfer is from air to water and water gets heated

if hi = ha; then the net heat transfer is zero, i.e., the sensible heat transfer rate is equal
to but in the opposite direction of latent heat transfer. Temperature of water remains at
its wet bulb temperature value

The concept of enthalpy potential is very useful in psychrometric calculations

and is frequently used in the design and analysis of evaporative coolers, cooling
towers, air washers etc.

Questions and answers:

1. Which of the following statements are TRUE?

a) During sensible cooling of air, both dry bulb and wet bulb temperatures decrease

b) During sensible cooling of air, dry bulb temperature decreases but wet bulb
temperature remains constant

c) During sensible cooling of air, dry and wet bulb temperatures decrease but dew point
temperature remains constant

d) During sensible cooling of air, dry bulb, wet bulb and dew point temperatures
decrease

Ans.: a) and c)

2. Which of the following statements are TRUE?

a) The sensible heat factor for a sensible heating process is 1.0

b) The sensible heat factor for a sensible cooling process is 0.0

c) Sensible heat factor always lies between 0.0 and 1.0

d) Sensible heat factor is low for air conditioning plants operating in humid climates

Ans.: a) and d)

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