Chapter Thre e

Psychrometric chart use and

requirement calculations
 PSYCHROMETRIC used to describe the field of engineering concerned
with the determination of the physical and thermodynamic properties of
gas-vapor mixtures.
 This is simply a graphical means of representing the thermodynamics
properties of moist air at constant pressure mostly at sea level.
Psychrometric Properties
1. Dry bulb temperature
2. Wet bulb temperature
3. Dew point temperature
4. Relative humidity
5. Humidity ratio
6. Specific volume
7. Enthalpy

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 1. Dry bulb temperature
This is the temperature indicated by a thermometer exposed to the air in a
place sheltered from direct solar radiation.

The term dry bulb is customarily added to temperature to distinguish it

from wet bulb and dew point temperature.

The dry bulb temperature is measured in degree Celsius/F. And denoted

with a straight vertical line on the psych chart .

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 2. Wet bulb temperature

The wet bulb temperature is the temperature recorded by a

thermometer when the bulb is enveloped by a cotton wick saturated with
water.

The accuracy of a simple wet bulb thermometer depends on how fast

air passes over the bulb and how well the thermometer is shielded from
the radiant temperature of its surroundings.

The wet bulb temperature is also measured in degree celsius and

denoted by a straight diagonal lines on the psych chart .
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 In air conditioning interpolations make use of prepared tables of values time consuming,
hence information that is sufficiently precise for the solution of most air conditioning
problems can usually be obtained-from graphs or charts.

 The commonly air conditioning chart applicable and relates temperature, humidity,
enthalpy, and certain other properties of moist air i.e specific volume is called
psychrometric chart.

PSYCHROMETRIC CHART Is a readable chart used in sizing of typical

air conditioning systems which involve numerous calculations.
  Air in the atmosphere normally contains some water vapour (or
moisture) and is referred to as atmospheric air.
 By contrast, air that contains no water vapor is called dry air.
 The temperature of air in air-conditioning applications ranges from
about -10 to about 50°C.
 In this range, dry air can be treated as an ideal gas with a constant cp
value of 1.005 kJ/kg · K
The enthalpy and enthalpy change of dry air can be determined from

 where T is the air temperature in °C and ΔT is the change in temperature.

 3. Dew point temperature
Condensation Occurs At Dew Point
The temperature at which moisture starts to condense out of air is called dew
point.

Dew point is also known a saturation temperature.

Dew point temperature is determined by moving from a state point

horizontally to the left along lines of constant humidity ratio until the upper,
curved, saturation boundary temperature is reached.

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  At 50°C, the saturation pressure of water is 12.3 kPa.
 At pressures below this value, water vapor can be treated as an ideal
gas. even when it is a saturated vapor.

 Therefore, water vapor in air behaves as if it existed alone and obeys the
ideal-gas relation Pv=RT.
 Then the atmospheric air can be treated as an ideal-gas mixture whose pressure is
the sum of the partial pressure of dry air Pa and tha t of water vapor Pv.

 Since water vapor is an ideal gas, the enthalpy of water vapor is a function of temperature
only.
 This can be observed from the T-s diagram of water where the constant enthalpy
lines coincide with constant-temperature lines at temperatures below 50°C.
At temperatures below 50°C, the
h=constant lines coincide with the
T=constant lines in thesuperheated
vapour region of water.

the enthalpy of wa ter

 Therefore, The enthalpy of water vapor at 0°C is
va por in ,air can be taken to be equal to 2500.9kJ/kg. The average cpp value of
water vapour in the temperature range -10 to
the enthalpy of saturated vapor at the same 50°C can be taken to be 1.82 kJ/kg·°C.
Then the enthalpy of water vapor can be
temperature. That is
determined approximately from
  The amount of water vapor in the air can be specified in various ways. the specific humidity (ω) and relative
humidity (Ø)
 As the mass of water vapor present in a unit mass of dry air called absolute or specific humidity
(also called humidity ratio) denoted by ω:

 Ra=0.2870& Rv= 0.4615 kJ/kg · K

The amount of water vapor in saturated
air at a specified temperature and
pressure can be determined from equations
the vapor pressure may be given by the
above by replacing P by P , the saturation
pressure of water at that temperature following equation :P =Ps-PA(T
V – T ) db wb
v g

Where
A-is constant =6.66X10-4 ºC-1
Tdb & T wb-dry and wet bulb Temp Ps-saturation
example
pressure at T P-total pressure
wb
 The amount of moisture in the air has a definite effect on how comfortable we feel in an
environment.
 And this comfort level depends more on the amount of moisture the air holds
(mv) relative to the maximum amount of moisture the air can hold at the
same temperature (m g). The ratio of these two quantities is called the relative
humidity (Ø)
 Where
 Combining ω and Ø
  the enthalpy of air is expressed in terms of the enthalpies of the dry air
and the water vapor.

