Conditioning air

See Fertilizers Fungicides, agricultural FEerbicides Insect contr.ol technology Soil chemistuy of pesticides. 

The design of air conditioning systems is a highly specialized branch of engineering. A number of excellent information sources regarding air conditioning are available (1). 

Thermodynamic principles govern all air conditioning processes (see Heat exchange technology, heat transfer). Of particular importance are specific thermodynamic appHcations both to equipment performance which influences the energy consumption of a system and to the properties of moist air which determine air conditioning capacity. The concentration of moist air defines a system s load. 

Thermodynamics. Many definitions and formulations exist for the laws of thermodynamics, a detailed treatment of which may be found in standard engineering texts (2). Definitions that apply best to air conditioning are as follows  

Virst law. This is the law of conservation of energy which states that the flow of energy into a system must equal the flow of energy out of the same system minus the energy that remains inside the system boundary. For an open system in which the energy flows are not time dependent and in which there is no accumulation of energy in the system, the first law may be written as 

See Fertilizers Fungicides, agricultural Herbicides Insect control technology Soil chemistry of pesticides. 

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Fuel passing through certain hot zones of an aircraft can attain high temperatures moreover it is used to cool lubricants, hydraulic fluids, or air conditioning. It is therefore necessary to control the thermal stability of jet fuels, more particularly during supersonic flight where friction heat increases temperatures in the fuel tanks. 

Fluorine and its compounds are used in producing uranium (from the hexafluoride) and more than 100 commercial fluorochemicals, including many well known high-temperature plastics. Hydrofluoric acid etches the glass of light bulbs, etc. Fluorochlorohydrocarbons are extensively used in air conditioning and refrigeration. 

Low pressure storage of methane Desiccant cooling (open-cycle air conditioning)... 

Open steady-flow systems, which include almost all air conditioning processes, foUow this law. Examples include the energy flows in a cooling and dehurnidifying coil or an evaporative cooling system. 

Psychrometrics. Psychrometrics is the branch of thermodynamics that deals specifically with moist air, a biaary mixture of dry air and water vapor. The properties of moist air are frequentiy presented on psychrometric charts such as that shown ia Figure 2 for the normal air conditioning range at atmospheric pressure. Similar charts exist for temperatures below 0°C and above 50°C as well as for other barometric pressures. AH mass properties ate related to the mass of the dry air. 

Eundamental to the design of any air conditioning system is the determination of the operating conditions of temperature and humidity. Worker comfort must also be considered. 

Human Comfort. ASHRAE has extensively researched the effect of air conditioning on human comfort. The more practical results are summarized below reference 4 contains a complete discussion. 

The following information is customarily requited for thorough design of new air conditioning systems or renovation of existing systems. 

Dehumidification. Dehumidification may be accompHshed in several ways (see Drying). Moderate changes in humidity can be made by exposing the air stream to a surface whose temperature is below the dew point of the air. The air is cooled and releases a portion of its moisture. Closed cycle air conditioning systems normally effect dehumidification also. The cooled air may require reheating to attain the desired dry-bulb temperature if there is insufficient sensible load in the space. 

Some industrial processes produce predorninately latent air conditioning loads. Others dictate very low humidities and when the dew point falls below 0°C, free2ing becomes a major concern. Dehydration equipment, using soHd sorbents such as siUca gel and activated alurnina, or Hquid sorbents such as lithium chloride brine and triethylene glycol, may be used. The process is exothermic and may require cooling the exiting air stream to meet space requirements. Heat is also required for reactivation of the sorbent material. 

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