In a method and apparatus for conditioning air for an enclosure, a first ambient airstream is cooled by a cooling coil of a refrigerant cooling system to reduce temperature and humidity, passed through a segment of a rotating desiccant wheel to reduce moisture content and increase temperature, and then supplied to the enclosure. The desiccant wheel is regenerated by a second ambient airstream heated with a condenser coil of the refrigerant system and then passed through a regeneration segment of the desiccant wheel. A bypass plenum allows a third ambient airstream to be selectively heated and cooled independent of the evaporator coil and desiccant wheel in the first plenum. Heated air bypassed from the second ambient airstream or an independent heater can perform the selective heating in the bypass plenum. The airstream in the bypass plenum is then supplied with the air treated in the first plenum to the enclosure.

An apparatus for dehumidifying ambient atmospheric air includes a first air path and a second air path. A heat exchanger system transfers at least a portion of radiated thermal energy to air drawn along the first air path to heat the air in the first air path and transfers at least a portion of the thermal energy from exhaust gas to air drawn along the first air path to heat the air in the first air path. The first air path connects the ambient atmosphere to a reactivation air outlet through the heat exchanger system and a desiccant in a second moisturized state, and the second air path connects the ambient atmosphere to a dried air outlet through the desiccant in a first dried state.

A ventilation system includes an inside air passage having inflow and outflow ends communicating with an indoor space to be ventilated, at least one permeable film unit including a permeable film, and an air supply passage having an inflow end communicating with an outdoor space and an outflow end connected to a downstream side of the permeable film in the inside air passage. The permeable film allows a target gas to pass and allows the target gas that has passed through the permeable film to be discharged into outdoor air. The target gas contains at least one of carbon dioxide and a volatile organic compound in indoor air that flows in the inside air passage. Alternatively or in addition, the ventilation system can include an outside air passage and a discharge passage in place of or in addition to the inside air passage and the air supply passage, respectively.

An energy recovery system for an air handling unit includes a support frame, an energy recovery wheel, and a wheel actuator. The support frame supports the energy recovery wheel within the air handling unit. The energy recovery wheel is configured to rotate about a rotation axis during operation. The wheel actuator is configured to drive the energy recovery wheel to rotate about the rotation axis.

Air conditioning units, systems, and methods that control temperature and humidity within a space in a building, for example, using a recovery wheel, a desiccant-based or passive dehumidification wheel, a primary cooling coil; and a secondary direct-expansion refrigeration circuit that includes a secondary circuit compressor, a secondary circuit evaporator coil, and a secondary circuit condenser coil. In various embodiments, the system forms a supply airstream that passes outdoor air first through the recovery wheel, then through the primary cooling coil, then through the secondary circuit evaporator coil, then through the dehumidification wheel, and then to the space. Further, in many embodiments, the system forms an exhaust airstream that passes return air from the space first through the secondary circuit condenser coil, then through the dehumidification wheel, and then through the recovery wheel. In some embodiments, various quantities of heat and moisture are transferred between the two airstreams.

A dehumidifying apparatus with dual dehumidifying rotor includes an air supply fan for introducing outside air; a first cooler for cooling the air being introduced through the air supply fan; a first dehumidifying rotor where a dehumidifying area and a regeneration area are formed in a circumferential direction; a second dehumidifying rotor where a dehumidifying area, a purge area and a regeneration area are formed in a circumferential direction; a heater disposed between the second dehumidifying rotor and a dry room that heats air passing each dehumidifying area of the first dehumidifying rotor and the second dehumidifying rotor and being supplied to the dry room; a first regeneration heater that heats air passing the purge area of the second dehumidifying rotor and being returned to the regeneration area; and an exhaust fan that discharges air that passed each regeneration area of the first and second dehumidifying rotors to outside.

A desiccant wheel is provided to be rotatable. Through the body of the wheel or a surface adsorbent, water vapor in humid air flow is adsorbed. By passing a high-temperature air flow through the wheel, the body or surface coating is regenerated with moisture removed. Along a cross-section radial, the wheel is divided into different areas. The body has three-dimensionally inter-connected pores. The pores can be of different types. The wheel is a complete concentric cylinder or a concentric cylinder comprising equal or unequal sectors. The equal or unequal sectors are separated with each other. The wheel can rotate at a fixed speed for continually repeating a process of adsorbing, transiting, and regenerating. Thereby, drying can be carried out without causing physical or chemical change to heat-sensitive material, which also improves drying efficiency, reduces size, lowers power consumption, and helps in carbon reduction for industry.

The present invention achieves a moisture absorbing material which enables efficient dehumidification without supercooling or large heat quantity; and a dehumidifier in which the moisture absorbing material is used. The moisture absorbing material can be a dried product of a polymer gel in which an interpenetrating polymer network structure or a semi-interpenetrating polymer network structure is formed by (a) a stimuli-responsive polymer whose affinity with water changes reversibly in response to an external stimulus and (b) a hydrophilic polymer.

The present invention is a dehumidifier powered by an engine. The dehumidifier recycles waste heat from the engine and other components for the drying process. Moisture is transferred by advection and evaporation from an air stream flowing through the target environment (e.g., building interior) into a hot system air stream.

An apparatus for dehumidification of air comprises a housing (2) provided with an inlet (3) for process air, an outlet (4) for process air and an opening (17) for regeneration air, a dehumidification element (6), a fan (10) for bringing process air to flow through at least a first portion of the dehumidification element, and a heating element (15) adapted to heat a part of process air flowing through the dehumidification element for regeneration of the dehumidification element by means of the heated process air. By providing control means (4a, 10, 17a, 17b) adapted to control the amount of air that flows though the outlet (4) for process air and the opening (17) for regeneration air and means (6b, 15a; 25) adapted to calculate consumed power for the heating element, wherein the heating element (15) is a PTC heater, a user can in a simple way adjust the operating parameters to a desired operating mode.