 Since the amount of dry air in the air–water-vapour mixture remains

constant, and the amount of water vapor changes enthalpy of atmospheric
air is expressed per unit mass of dry air instead of per unit mass of the air–
water vapor mixture.
A 5mX5mX3m room contains air at 25°C and 100kPa at a relative humidity of 75
percent.
Determine (a) the partial pressure of dry air, (b) the specific humidity, (c) the enthalpy
per unit mass of the dry air, and (d ) the masses of the dry air and water vapor in the
room.
Solution (a) P a=P –P v, Pv =ØPg =ØPsat @ 25°C (0.75)(3.1698 kPa)=2.38 kPa

Therefore Pa=100KPa-2.38KPa=97.62KPa
(b) The specific humidity ω=0.622Pv/(p-Pv)=0.0152 kg H2O/kg dry air
(c) The enthalpy of air per unit mass of dry air is h=h + ωh =Ca T + vωhg p
=(1.005kJ/Kg. 0C)(250C)+(0.0152)(2546.5KJ/Kg)
=63.8kJ/Kg dry air The enthalpy of water vapor (2546.5 kJ/kg) could
also be determined from the approximation given by

Both the dry air and the water vapor fill the entire room completely. Therefore, the volume of each gas is equal
to the volume of the room: Va=Vv=V=5X5X3=75m3
 The masses of the dry air and the water vapor are determined from
the ideal gas relation applied to each gas separately:
ma=PaVa/RaT=(97.62KPa)(75m3)/[(0.287KPa.m3/Kg.K)(298K)]=85.6Kg
mv=PvVv/RvT=2.38KPa)(75m3)/[(0.4615KPa.m3/Kg.K)(298K)]=1.3Kg
 Mass of the water can also be determined from mv=ωma
=(0.0152)(85.6Kg)=1.3Kg
 The dew-point temperature Tdp is defined as the temperature
at which condensation begins when the air is cooled at constant
pressure.

 The ordinary temperature and the dew-point

temperature of saturated air are identical.

Tdp is the saturation temperature of water corresponding to the

vapor pressure:
In cold weather, condensation frequently occurs on the inner surfaces of the
windows due to the lower air temperatures near the window surface. Consider a
house that contains air at 20°C and 75 percent relative humidity. At what
window temperature will the moisture in the air start condensing on the inner surfaces
of the windows?
Solution
 The saturation pressure of water at 20°C is Psat=2.3392kPa
 The temperature distribution in a house, in general, is not uniform. When the
outdoor temperature drops in winter, so does the indoor temperature near the
walls and the windows.
 Therefore, the air near the walls and the windows remains at a lower temperature
than at the inner parts of a house even though the total pressure and the vapor
pressure remain constant throughout the house.
 As a result, the air near the walls and the windows undergoes a

P v= constant cooling process until the moisture in the air starts condensing.

 This happens when the air reaches its dew-point temperature which is determined

from

Where Pv=ØPg@200 C=(0.75)(2.3392KPa)=1.754KPa

0

thus [email protected]=15.40C
 Note that the inner surface of the window should be maintained above 15.4°C
if condensation on the window surfaces is to be avoided.
 The basic features of the psychometric
chart includes dry-bulb temperatures shown on
the horizontal axis, and the specific humidity
shown on the vertical axis.

As can be seen from the above diagram

 On the left end of the chart, there is a curve (called the saturation line) it is the curve of 100 percent relative
humidity.
 Lines of constant wet-bulb temperature have a downhill appearance to the right.
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 Lines of constant specific volume (in m /kg dry air) look similar, except they are steeper.

 Lines of constant enthalpy (in kJ/kg dry air) lie very nearly parallel to the lines of constant wet-bulb temperature.

