Development, Modelling and Performance Assessment of Phase Change Enhanced Desiccant Cooling

Energy consumption and greenhouse gas emission of the building sector have been continuously increasing in recent decades due to the population growth and demand for better indoor thermal comfort. Desiccant cooling is an attractive option for tackling these challenges as desiccant cooling systems are mainly driven by low-grade thermal energy and consume less electricity and fossil fuels as compared to conventional vapour-compression air-conditioning systems. On the other hand, phase change materials (PCMs) with the ability to provide high energy storage densities and the characteristics to store thermal energy at a relatively constant temperature have attracted increasing attention for developing high-performance air-conditioning systems. This thesis aims at developing, evaluating and optimising phase change enhanced desiccant cooling systems. Two novel approaches to enhancing the desiccant cooling system with PCMs were developed, including a desiccant wheel cooling system using hybrid photovoltaic/thermal-solar air collector (PV/T-SAC) and PCM thermal energy storage (TES) unit, and a liquid desiccant dehumidifier using a new phase change enhanced desiccant solution...