Trial / Demo
There are two options available for modeling the performance of evaporative cooling technology:
Direct vs indirect evaporative cooling system
With IESVE Software, a ‘Spray Chamber / Wetted Media’ component can evaluate evaporative cooling performance by adding, or spraying, moisture into the air stream.
Common controlled options include % Relative Humidity, Dewpoint temperature, and Moisture addition rate.
Common sensed options include dry-bulb temperature and wet-bulb depression.
Controlled vs sensed options for controller
This innovative equipment provides three distinct means of modeling an evaporative cooler:
Wetted media performance curves
In the example shown, significant energy savings are realized because the combined Indirect & Direct Evaporative Cooling (IDEC) system results in a temperature decrease of 18°F, or 10°C. On the psychrometric chart, the direct evaporative cooling follows a constant enthalpy line.
Operational simulation results
The Water-Energy Nexus considers the interrelationship between water and energy. A single-day profile graph and annual water consumption bar chart from both direct and indirect spray chambers are shown below.
Water simulation results
It is important to evaluate the demands for makeup water and operational energy together when considering the specification of evaporative cooling technology in HVAC system design. However, evaporative cooling, or evaporative pre-cooling, is certainly a viable energy efficiency option that may avoid or reduce the requirement for a vapor-compression-based cycle used in a chiller or heat pump. For this example, a design-day sizing calculation cooled the air to 54°F, or 12°C during the peak design cooling load calculation using the ASHRAE Heat Balance Method.
To find out more about how IESVE can be used for modeling the performance of evaporative cooling technology, reach out to liam.buckley@iesve.com.
