US 2022/0178559 A1Published application

Dehumidification system with variable capacity

AssigneeCoil Research, LLC

InventorsJames C. Schaefer, Michael C. Laraway, Thomas L. Cooper, Nicholas R. Hankamp

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Abstract

A multi-use system for influencing organic matter in an environmentally controlled room is provided with a modular dehumidification system. The modular dehumidification system includes a head unit, with separate cooling and heating subcircuits, and multiple modular dehumidifier units. Each modular dehumidifier unit has a cooling coil operable to cool and/or dehumidify the air and a heating coil operable to heat the air, for example, to raise room temperature and/or offset heat loss arising during dehumidification. The cooling coils are connected to the head unit in parallel to one another and the heating coils are connected to the head unit in parallel to one another. The number of modular dehumidifier units installed in the system is selected to provide the system with the desired maximum capacity. The control system may be configured to activate the appropriate number of cooling and heating coils, and to control the operation of each active coil.

Claims27

Dependent claims

A modular dehumidification system for a drying system of an environmentally controlled room comprising:

a head unit having a cooling refrigerant subcircuit and a heating refrigerant subcircuit, the cooling refrigerant subcircuit including a refrigerant chiller, a cooled refrigerant pump, a main supply line and a main return line, the heating refrigerant subcircuit including a refrigerant heater, a heated refrigerant pump, a main supply line and a main return line;
a first dehumidifier unit having:
a cooling supply extension line, a cooling return extension line and a cooling coil connected between the cooling supply extension line and the cooling return extension line, the cooling return extension line connected to the main supply line of the cooling refrigerant subcircuit and the cooling return extension line connected to the main return line of the cooling refrigerant subcircuit, and
a heating supply extension line, a heating return extension line and a heating coil connected between the heating supply extension line and the heating return extension line, the heating supply extension line connected to the main supply line of the heating refrigerant subcircuit and the heating return extension line connected to the main return line of the heating refrigerant subcircuit;
a second dehumidifier unit having:
a cooling supply extension line, a cooling return extension line and a cooling coil connected between the cooling supply extension line and the cooling return extension line, the cooling return extension line of the second dehumidifier unit connected to the cooling return extension line of the first dehumidifier unit and the cooling return extension line of the second dehumidifier unit connected to the cooling return extension line of the first dehumidifier unit, and
a heating supply extension line, a heating return extension line and a heating coil connected between the heating supply extension line and the heating return extension line, the heating supply extension line of the second dehumidifier unit connected to the heating supply extension line of the first dehumidifier unit and the heating return extension line of the second dehumidifier unit connected to the heating return extension line of the first dehumidifier unit;
wherein the cooling coil of the first dehumidifier unit and the cooling coil of the second dehumidifier unit are connected to the cooling refrigerant subcircuit in parallel, and the heating coil of the first dehumidifier unit and the heating coil of the second dehumidifier unit are connected to the heating refrigerant subcircuit in parallel.

5 more elements

A modular dehumidification system for a drying system of an environmentally controlled room comprising:

a head unit having a refrigerant chiller to cool a first supply of refrigerant and a cooling pump for circulating the cooled refrigerant along a cooling supply line and a cooling return line, the head unit further including a refrigerant heater to heat a second supply of refrigerant and a heating pump for circulating the heated refrigerant along a heating supply line and a heating return line;
a first dehumidifier unit having:
a cooling coil operatively connected to the cooling supply line and the cooling return line,
a heating coil operatively connected to the heating supply line and the heating return line, and
an air flow path over the cooling coil and the heating coil;
and
a second dehumidifier unit having:
a cooling coil operatively connected to the cooling supply line and the cooling return line in parallel with the cooling coil of the first dehumidifier unit,
a heating coil operatively connected to the heating supply line and the heating return line in parallel with the cooling coil of the first dehumidifier unit,
an air flow path over the cooling coil and the heating coil;
wherein at least one of the first dehumidifier unit and the second dehumidifier unit includes at least one control valve to selectively deactivate the cooling coil and the heating coil of that dehumidifier unit without effecting operation of the cooling coil and the heating coil of the other dehumidifier unit, whereby the capacity setting of the dehumidification system can be varied.

8 more elements

A modular dehumidifier unit comprising:

a housing defining an internal chamber and including a first endwall defining an air inlet and a second endwall defining an air outlet, and an air flow path between the air inlet and the air outlet;
a cooling subcircuit having a supply extension line, a return extension line, and a cooling coil connected therebetween, the cooling coil disposed in the internal chamber along the air flow path to dehumidify air passing over the cooling coil, the supply extension line having a first end connectable to a head unit that supplies cooled refrigerant and a second end connectable to a cooling subcircuit of a subsequent modular dehumidifier unit, the return extension line having a first end connectable to a head unit to return cooled refrigerant to the head unit and a second end connectable to a cooling subcircuit of a subsequent modular dehumidifier unit;
a heating subcircuit having a supply extension line, a return extension line, and a heating coil connected therebetween, the heating coil disposed in the internal chamber along the air flow path downstream from the cooling coil to increase the temperature of air moving through the internal chamber, the supply extension line of the heating subcircuit having a first end connectable to a head unit that supplies heated refrigerant and a second end connectable to a heating subcircuit of a subsequent modular dehumidifier unit, the return extension line of the heating subcircuit having a first end connectable to a head unit to return heated refrigerant to the head unit and a second end connectable to a heating subcircuit of a subsequent modular dehumidifier unit;
wherein the cooling subcircuit included a first control valve for selectively preventing the flow of cooled refrigerant through the cooling coil and a second control valve for selectively prevent the flow of heated refrigerant through the heating coil.

1 more element

A dehumidification system comprising:

a head unit having a cooling refrigerant subcircuit and a heating refrigerant subcircuit, the cooling refrigerant subcircuit including a refrigerant chiller, a cooled refrigerant pump, a main supply line and a main return line, the heating refrigerant subcircuit including a refrigerant heater, a heated refrigerant pump, a main supply line and a main return line;
a first dehumidifier unit having a cooling coil, a cooling coil control valve, a heating coil, and a heating coil control valve, wherein the cooling coil is connected to the cooling refrigerant subcircuit between the main supply line of the cooling refrigerant subcircuit and the main return line of the cooling refrigerant subcircuit, and the heating coil is connected to the heating refrigerant subcircuit between the main supply line of the heating refrigerant subcircuit and the main return line of the heating refrigerant subcircuit;
a second dehumidifier unit having a cooling coil, a cooling coil control valve, a heating coil and a heating coil control valve, wherein cooling coil of the second dehumidifier unit is connected to the cooling refrigerant subcircuit between the main supply line of the cooling refrigerant subcircuit and the main return line of the cooling refrigerant subcircuit in parallel with the cooling coil of the first dehumidifier unit, and the heating coil of the second dehumidifier unit is connected to the heating refrigerant subcircuit between the main supply line of the heating refrigerant subcircuit and the main return line of the heating refrigerant subcircuit in parallel with the heating coil of the first dehumidifier unit;
and
a control system configured to vary the capacity of the dehumidification system over time by selectively activating or deactivating the cooling coils and the heating coils of the first dehumidifier unit and the second dehumidifier unit, the control system activating and deactivating the cooling coils and the heating coils by opening or closing the corresponding control valves, the control system further configured to control operation of each activated cooling coil and each activated heating coil by modulating the corresponding control valve.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.