Experimental and numerical investigation of a high-efficiency dew-point evaporative cooler

Abstract This paper investigated the cooling performance of a high-efficiency dew-point evaporative cooler with optimised air and water flow arrangement using the combined experimental and numerical simulation method. The experimental results showed that the wet-bulb efficiency of the dew-point evaporative cooler was increased by 29.3% and COP was increased by 34.6%, compared to the existing commercial dew point air cooler of the same capacity. An improved two-dimensional, multi-factor engaged numerical model which can scale up and optimize the size and capacity of the cooler was developed. The numerical predictions agreed well with the experimental results, indicating that the cooling rate of the dew-point evaporative cooler is influenced by the dew-point evaporative cooler structure. The cooling efficiency of the dew-point evaporative cooler with corrugated plates is more than 10% higher than with flat plates and the cooling efficiency of the dew-point evaporative cooler with the actual flow arrangement is only 62%–67% that of a dew-point evaporative cooler with an ideal counter-flow arrangement. The cooling efficiency can be improved by increasing the channel length and the air entrance length, and decreasing the channel width and channel gap within a reasonable range.