Abstract:
Disclosed are a dehumidification apparatus, and an air conditioning apparatus and system having the same. The dehumidification apparatus includes: a desiccant rotor having a desiccant for adsorbing moisture; and a regeneration unit disposed at one side of the desiccant rotor, for desorbing the moisture adsorbed to the desiccant. The regeneration unit includes at least one of a hollow hot water line containing hot water exchanging heat with the air flowing toward the desiccant rotor. The dehumidification apparatus efficiently reproduces the desiccant for dehumidification and air conditioning.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application is a divisional application of U.S. Patent Application No. 11/743,109 filed on May 1, 2007 and claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2006-0098151 filed on Oct. 9, 2006, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    The present invention relates to air conditioning, and more particularly, to a dehumidification apparatus for removing moisture from the air and lowering a temperature of the air, and an air conditioning apparatus and system having the same. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Background Art 
         [0005]    Air conditioning is to keep temperature, humidity, air stream, bacteria, dust and harmful gas in the best conditions for persons or objects indoors. The representative air conditioning functions include cooling and heating relating to temperature control, and dehumidification and humidification relating to humidity control. 
         [0006]    In addition to electricity generation, the cogeneration supplies heat to district heating or industrial processing by using the waste heat from the electricity generation process. 
         [0007]      FIG. 1  is a concept view illustrating a heating process of houses by cogeneration. 
         [0008]    Waste heat discarded from the process of electricity generation of a cogeneration plant  10  is stored in a thermal storage tank  11 , and transferred to a liquid (water) flowing in a heat transfer line  14  through a heat exchanger  12  by a circulation pump  13 . The resulting hot water is transferred to a cooling/heating system  20  of the houses. 
         [0009]    A heat exchanger  21  of the cooling/heating system  20  exchanges heat between the hot water and the water circulating in a hot water circuit  22 . Then, the hot water is supplied to the houses in response to demand in the houses. 
         [0010]    Since the production ratio of power to heat is fixed to about 3:4, it is advantageous if the ratio of demands for power and heat is close to the production ratio. However, the demands for power and heat from commercial or residential sectors show very different patterns from each other in annual variation. 
         [0011]    The demand for power has a maximum value in summer with a relatively small annual fluctuation, while the demand for heat has a large fluctuation with a maximum value in winter. According to a statistical review, the ratio of the minimum to the maximum in the annual heat demand is only 8.7% in middle and high latitude regions. 
         [0012]      FIG. 2  is an instance showing monthly heat/electricity supply from a district heating corporation. 
         [0013]    As shown in  FIG. 2 , according to the demand for heat, the heat supply N 2  from the district heating corporation has a minimum value from June to September, namely, a hot season. A particular point in the graph is that the electricity supply N 1  becomes almost zero in the summer regardless of the increasing demand in the electricity in the summer. This is because the cogeneration stops in the summer and the small heat demand is sufficed by a dedicated boiler for heat supply. The reason for this is that the operation of the cogeneration is economically efficient and energy efficient as well only when the demand ratio between electricity and heat matches well with the production ratio, as mentioned previously. When the demand ratio deviates much from the production ratio, the operation of cogeneration becomes economically inefficient and the cogeneration process needs to be stopped. 
         [0014]    As described above, the efficient operation of the cogeneration plant cannot be ensured in summer without increasing the demand for the waste heat generated as a byproduct from the electricity generation. 
         [0015]    As shown in  FIG. 1 , in order to increase the demand for heat in summer, the district cooling has been devised applying an absorption type chiller  23  using the district heat as the heat source. However, the absorption type chiller  23  has a drawback in that the cooling performance of the chiller decreases considerably with a low temperature heat source such as the waste heat from the cogeneration plant  10 . In addition, the cold water circuit  24  connected to the absorption type chiller  23  must be installed separately from the hot water circuit  22 . 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0016]    Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a desiccant cooling system using hot water as the heat source for the regeneration of the desiccant. 
         [0017]    Another object of the present invention is to perform air conditioning including cooling and dehumidification. 
         [0018]    To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, there is provided a dehumidification apparatus, including: a desiccant rotor having a desiccant for adsorbing moisture; and a regeneration unit disposed at one side of the desiccant rotor, for desorbing the moisture adsorbed to the desiccant, wherein the regeneration unit comprises at least one of a hot water tube containing hot water exchanging heat with the air flowing toward the desiccant rotor. 
