Effect of air flow rate and operating time on the evaporator performance of solar air conditioning system

Abstract Conventional air conditioners that rely on fossil fuels have a significant environmental impact. As a result, there is a growing demand for sustainable energy solutions to mitigate global warming and reduce the carbon footprint. This study focuses on the design and construction of a solar-powered air conditioning system based on the solar vapor compression refrigeration (VCR) cycle. The system is powered by photovoltaic solar panels that store energy in batteries. Experiments were conducted to analyze the performance of the evaporator in a solar VCR cycle. The research investigates the effects of time and air velocity on the system’s performance, as well as the total time required to achieve the desired thermal comfort. The system performed optimally, achieving a dehumidification efficiency of 67.5%, an evaporator efficiency of 81%, and a moisture removal rate of 0.74 g/s. At an air velocity of 6.5 m/s, the system reached its maximum performance, achieving thermal comfort in 280 s.