Experimental investigation of air velocity, water flow rate, and staging of cooling pad on the performance of direct evaporative coolers

Abstract In hot and dry climates, improving air cooling efficiency is vital for reducing energy consumption and enhancing indoor comfort. An evaporative cooling system utilizes water evaporation to cool air effectively. This study experimentally analyzes a direct evaporative cooler (DEC) set in a co...

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Main Authors: Tazebew Dires Kassie, Yaregal Eneyew Bizuneh, Amare Merfo Amsal
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Springer 2025-07-01
Series:International Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1007/s44189-025-00080-4
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author Tazebew Dires Kassie
Yaregal Eneyew Bizuneh
Amare Merfo Amsal
author_facet Tazebew Dires Kassie
Yaregal Eneyew Bizuneh
Amare Merfo Amsal
author_sort Tazebew Dires Kassie
collection DOAJ
description Abstract In hot and dry climates, improving air cooling efficiency is vital for reducing energy consumption and enhancing indoor comfort. An evaporative cooling system utilizes water evaporation to cool air effectively. This study experimentally analyzes a direct evaporative cooler (DEC) set in a controlled environment to optimize key performance parameters, including air velocity, water consumption rate, cooling pad staging, humidity levels, and cooling capacity. Results indicated that a maximum cooling capacity of 17.6 W/m2 was achieved at 6.8 °C dry bulb temperature drop and a 33.5% rise in relative humidity across the cooling chamber. A strong linear relationship was observed between air velocities and cooling capacity, increasing by 4.43 W/m2 for every 1 m/s rise in airflow. Additionally, a three-stage cooling pad configuration outperformed single and two-stage setups, achieving the highest system effectiveness of 65% alongside a 32.8% rise in humidity. These findings highlight the potential of multistage DEC systems with natural cooling pads for energy-efficient climate control solutions.
format Article
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institution Kabale University
issn 2010-1333
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher Springer
record_format Article
series International Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration
spelling doaj-art-9b0fbd9e9f454719a11a8dbcb6298a4b2025-08-20T03:42:53ZengSpringerInternational Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration2010-13332025-07-0133111110.1007/s44189-025-00080-4Experimental investigation of air velocity, water flow rate, and staging of cooling pad on the performance of direct evaporative coolersTazebew Dires Kassie0Yaregal Eneyew Bizuneh1Amare Merfo Amsal2Department of Mechanical Engineering, Debre Markos UniversityDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, Debre Markos UniversityDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, Debre Markos UniversityAbstract In hot and dry climates, improving air cooling efficiency is vital for reducing energy consumption and enhancing indoor comfort. An evaporative cooling system utilizes water evaporation to cool air effectively. This study experimentally analyzes a direct evaporative cooler (DEC) set in a controlled environment to optimize key performance parameters, including air velocity, water consumption rate, cooling pad staging, humidity levels, and cooling capacity. Results indicated that a maximum cooling capacity of 17.6 W/m2 was achieved at 6.8 °C dry bulb temperature drop and a 33.5% rise in relative humidity across the cooling chamber. A strong linear relationship was observed between air velocities and cooling capacity, increasing by 4.43 W/m2 for every 1 m/s rise in airflow. Additionally, a three-stage cooling pad configuration outperformed single and two-stage setups, achieving the highest system effectiveness of 65% alongside a 32.8% rise in humidity. These findings highlight the potential of multistage DEC systems with natural cooling pads for energy-efficient climate control solutions.https://doi.org/10.1007/s44189-025-00080-4Direct evaporative coolerPerformance optimizationHumidity levelsCooling pad stagingCooling capacity
spellingShingle Tazebew Dires Kassie
Yaregal Eneyew Bizuneh
Amare Merfo Amsal
Experimental investigation of air velocity, water flow rate, and staging of cooling pad on the performance of direct evaporative coolers
International Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration
Direct evaporative cooler
Performance optimization
Humidity levels
Cooling pad staging
Cooling capacity
title Experimental investigation of air velocity, water flow rate, and staging of cooling pad on the performance of direct evaporative coolers
title_full Experimental investigation of air velocity, water flow rate, and staging of cooling pad on the performance of direct evaporative coolers
title_fullStr Experimental investigation of air velocity, water flow rate, and staging of cooling pad on the performance of direct evaporative coolers
title_full_unstemmed Experimental investigation of air velocity, water flow rate, and staging of cooling pad on the performance of direct evaporative coolers
title_short Experimental investigation of air velocity, water flow rate, and staging of cooling pad on the performance of direct evaporative coolers
title_sort experimental investigation of air velocity water flow rate and staging of cooling pad on the performance of direct evaporative coolers
topic Direct evaporative cooler
Performance optimization
Humidity levels
Cooling pad staging
Cooling capacity
url https://doi.org/10.1007/s44189-025-00080-4
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AT yaregaleneyewbizuneh experimentalinvestigationofairvelocitywaterflowrateandstagingofcoolingpadontheperformanceofdirectevaporativecoolers
AT amaremerfoamsal experimentalinvestigationofairvelocitywaterflowrateandstagingofcoolingpadontheperformanceofdirectevaporativecoolers