         [0019]    According to the second embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an air conditioning apparatus, including: a casing enclosing first and second channels separated by a partition wall; a desiccant rotor rotatably installed across the partition wall to be placed crossing the channels, for adsorbing moisture from an air flowing into the first channel; and a regeneration unit configured to desorb the moisture adsorbed to the desiccant rotor, by heating an air flowing into the second channel toward the desiccant rotor. 
         [0020]    According to the third embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an air conditioning apparatus, including, a first hollow casing having its inlet and outlet opened to be in communication with the outdoor air; a second hollow casing disposed in the first casing, for partitioning off the first casing into first and second channels in communication with each other; a partition wall formed in the second casing, for partitioning off the second casing into third and fourth channels in communication with each other; a desiccant rotor rotatably installed in the second casing to be placed crossing the adjacent first and fourth channels, for adsorbing moisture from an air flowing into the first channel; a regeneration unit disposed in the fourth channel, for desorbing the moisture adsorbed to the desiccant rotor, by heating an air flowing into the fourth channel; and a heat exchanger placed crossing the adjacent second and third channels, for exchanging heat between an air flowing in the second channel and the air flowing into the third channel through the desiccant rotor. 
         [0021]    According to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an air conditioning system, including, a dehumidification system having a desiccant for adsorbing moisture; and a hot water supply system in communication with the dehumidification system, for supplying hot water, and also supplying heat for regenerating the desiccant of the dehumidification system. 
         [0022]    The foregoing and other objects, features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0023]    The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. 
           [0024]    In the drawings: 
           [0025]      FIG. 1  is a concept view illustrating a heating process of houses by cogeneration; 
           [0026]      FIG. 2  is a graph showing monthly heat/electricity supply of a district heating corporation; 
           [0027]      FIG. 3  is a concept view illustrating a dehumidification apparatus in accordance with one preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0028]      FIG. 4  is a concept view illustrating an air conditioning apparatus in accordance with another preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0029]      FIG. 5  is a concept view illustrating an air conditioning apparatus in accordance with yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention; and 
           [0030]      FIG. 6  is a concept view illustrating a cooling process of houses by using the district heat supply. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0031]    Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. 
         [0032]      FIG. 3  is a concept view illustrating a dehumidification apparatus in accordance with one preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0033]    Referring to  FIG. 3 , the dehumidification apparatus  100  includes a desiccant rotor  110  and a regeneration unit  120 . 
         [0034]    The desiccant rotor  110  is normally formed in a cylindrical shape filled with a honeycomb structure, so that the air can pass through channels defined by the honeycomb structure. A desiccant (not shown) such as silica gel, zeolite or LiCI is coated on the walls defining the air paths through the desiccant rotor  110 . The desiccant adsorbs moisture from the air passing through the desiccant rotor  110 . The desiccant rotor  110  is mounted on a structure (not shown) to be rotated around a rotation shaft  111  at its center. 
         [0035]    The regeneration unit  120  is disposed at one side of the desiccant rotor  110 , for heating the air flowing toward the desiccant rotor  110 . Hot water is supplied to the regeneration unit  120  to provide thermal energy to heat the air. Accordingly, the regeneration unit  120  becomes at least one of a hot water air heater. The hot water supplied to the regeneration unit can be from a district energy facility such as a cogeneration plant  500  (refer to  FIG. 6 ), or a water heater for heating (not shown) such as a boiler. 
         [0036]    Moreover, in order to prevent mixing of the air flows F 1  and F 2  flowing into first and second regions A 1  and A 2  of the desiccant rotor  110 , respectively, a partition wall (not shown) can be installed on a imaginary line  112  dividing the first and second regions A 1  and A 2 . 
         [0037]    The operation of the dehumidification apparatus  100  in accordance with the present invention will now be described. 
         [0038]    The air flow F 1  flowing into the first region A 1  of the desiccant rotor  110  passes through the desiccant rotor  110  through a channel formed by the honeycomb structure of the desiccant rotor  110 . In this process, the desiccant coated on the desiccant rotor  110  adsorbs moisture from the air flow F 1 . Therefore, the air flow F 1 ′ is dehumidified and dried through the desiccant rotor  110 . On the other hand, the first region A 1  of the desiccant rotor  110  has high moisture uptake due to the moisture adsorption. 
         [0039]    The air flow F 2  passing through the regeneration unit  120  is heated to the regeneration temperature by the hot water flowing in the regeneration unit  120 . This air flow F 2  at the regeneration temperature flows into the second region A 2  of the desiccant rotor  110 . 
         [0040]    Since the desiccant rotor  110  rotates around the rotation shaft  111 , the part of the desiccant rotor  110  with high moisture uptake previously occupied the first region A 1  turns to the second region A 2 . Then the moisture is desorbed by the air flow F 2  having the raised temperature. As a result, the air flow F 2 ′ which has passed through the second region A 2  has high humidity. 
