Problem 3.5.2

 

Air, completely saturated at 60 degrees F enters the heating coil at 10,000 cubic feet per minute.  It leaves the heating coil at 110 degrees F.  Find the amount of heat that needs to be supplied to bring this change to the condition of the air.

 

Solution: 

 

Let us use the Psychrometric Chart suitable for High Temperatures ranges (Figure 5.11a). 

 

Locate the Point 1 representing completely saturated air at 60 degrees F. 

Draw a horizontal line to read a humidity value (W1) of 0.0112 pounds of water per pound of dry air.

 

Move along the wet bulb line and extend it further to read the enthalpy of saturation from the slanted scale as 26.5 BTUs per pound. 

 

Please note that humid volume is plotted as curves on the Psychrometric Chart at angles with negative slope.  These values are 13, 13.5, 14, and 14.5 cubic feet per pound of dry air.  For case in hand, its value is 13.33 cubic feet per pound of dry air.

 

The completely saturated air is heated to 110 degrees F.  This heating process is represented by horizontal line.  Point 2 has a dew point of 60 and dry-bulb of 110 degrees F and is located by drawing a horizontal line from Point 1 and extending it to a vertical line of 110 degrees F.  Its properties can be read as:

 

Humidity remains unchanged at 0.0112 pounds per pound of dry air.

 

Enthalpy of humid air can be calculated by noting that enthalpy deviation as minus 0.33 BTUs per pound and Enthalpy at Saturation as 38.6 BTUs, thus giving humid enthalpy of 38.27 BTUs per pound dry air.

 

Mass flow rate of air can be calculated from the volumetric flow rate and specific volume information at entering state.  This value is found to be 10,000 divided by 13.33 times 60 equal 45,011.2 pound per hour.

 

Heat requirement can be found by multiplying this mass flow rate with enthalpy change per pound of dry air.  It is equal to 529,782 BTUs per hour.