The use of solar desiccant cooling in the UK: a feasibility study

The desiccant cooling cycle is a novel open heat driven cycle which can be used both to cool and dehumidify air. Being a heat driven cycle, desiccant cooling affords an opportunity to utilise heat which might otherwise be wasted. It can therefore be coupled to solar collectors to produce a cooling system which, in theory, should be environmentally friendly. This paper discusses the feasibility of using solar energy to power the desiccant cooling cycle and also presents a study, in which a solar desiccant cooling model is used to evaluate installations located in the southeast and east midlands of England, and in central Scotland. The paper demonstrates that solar powered desiccant cooling is a feasible solution for cooling and heating buildings in the United Kingdom.