         [0041]    As the moisture is desorbed by the air flow F 2 , the second region A 2  is dried again, which is called regeneration of the desiccant rotor  110 . The regenerated part of the desiccant rotor  110  at the second region A 2  turns to the first region A 1  as the desiccant rotor  110  rotates. Accordingly, at the first region A 1  the moisture is removed from the air flow F 1  continuously. 
         [0042]    In the above dehumidifying process, the air flow F 2  supplied to the desiccant rotor  110  directly contacts the desiccant rotor  110  and transfers heat, thereby improving transfer efficiency. Even if the temperature of the regeneration heat source (hot water) is low, the desiccant rotor  110  is efficiently regenerated to attain a sufficient dehumidification effect. 
         [0043]      FIG. 4  is a concept view illustrating an air conditioning apparatus in accordance with another preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0044]    As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the air conditioning apparatus  200  includes a casing  210 , a desiccant rotor  220  and a regeneration unit  230 . 
         [0045]    The casing  210  encloses two channels, i.e., the first and the second channels  211  and  212 . The first and second channels  211  and  212  are divided by a partition wall  213  disposed inside the casing  210 . Both ends of the first and second channels  211  and  212  are opened, so that the air can flow through the first and second channels  211  and  212 , respectively. 
         [0046]    The desiccant rotor  220  and the regeneration unit  230  correspond to the desiccant rotor  110  and the regeneration unit  120 , respectively, mentioned above. Detailed explanations thereof are omitted. 
         [0047]    The desiccant rotor  220  is installed across the partition wall  213  to be placed crossing the first and second channels  211  and  212 . The regeneration unit  230  is disposed inside the second channel  230 . As mentioned above, the regeneration unit  230  is a hot water air heater supplied with hot water from the district energy facility or the water heater for space heating. 
         [0048]    To facilitate the air flows passing through the first and second channels  211  and  212 , first and second fans  241  and  242  can be additionally disposed in the first and second channels  211  and  212 , respectively. 
         [0049]    When the air flow which has passed through the first channel  211  is supplied to an indoor space intended to be air-conditioned, the air flow passing through the second channel  212  must be taken from an outdoor space and discharged back to the outdoor space. For this, extension ductwork  260  for connecting the second channel  212  to the outdoor space is provided with at both ends of the second channel  212 . 
         [0050]    To supply the low temperature and low humidity air into the indoor space, a cooling unit  250  is added to the dehumidification apparatus. 
         [0051]    For example, a sensible heat rotor  251  can be used as the cooling unit  250 . The sensible heat rotor  251  is made of heat absorbing material having high thermal capacity, so that the air flows flowing in the first and second channels  211  and  212  can exchange heat via the sensible heat rotor  251 . The air in the first channel  211  flowing out of the desiccant rotor  220 , which is increased in temperature due to the heat release from the moisture sorption process through the desiccant rotor  220 , is cooled transferring heat to the sensible heat rotor  251 . Then, the heated part of the heat rotor  251  rotates into the second channel  211  to release heat to the air flowing from outdoors. For this, identically to the desiccant rotor  220 , the sensible heat rotor  251  is installed across the partition wall  213 , and rotates over the first and second channels  211  and  212 . 
         [0052]    For further cooling, a cooling coil  252  can be installed in the first channel  211  at the outlet of the sensible heat rotor  251 . The cooling coil  252  additionally cools the air which has passed through the sensible heat rotor  251  by refrigerants or chilled water. 
         [0053]      FIG. 5  is a concept view illustrating an air conditioning apparatus in accordance with yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0054]    As shown in  FIG. 5 , the air conditioning apparatus  300  includes a first casing  310 , a second casing  320 , a partition wall  330 , a desiccant rotor  340  and a regeneration unit  350 . 
         [0055]    The first casing  310  is a hollow body with its inlet  311 ′ and outlet  311 ″ opened at both ends. The inside space of the first casing  310  is divided into a first channel  311  and a second channel  312  by the second casing  320  disposed inside the first casing  310 . 
         [0056]    The second casing  320  is a blocked hollow body. The partition wall  330  is disposed inside the second casing  320 . The partition wall  330  partitions off the inside space of the second casing  320  into third and fourth channels  321  and  322  in communication with each other. 
         [0057]    The desiccant rotor  340  and the regeneration unit  350  correspond to the desiccant rotor  220  and the regeneration unit  230  explained above. Therefore, detailed explanations thereof are omitted. 
