INTRODUCTION

Air conditioning is the process whereby the condition of air, as defined by its temperature and moisture
content, is changed. In practice other factors must also be taken into account especially cleanliness, odor,
velocity & distribution pattern.
Air Conditioning Processes

Air Conditioning Processes illustrated on a Psychometric Chart

In air conditioning processes heat is added to or extracted from the air to produce heating or cooling. At
any temperature, moist air will contain:
Sensible heat for dry air.
Sensible heat for water.
Latent heat of evaporation.
Sensible superheat for water vapor.
-

An adiabatic process is one in which the air loses sensible heat by an amount equal to the latent
heat gain.
Cooling is the transfer of energy from the space or air supplied to the space by virtue of a
difference in temperature between the source and the space or air. In the usual cooling process air
is circulated over a surface at a low temperature. Cooling usually denotes sensible heat transfer,
with a decrease in the air temperature.

Heating is the transfer of energy to a space or to the air in a space by virtue of a difference in
temperature between the source and the space or air. Heating can take place through direct
radiation and free convection, heating of forced circulated air, heating of water that is circulated
to the vicinity space.
Dehumidifying is the transfer of water vapor from the atmospheric air. Latent heat transfer is
associated with this process. This process is most often accompanied by circulating the air over a
surface maintained at a sufficiently low temperature to cause the condensation of water vapor
from the mixture.
Humidifying is the transfer of water vapor to atmospheric air. This process is usually
accomplished by introducing water vapor or by spraying fine droplets of water that evaporate into
the circulating air stream.

Principles of Air- Conditioning:

Human comfort
Inevitably 'comfort' is a very subjective matter. The Engineer aims to ensure 'comfort' for most people
found from statistical surveys. Most people (90%) are comfortable when the air temperature is between
18-22C and the %sat is between 40-65%. This zone can be shown on the psychometric chart. And is
known as the comfort zone.

Outside air is quite likely to be at a different condition from the required comfort zone condition. In order
to bring its condition to within the comfort zone we may need to do one or more of the following: heat it,
cool it, dehumidify it, humidify it, or mix it.

Dry air mass flow

In order to use the psychometric chart for air-conditioning work we need to find & use dry air mass flows.
However, in practice air-flows are frequently measured in terms of volume flow. In order to find dry air
mass flow, we need to use the specific volume of the air.
Specific volume = volume/mass
The specific volume of the air is given from the Psychometric chart in m3/kg of dry air, therefore the
mass flow will be in terms of dry air mass flow. Obviously the condition of the air must be known in
order to find the specific volume.
Air heating
Heating process is opposite to sensible cooling process. In sensible heating process the temperature of air
is increased without changing its moisture content. During this process the sensible heat, DB and WB
temperature of the air increases while latent of air, and the DP point temperature of the air remains
constant.
Sensible heating of the air is important when the air conditioner is used as the heat pump to heat the air. In
the heat pump the air is heated by passing it over the condenser coil or the heating coil that carry the high
temperature refrigerant. In some cases, the heating of air is also done to suit different industrial and
comfort air-conditioning applications where large air conditioning systems are used.
Cooling/Dehumidification
Cooling
Cooling of the air is one of the most common psychometric processes in the air conditioning systems. The
basic function of the air-conditioners is to cool the air absorbed from the room or the atmosphere, which
is at higher temperatures. The sensible cooling of air is the process in which only the sensible heat of the
air is removed so as to reduce its temperature, and there is no change in the moisture content (kg/kg of dry
air) of the air. During sensible cooling process the dry bulb (DB) temperature and wet bulb (WB)
temperature of the air reduces, while the latent heat of the air, and the dew point (DP) temperature of the
air remains constant. There is overall reduction in the enthalpy of the air.
Humidification
The process of humidification allows the air to mix with extra water. A sufficient contact time between the
air and water will normally result in the air reaching 100% saturation. The process is very close to the
evaporation from a wet bulb. It therefore, follows a line of constant wet bulb temperature.
Mixing
Often, instead of exhausting 'stale' air completely some of it is filtered, deodorized and mixed with fresh
incoming air. This conserves energy and narrows the operating conditions for the air-conditioning system.
Heat Transfer

Heat is a form of energy. Every object on earth has some heat energy. The less heat an object has, the
colder we say it is. Cooling is the process of transferring heat from one object to another. When an airconditioning system cools, it is actually removing heat and transferring it somewhere else. This can be
demonstrated by turning on a Spot Cooler and placing one hand in front of the cold air nozzle and the
other over the warm air exhaust. You will feel the action of the transfer of heat.
Sensible and Latent Heat
There are two forms of heat energy: sensible heat and latent heat. Sensible heat is the form of heat energy
which is most commonly understood because it is sensed by touch or measured directly with a
thermometer. When weather reporters say it will be 90 degrees, they are referring to sensible heat. Latent
heat cannot be sensed by touch or measured with a thermometer. Latent heat causes an object to change
its properties. For example, when enough latent heat is removed from water vapor (steam or humidity), it
condenses into water
(liquid). If enough latent heat is removed from water (liquid), it will eventually freeze. This process is
reversed when latent heat is added.
Humidity
Moisture in the air is called humidity. The ability of air to hold moisture directly relates to its temperature.
The warmer air is; the more moisture it is capable of holding. Relative humidity is the percentage of
moisture in the air compared to the amount of moisture it can hold. A moisture content of 70F air with
50% relative humidity is lower than 80F air with 50% relative humidity. When the humidity is low,
sweat evaporates from your body more quickly. This allows you to cool off faster. High humidity
conditions do not allow sweat to evaporate as well because the air is at its maximum capacity. Humidity is
also a form of latent heat. When air contains more humidity, it has more latent heat.