Experiments on the dehumidification performance of a finned tube heat exchanger

The performance of fan coil heat exchangers with smooth continuous aluminum fins on three rows of copper tubes was studied for heat and mass transfer, and for dehumidifier performance. Such fan coil units are common in industrial situations. Experiments were conducted to measure the heat and mass transfer performance for various air velocities and water flow rates. The results are presented below. Published correlations were used for an analysis of heat and mass transfer. Discrepancies between the calculated and the experimental results resulted because the calculated results were made from published correlations most commonly with more than six rows. The experimental results also showed an inadequacy of analysis in predicting the dehumidification capacity of finned tube heat exchangers. A revised correlation equation for heat exchangers of this type is proposed.