 In some charts the constant wet-bulb-temperature lines are used as constant-enthalpy lines.
 The dew-point temperature is determined by drawing a horizontal line from the specified state to the left until it intersects
the saturation line
  Dry Bulb Temperature (T ; DB °C or F)
Wet Bulb Temperature (TWB; °C or F)
 The temperature of air measured by a
thermometer freely exposed to the air but  It is the mi ni mum temperature that the
shielded from radiation and moisture. moi st air coul d achi ev e if enough water
was added to achi ev e saturati on (RH
=100%) .
 It is the true air temperature we  A lso cal l ed the adi abati c
“feel.” saturation on temper a true.
  Dew Point Temperature (T ; DP
°C or F)
• The temperature at which saturation is reached (RH
=100%) when the moisture content of the air (W) stays
constant.
temperature at which water will
there words, T DP is the begin to condense out of
moist air.
Condensation occurs when: Tair < TDP

 E.g. When the temperature of cold drink is below the dew-point temperature of the
surrounding air, it “sweats.”
 Humidity Ratio/Specific Humidity (kg H O/kg DA
2 or lb H O/lbDA) 2

Expressed as a ratio of water vapour content to total amount of dry air.

content: Specif ic
humidity/ absolute humidity
 Relative Humidity (φ/RH; %)
 The ratio of actual vapour pressure to saturation vapour pressure at the same
temperature.
 Simply, it is a measure of how much water is in the air versus how much water
the air can hold at the same temperature.
  Enthalpy (h; kJ/kg dry air or BTU/lb air)
 Enthalpy represents the amount of sensible and latent energy contained in the moist air. Lines of constant
enthalpy and constant wet-bulb are the same on this chart but values are read off separate scales.

 Example: For air condition point (P) the enthalpy is read at point A. The sensible heat
component can be read at point B, corresponding to the enthalpy of dry air at the same
temperature. The remainder, i.e. A - B, is the latent heat content.
 Specific Volume (ν; m 3
/kg dry air or ft /lb3 dry air)

• This is the volume of the moist air mixture

(volume occupied by both dry air and water
vapour) versus the unit mass of dry air.
• At higher temperatures, the air molecules are
more energetic causing the volume of the moist air
mixture to expand and the density to decrease.

• The specific volume of air is the inverse of density (ν = 1/ρ)

  Saturated air line or dew point temperature line Saturation line is a temperature condition
at which water will begin to condense out of moist air.

 Given air at a certain dry bulb temperature and relative humidity, if the temperature is
allowed to decrease, the air is no longer able to hold as much moisture.
If any two of the dry bulb temperature ( T ), wet dbbulb temperature(T ), dew point wb temperature ( T ),
specific humidity (ω
dp ), relative humidity (Ø), specific volume ( v ), and enthalpy or total heat content (H ),

seven properties of an air water vapour mixture are known, the others can readily be found from the chart.
Consider a room that contains air at 1 atm, 35°C, and 40 percent relative humidity. Using
the psychrometric chart,
Ddetermine (a) the specific humidity, (b) the enthalpy, (c) the wet-bulb temperature, (d ) the
dew-point temperature, and (e) the specific volume of the air.

Solution
given total pressure, the state of atmospheric air is completely specified by two
independent properties such as the dry-bulb temperature and the relative humidity. Other
properties are determined by directly reading their values at the specified state.

(a) The specific humidity is determined by drawing a horizontal line from the
specified state to the right until it intersects with the ω axis, ω= 0.0142 kg H2O/kg dry air
(b) The enthalpy of air per unit mass of dry air is determined by drawing a line
parallel to the h =constant lines from the specific state until it intersects the
enthalpy scale, giving h= 71.5 kJ/kg dry air
(c) The wet-bulb temperature is determined by drawing a line parallel to the
Twb constant lines from the specified state until it intersects the saturation line,
giving Twb =24° C.
(d ) The dew-point temperature is determined by drawing a horizontal line
from the specified state to the left until it intersects the saturation line, giving
Tdp = 19. 4° C
(e) The specific volume per unit mass of dry air is determined by noting the
distances between the specified state and the v constant lines on both sides of
the point. The specific volume is determined by visual interpolation to be v =0.
893 m3/kg dry air
Ex ample

 A sample of moist air has a T ofdb43 ċ and T of 29

WB ċ , using the psychometric chart find :

a- Specific humidity
b- Relative humidity
c- Dew point temperature
d- Specific enthalpy
e- Specific volume
  The heating, cooling, humidifying, and dehumidifying processes which take place in
air conditioning all change the air from a condition represented by an initial state point
on the chart to some condition represented by another state point on the chart.

