Experimental study the effect of CaCl2solution temperature variation as a liquid desiccant on regenerator/humidifier performance

Abstract

In the food and beverage industry, drying is one of the most important factors in maintaining the durability of these foods. The technology that is often used is to use the spray drying method which converts the extraction of food and beverages into solid powder. In spray drying, air is used as the drying medium. So that air conditions are the main focus. One of the most frequently used air conditioning techniques is dehumidification, which is by reducing the moisture content in the air by using a liquid desiccant as the working medium. Calcium chloride (CaCl2) solution was chosen because it is safe for food. During the dehumidification process, over time the CaCl2 solution will reach a saturation point where it loses its ability to absorb water vapor in the air. Therefore a regeneration process is needed to restore its ability, namely by using a regenerator or humidifier which in this study uses a counter flow type of flow. This study aims to examine the effect of temperature variations of CaCl2 on humidifier performance as read from changes in air temperature and humidity and the data obtained have been validated by previous research. From this study it was found that the higher the temperature of CaCl2, the higher the addition of moisture in the air, which means that more water vapor is lost in the CaCl2 solution.