         [0058]    As shown in  FIG. 5 , the air conditioning apparatus  300  includes a condensing unit  360  in addition to the second embodiment shown in  FIG. 4 . The condensing unit  360  condenses the moisture from the air flowing out of the desiccant rotor in the fourth or regeneration channel  322 . The air flowing out of the condensing unit  360  is decreased in the humidity due to the moisture condensation and is redirected to the regeneration channel  322  of the desiccant rotor  340 . With this embodiment, the regeneration air can be recycled to make the regeneration air channel in a closed circuit and the desorbed moisture from the regeneration of the desiccant rotor  340  is removed in the form of condensed liquid water by the condensing unit  360 . the condensed liquid water is collected in a water tank  390  which is detachably mounted on the second casing  320 . 
         [0059]    The condensing unit  360  is a sort of heat exchanger for exchanging heat between the hot humid air from the regeneration side of the desiccant rotor and the relatively cool air branching from the return air stream through an independent air channel  312 . The hot humid air from the regeneration side is cooled by the relatively cold return air resulting in the moisture condensation. Consequently, the desorbed moisture from the desiccant rotor in the regeneration side is removed from the regeneration air at the condensing unit  360 . 
         [0060]    A cooling unit  380  for cooling the air dehumidified by the desiccant rotor  340  corresponds to the cooling unit  250  described above. The dehumidified air from the desiccant rotor  340  is finally cooled by the cooling unit  380  and is supplied to an indoor space intended to be air-conditioned. Fans  371  and  372  for facilitating air flows in the casings  310  and  320  correspond to the fans  241  and  242  described above. 
         [0061]    Differently from the air conditioning apparatus  200 , the air conditioning apparatus  300  recycles the air in the second casing or regeneration circuit  320 , and thus does not need to induce the outdoor air. When the air conditioning apparatus  300  is disposed indoors, the indoor air is taken through the inlet  311 ′ and discharged to the indoor space through the outlet  311 ″. That is, induction of the outdoor air is not required. As a result, holes are not bored through an outer wall of a building in the installation of the air conditioning apparatus  300 . In addition, as compared with the air conditioning apparatus  200 , the air conditioning apparatus  300  does not require the extension channel or ductwork  260 . Accordingly, the air conditioning apparatus  300  can be easily installed and disassembled. 
         [0062]      FIG. 6  is a concept view illustrating an air conditioning system using the district heat supply. 
         [0063]    Referring to  FIG. 6 , the air conditioning system includes a dehumidification system  400  and a district heat supply system  500 . 
         [0064]    The dehumidification system  400  is composed of a dehumidification or air conditioning apparatus  410 , a hot water circuit  420  and a heat exchanger  430 . 
         [0065]    The dehumidification or air conditioning apparatus  410  installed in indoor space (house, workroom, etc.) is one of the dehumidification apparatus  100  and the air conditioning apparatuses  200  and  300  for supplying the dehumidified (and cooled) air to the space requiring air-conditioning. Such apparatuses  100 ,  200  and  300  have been described above. 
         [0066]    The dehumidification or air conditioning apparatus  410  is connected to the hot water circuit  420  to be supplied with the regeneration heat for the desiccant rotor  110 ,  220  or  340 . The heat exchanger  430  transfers heat from the district heat supply system  500  to the hot water circuit  420 . 
         [0067]    The district heat supply system  500  is a central energy facility such as a cogeneration plant. The cogeneration plant  500  stores waste heat generated by electricity generation in a thermal storage tank  510 . A heat exchanger  520  performs heat exchange with water. The water supplied with heat moves along a heat transfer line  540  connected to the heat exchanger  430  by a circulation pump  530 . 
         [0068]    By this configuration, the waste heat can be supplied from the district heat supply system  500  to each space requiring air-conditioning, and used to dehumidify and cool the air. With this increased heat demand to supply air-conditioning in the summer, it is possible to operate the cogeneration plant  500  even in the summer which has not been normally managed due to large decrease in the heat demand in summer. 
         [0069]    Another advantage of the present invention is that any additional installation of the water lines is not required for the embodiment of the present invention except the original hot water circuit for heating. It is thus possible to efficiently economically use the waste heat for air conditioning. 
         [0070]    As the present invention may be embodied in several forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof, it should also be understood that the above-described embodiments are not limited by any of the details of the foregoing description, unless otherwise specified, but rather should be construed broadly within its spirit and scope as defined in the appended claims, and therefore all changes and modifications that fall within the metes and bounds of the claims, or equivalents of such metes and bounds are therefore intended to be embraced by the appended claims.