There are different processes possible.

1. Constant latent heat process ( indicated by constant moisture content and
constant dew point temperature ).
2. Constant sensible heat process ( indicated by constant dry bulb temperature ).
3. combination of sensible heat and latent heat change And Constant relative
humidity process ( all other factors change ).
4. Constant enthalpy (total heat ) process or adiabatic process ( indicated by
constant wet bulb temperature ).
5. Mixture of air quantities at different conditions.
 4. Constant enthalpy ( total heat ) pro cess
[ Adiabatic co o ling]
 The process of adding latent heat and removing sensible heat at constant
enthalpy.
 Air at a state of T DB = 14 ºC , RH= 50% is passed through a heating
coil . The TDB is increased up to 42 ºc. The moisture content
remain constant in this process.
Find : a) TWB of the exit air. b) The dew point temperature.
c) The sensible heat added by the heating coil for 1.0 kg/s of air .
ANS a) 19.5 º C , b) 3.9 º C , c) 28.6 kW}
 Adiabatic mixing of different quantities of air in two different states at constant
pressure. The conditions of the mixing state may be found by the following relations
and as shown in the figure above

T 3 = (m 1 T 1+ m 2 T 2 ) / (m +1 m )2 or ;
h 3 = (m 1 h 1+ m 2 h 2) / (m +1 m )2 or;
ω 3 = (m 1 ω 1+ m 2ω 2) / (m +1 m )2;

It is acceptable practice in air conditioning to use volume ratio rather than mass ratio:

T 3 = ( v 1 T 1+ v 2 T 2) / (v +1 v )2 ; similarly
h 3 = ( v 1 h 1+ v 2h 2) / (v +1 v )2 ; and similarly for ω
ω 3 = ( v 1ω 1+ v 2ω 2) / (v +1 v )2;
where m is mass flow rate in kg/s
v is volume flow rate in m3/s
T is dry bulb temperature in 0C
ω is specific humidity and h is enthalpy
 Two air streams are mixed the first at T =21ċ ,DB T = WB
14ċ and the second at T = DB 28ċ , T = 20 WB ċ with mass
flow rates of 1 kg/s and 3 kg/s for the first and second
respectively .
 Find the moisture content ,enthalpy ,and the T for theDB
mixture and plot the process on the psychrometric
chart .

(answers : 0.01 kgwv/kgda ,52.15 kJ/kg , 26.25 ċ )

 Process Air Conditioning Systems
 Process air conditioning systems provide needed indoor environmental control for
manufacturing, product storage, or other research and development processes.
1. In textile mills proper control of humidity increases the strength of the yarn and fabric during
processing. For many textile manufacturing processes,
 Too high a value for the space RH% can cause problems in the spinning process. On the other
hand, a lower RH% may induce static electricity that is harmful for the production processes.
2. Clean rooms. Many electronic products require clean rooms for manufacturing such things as
integrated circuits, since their quality is adversely affected by airborne particles.
 RH% control is also needed to prevent corrosion and condensation and to eliminate static
electricity.
 Temperature control maintains materials and instruments at stable condition and is also
Cont.…….
3. Precision manufacturers always need precise temperature control during production of
precision instruments, tools and equipment.
 Bausch and Lomb successfully constructed a constant-temperature control room of 68 ± 0.1°F
(20 ± 0.56°C) to produce light grating products in the 1950s.
4. Pharmaceutical products require temperature, humidity, and air cleanliness control. If the
temperature or humidity crosses certain limits, there are chances of deterioration of the
products.
 High efficiency air filters must be installed for most of the areas in pharmaceutical factories to
prevent contamination.
5. Ware houses. Modern refrigerated warehouses not only store commodities in coolers at
temperatures of 27–32°F (-2.8 to 0°C) and frozen foods at -10 to -20°F (-23 to -29°C), but also
provide RH control for perishable foods between 90% and 100%.
 Refrigerated storage is used to prevent deterioration. Temperature control can be performed
by refrigeration systems, but the simultaneous control of both temperature and RH in the
space can only be performed by process air-conditioning systems.
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